How long are we going to put up with this?

The Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads has tender number RSSM0610 out for the “Investigation of Zero Blood Alcohol Concentration for all Motorcycle Riders in Queensland”.

It is to “Provide research services to inform the development of government policy in relation to possible road safety benefits of introducing a reduced general limit (as defined in s.79A Transport Operations Road Use Management Act 1995) or zero blood alcohol concentration (BAC) for all motorcycle riders.”

I don’t think it is really necessary for me to go into details why this is a totally unacceptable project. Resons include punishing the victims, loss of civil liberties and so on and so on.

Let me just say this: if you put up with this, you deserve everything the bureaucrats hand out to you.

Stand up for yourselves, Queenslanders, as the Taswegians stood up for themselves when the government tried to impose a “safety” levy down there. Unlike the supine Victorians, who copped it. Stand up for yourselves and insist on being treated like adults, and like everyone else on the road.

Or suffer the consequences.

Peter “The Bear” Thoeming

Police pull over riders to give safety lectures

Motorcyclists are being stopped by UK police under a controversial government-backed initiative to improve road safety. At least two police forces have begun campaigns that involve stopping riders who have committed no offence in order to give a lecture on safety. Hundreds of motorcyclists have already been stopped by Sussex police and Nottinghamshire police, and the Department for Transport wants all forces to adopt similar methods.

Officers flag down riders and give advice on visibility, speed and road behaviour before handing out high-visibility vests, jackets and backpacks. Chief Inspector Andrew Charlton, Nottinghamshire’s head of roads policing, said motorcyclists had by and large been happy to co-operate and had welcomed the advice. The force plans to step up the campaign.

Critics have said that car drivers are in greater need of road safety advice…”

But it’s the comments I really enjoyed.

Arcot Ramathorn wrote: “Can I give them friendly advice on crime fighting?”

Ian Beech seemed to agree with that feeling: “As a retired Police Officer, Ex-Traffic, qualified Class 1 Rider having held a full M'Cycle license for somewhay over 40 years, I await being pulled over on my Bike with some interest. I may even be able to hand out some words of advice of my own!”

Eric West was a little more blunt: “This is outrageous. The police do not have special powers to detain and annoy. Equally troubling, we're subsidising dozens of fat donut eating safety-nazis rather than hiring useful people like teachers, firemen, nurses. A waste of time and a dreadful infringement on personal privacy. Oh, and of course people are polite. It's natural to fear arrest or the possibility of having your DNA taken or being charged with some trumped up offense. Our police are pigs.”

Similar response from fred smith who wrote: “Interfering morons. What if the person doesn't want a lecture, has he got the right to tell them to bog off? What if he's on his way to an appointment. Is there no end to this corrupt Junta's interference in our every-day lives?

I’ll leave the final word with Andrew Thomas: “It's the dozy old fools in cars who need lecturing on road safety. Maybe then the bike accident statistics will come down.”

So what do you think?

Peter “The Bear” Thoeming

Another month as passed which means another new lot of prizes

Congratulations to Paul and Peter who won last months giveaways

Remember anyone who leaves a comment on any blog post within the month goes into the draw.

This months freebies:
1. Ewan McGregor and Charley Borman's - Long Way Down
2. Harley Davidson 100 years - Celebration of a Legend - by Tod Refferty

Go for it! And remember, check here every month to see what we’ve found to give away – it could well be a one-off that you’ll never find anywhere else.

Peter “The Bear” Thoeming

Faster unfaired

This little story from Cruiser+Trike 5 will give you a chance to show just how much you know about motorcycle history...

Harley-Davidson built this EL record bike to promote the power and performance of the recently introduced 1936 overhead valve, 61 cubic inch knucklehead engine. The bike was equipped with twin carburettor and a fuel mixture of alcohol and benzoyl boosted output to 65 horsepower at 5700rpm. The little fairing is actually a half petrol tank.

According to the factory, this bike may well have been the first time streamlining was used in the United States for motorcycle speed record purposes.

Ironically, it didn’t work. When H-D’s factory race team member Joe Petrali set about practice runs at Bonneville Salt Flats, he experienced serious high-speed wobbles several times. The engineers at the site suspected that the streamlined bodywork was the cause. They removed it and taped a conventional seat onto the frame instead.

And lo: that did work. On the 13th of March 1937, Petrali broke the record of 123mph, which had stood since 1926, with two-way timed runs averaging 134.83mph. He bettered that the next day with averaged runs of 136.85mph. Runs were timed electrically by John LaTour, the same man who timed Sir Malcolm Campbell’s record attempts. The record was authenticated by E.C. Smith for the American Motorcycle Association.

Now here’s the trick: one of the assertions in the story above is incorrect. Which is it? Can you work it out - without looking it up? The answer is below. Don’t peek, now!
























Answer: The record runs were made at Daytona Beach, not Bonneville.

Peter “The Bear” Thoeming