THE AIM/NCOM MOTORCYCLE E-NEWS SERVICE is brought to you by Aid to Injured Motorcyclists (A.I.M.) and the National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM), and is sponsored by the Law Offices of Richard M. Lester. For more information, call us at 1-(800) ON-A-BIKE or visit us on our website at
NCOM NEWS BYTES
Compiled & Edited by Bill Bish,
National Coalition of Motorcyclists
NCOM CONVENTION IN DERBY CITY Kentucky hospitality greeted a near-record number of motorcyclists? rights activists to Louisville for the 21st annual NCOM Convention, held Mother?s Day weekend, May 11-13, 2006 at the spacious Executive Inn.
Nearly 1,300 bikers attended the National Coalition of Motorcyclists? Convention, coming from virtually every state and representing most Motorcyclists? Rights Organizations and Confederations of Clubs across the country.
Hosted by the Kentucky Motorcycle Association/KBA and the Kentucky Confederation of Clubs, this annual gathering draws prominent leaders in the bikers? rights movement to different locations every year to discuss topics of concern to all riders. Meetings, seminars and group discussions focused on safety issues, legal rights, legislative efforts and litigation techniques to benefit our right to ride.
Highlights of the 3-day conference included an insightful presentation by researcher and author Wendy Moon, ?Fatal Design ? SUV vs. Motorcycle? which offers an intriguing explanation as to why motorcycle injuries and fatalities are increasing yet motorcycle accidents are decreasing.
This year?s agenda was packed with informative and thought provoking meetings such as the NCOM Board of Directors Meeting, NCOM Legislative Task Force Meeting, A.I.M. Attorney Conference, A.I.M. Chiefs of Staff Meeting, Christian Unity Conference, Clean and Sober Roundtable, Women In Motorcycling, SMRO President?s Meeting, American Biker Party Conference, and the popular and always inspiring Confederations of Clubs General Patch Holder Meeting.
Seminars and workshops included ?Freedom of the Road & Use of the Courts?, ?Discrimination ? A Practical Approach?, ?Fundamentals of Forming a Motorcycle Caucus?, ?Getting Our People Elected on a Shoestring Budget? ?Back to Basics ? Lobbying 101? and ?Patriot Law and Pending Gang Legislation?.
The NCOM Legislative Task Force welcomed new members; Idaho State Senator Skip Brandt, Texas State Rep. Norma ?Da Lady? Chavez, and Arizona lobbyist Bobbi Hartmann.
South Dakota State Rep. Jim Putnam was entertaining with his home-spun humor as the dinner speaker during the Silver Spoke Awards Banquet on Saturday evening.
Silver Spoke Award recipients were: MEDIA: Peter Kay, Wheels of Grace; ENTERTAINMENT: Paul Revere and the Raiders; COMMERCE: Joe Teresi of Paisano Publications; GOVERNMENT: U.S. Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma; LEGAL: Joey Lester, California A.I.M. Attorney and Partner in the Law Offices of Richard M. Lester; and SPECIAL RECOGNITION: Cyndi Calhoun (Posthumously) of the Texas Motorcycle Rights Association; Motorcycle Rights Group Advocate Pam Martin; and George Heissenbuttle, Founder of the Kentucky Motorcycle Association/KBA.
The Ron Roloff Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to ?Tiger? Mike Revere, President of ABATE of Oklahoma and member of the NCOM Board of Directors.
NCOM would like to thank the KMA/KBA and the Kentucky Confederation of Clubs for hosting this year?s Convention, and special thanks for the following groups for hosting Hospitality Suites during non-meeting times: Soldiers For Jesus M/C, Sober Riders MC and the Kentucky COC.
The 2006 Convention was dedicated to the memory of Cyndi Calhoun of the TMRA-II and Fat George Hutchison of the Spartan Riders MC and Arizona Confederation of Motorcycle Clubs.
Next year?s NCOM Convention will be held May 10-13, 2007 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Call NCOM for further details at (800) 525-5355 or visit www.On-A-Bike.com.
DRIVEN TO DISTRACTION The highway death rate increased in 2005 for the first time in about 20 years, and a new federal report suggests that driving distracted may be responsible for nearly 8 in 10 crashes.
Preliminary figures from the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that despite increased usage of safety belts and attention to drunken driving, 43,200 people died in car crashes last year, up from 42,636 in 2004.
In a separate report issued the same day, NHTSA and Virginia Tech’s Transportation Institute released research findings that driving distracted is a more serious problem than previously known, and indicated nearly 80% of crashes and near-crashes involve driver inattention up to three seconds before the incident. The most common causes of distraction were cellphone use and drowsiness.
The research, which NHTSA called “breakthrough,” tracked the drivers of 100 vehicles equipped with video and sensor devices for more than one year, providing more than 43,300 hours of data. In nearly 2 million miles of driving, 241 drivers of the cars were involved in 82 crashes and 761 near-crashes.
Connecticut, New York and New Jersey ban drivers from using handheld cell phones. Washington, D.C., bans use of handheld cell phones or any other electronic device. New Hampshire bans all driver distractions.
A government report last year found that about 10 percent of drivers are using cell phones.
Automakers are refining technologies that sense when a vehicle is about to crash and apply brakes and steer the car out of trouble.
WISCONSIN ENACTS ROADWAY USERS RESPONSIBILITY ACT The Roadway Users Responsibility Act contains numerous pro-motorcycle provisions and represents a huge victory for Wisconsin bikers.
Senator Dave Zien, longtime motorcycle rights activist and member of the National Coalition of Motorcyclists Legislative Task Force, was one of the chief authors and sponsors of the legislation.
Among its provisions, AB 964 / S 528 increases penalties for motorists who cause injury or the death of other roadway users. If the victim of the crash is a motorcyclist, bicyclist or pedestrian, the violator must attend an Awareness Class to learn how to Share the Road.
Also under the measure, all Driver Education classes will be required to include Share the Road with Motorcycles portion. In another section, a paperwork reduction portion will allow a Motorcycle Rider Education graduate to bypass the Learners Permit requirement prior to obtaining their motorcycle endorsement.
Lastly, the bill will allow a motorcycle, moped or bicycle to proceed through a red vehicle actuated traffic signal that does not recognize their vehicle when the path is clear and after waiting 45 seconds.
TATTOOING IS OK Oklahoma?s SB 806, a proposal to Regulate and Legalize Artistic Tattooing, has been signed into law by Governor Brad Henry and will become law on November 1st.
?Many thanks to all lovers of Freedom and Artistic Expression out there that weighed in with their legislators on this important First Amendment and Public Health issue,? said Tiger Mike Revere, President of ABATE of Oklahoma and a member of the National Coalition of Motorcyclists Board of Directors.
?With the Governor’s signature, a long and embarrassing chapter in our state’s history should draw to a close,? said Tiger Mike, referring to the fact that Oklahoma is the last state in the nation to legalize tattooing. South Carolina was the49th state to do so in 2004.
Because illegal tattooing was occurring, Governor Henry said it is important for the state to step in to make sure that people getting a tattoo don?t also contract a disease such as HIV or hepatitis B or C.
The measure requires all tattoo operators to be licensed by the Oklahoma State Department of Health, which will establish rules and standards for tattooing.
DR. PHIL, MOTORCYCLE SAFETY ADVOCATE Motorcycling fans have found a new friend in the mass media: Dr. Phil McGraw of the popular Dr. Phil television show. And thanks to Helmet House and the Motorcycle Safety Foundation, millions of viewers on Tuesday, April 18 tuned in as the good doctor helped a young Marine from Bay St. Louis, Miss., discover the right way to ride a motorcycle.
The producers of the Ask Dr. Phil and Robin segment needed our help with some riding apparel, said Richard Kimes, national marketing manager for Helmet House. They were filming a segment about a Marine, George Goetz, who had just returned home after a tour of duty in Iraq. Anxious to experience the thrill of motorcycling, he decided to spend some of his savings on a sport bike. Goetz began riding without any training or a motorcycle license. And, although he had a helmet, he lacked any other protective riding apparel. His mother was so concerned that she hid his keys. That?s when Dr. Phil got involved, said Kimes.
With Dr. Phil as the referee, the story unfolded in front of a national audience.
Dr. Phil is an avid motorcyclist who frequently rode a dirt bike in the past, said Kimes, who attended the taping of the show. Dr. Phil brokered a deal between Goetz and his mother: if the young man would take training, get licensed and wear the proper gear, his mom would return his motorcycle keys.
Dr. Phil then introduced Rob Gladden from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation, who presented Goetz with a new set of safety gear and explained that the MSF had arranged a special Basic RiderCourse for Goetz and 11 of his buddies.
A young hero and his mother got a helping hand from Dr. Phil. It’s just another example of how motorcyclists really do help one another.
NEWS OF THE WEIRD: DEAF WOMAN SUES RIDER ED FOR NOT PROVIDING SIGNER A deaf Tampa-area woman who wanted to take an adult education class on motorcycle riding is suing the Hillsborough County school district for not providing a sign language interpreter.
“They are discriminating against me, which I felt is not right,” Merrie Carol Paul said in an interview conducted through a telephone relay system. “One of my dreams is that I wanted to ride my own motorcycle. … I love to ride motorcycles because I can do it. It doesn’t matter if I am deaf or not. I love to feel the spirit. It is me.”
Paul, 46, claims in a federal lawsuit that the district violated the Americans With Disabilities Act when officials refused to provide the interpreter when she signed up to take the class last year.
Paul said she was told the $175 class fee would not cover the cost of an interpreter. In the lawsuit, she says she was told she was welcome to bring her own interpreter, which the suit states would have cost her $2,340.
When asked if the district provides sign language interpreters for people in adult education classes, school district spokesman Stephen Hegarty said, “Regardless of what kind of class it is, the law requires that we make reasonable accommodations, and frequently litigation arises over how to define reasonable.” Hegarty added he did not know whether a sign language interpreter ever has been requested for an adult school class.
Deaf from birth, Paul said she rode motorcycles with her parents as a teenager in Michigan. She said she passed a written test but needs to take the course to obtain her license.
“I have my motorcycle in my garage, and it is waiting for me,” she said.
QUOTABLE QUOTE: ?We, too, born to freedom, and believing in freedom, are willing to fight to maintain freedom. We, and all others who believe as deeply as we do, would rather die on our feet than live on our knees.?
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States (1882-1945)
