Would you like lane-splitting to be legal in Arizona (or your state)?
angrybob at motorcyclebloggers.com posed this question to his readers, and asked others to do the same.
Lane splitting is currently only legal in California. Do not confuse this with lane sharing, which is two motorcycles riding side by side in the same lane. Lane splitting involves riding on the striped line between lanes, and between the cars that are involved in the congestion. Lane sharing is legal in a lot of states, but not lane splitting.
Advocates of lane splitting in California cite several reasons, including the fact that a lot of motorcycles are air cooled, and subject to over heating in the stop and go traffic sometimes involved with big city commerce. One I have not heard of actually happened to me when I was stationed in California back in the early seventies. I frequently was riding in rush hour traffic in San Francisco, and even then resorted to lane splitting to minimize my need to stop, then go, then stop.
One day, though, my parents had come from Montana to visit me, and we went into San Francisco to do the routine tourist things. Since Mom and Dad were going to Lodi to see an uncle after the visit, and I had to report back to my ship, I rode my motorcycle while they followed me in their car. We ran into the stop and go, and, because Mom and Dad were following, I was forced to stop and go with the traffic. After about 4 miles of this, my clutch cable snapped. Luckily, I was carrying a cable fixer, and the down time was short, but we said our good byes for the night and I continued to my ship, lane splitting the rest of the way.
So, here is the poll, and I would really be interested in your comments for or against, as well as any personal experiences with splitting the lanes with your motorcycle.
Would you like lane-splitting to be legal in North Carolina (or your state)?
May 8th, 2007
Thunder Beach Spring Rally in Panama City, FL, is now in full swing. Now in it’s ninth year, this rally has shown a rapid growth, and a huge influx of money into the local economy. This year, expect the numbers to top 65,000 bikers.
The Panama City News Herald wrote a good story on this rally yesterday. There was no negativity in the story at all, a welcome relief from some of the other rallies I cover. This story discusses things like how this rally is expected to “pump more than $30 million in sales into the local economy primarily in lodging, restaurants and retail sales”, and how it has grown so much that a sixth venue was added this year at Frank Brown Park on the north side of Back Beach Road. Also noted is the fact that local charities benefit from the motorcyclists who attend.
Rap Peavy, VP of Thunder Beach Productions, Inc., was quoted “We’ve promoted this as the Southeast’s most friendly and free rally”, and from the writeup and what I already know about Panama City, he is right.
May 4th, 2007
A quick update on my brother-in-law, Jack. Since his seizure, we have had him going through some testing ordered by a neurologist here. Suspecting pressure buildup from his brain trauma, the neurologist has already put him on some medication. Today, Jack was scheduled for an MRI. A good friend of mine agreed to take him so I could go to work. About lunch time, I got a message from my wife, who was somewhere in Tennessee, saying to call her immediately. It was Jack. About an hour after my friend had dropped off the film from the MRI to the neurologist, the neurologist office had called my house and said to bring Jack in as soon as possible. Well, that gave both my wife and me a huge scare.
But it was not quite as bad as we imagined. The MRI did show that pressure buildup was indeed occurring, but the doctor only wanted to increase his medication levels to treat the swelling, not surgery as we feared. Jack will have some additional testing, but for now it appears that we caught the problem in time to avoid more serious consequences.
Jack has severe internal brain trauma, and it is obvious from the MRI films I saw, but the films also showed evidence of a lot of healing that has already taken place. So again our hopes are elevated.
If Jack ever rides his motorcycle again, and he says he will, it will be with a helmet (by his choice, not our politicians). He has also asked me to tell his story as we go along to help others who have the freedom to choose to at least make an informed decision on helmet usage. He will not say that the helmet would have prevented his problems, but he feels it may have.
In related news, I talked with the people at Social Security about his SSI. It has been temporarily suspended while they determine if he is still disabled. (Somehow they can do this without even coming to see him, but I am not quite sure how) They have said that the process takes about 120 days, and until then, no payments. Now me and the wife have vowed that we would see this through no matter what, but I don’t mind telling you that the $600 a month we just lost, while a small portion of the expenses of caring for Jack, was a much appreciated aid, and we will miss it sorely. But we will deal with it, and watch Jack as he grows stronger. If anyone wants to help us help Jack, we also will very much appreciate that.
I will keep everyone up to date using this blog as important news springs. Until then, Ride safe, and consider Jack’s suggestion on motorcycles and helmets.
May 1st, 2007
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