Our roads - they are vital ribbons of asphalt that connect us. Down these ribbons of black top are trucked the groceries and staples we require.
Mom's in mini vans take their kids to the next town over for hockey and softball games and people of all shapes and sizes driving all means of conveyances travel to and from work.
Yes our roadways are vital to the economy. They bring tourists to spend money in our communities - they connect us and they define us.
In this province as in others in this fair country, our road ways are killing members of the motorcycling community. And no, I am not referring to accidents/incidents or collisions.
I am referring to the state of our roadways. From tire debris left on the roads by semi's to the horrid frost heaves, cracks, pot holes and terrible repairs to road construction where little or no signage warns motorcyclists of the danger they are about to face, our roads are killing and injuring riders.
So why is it that something so vital to a community's survival, so important to every man , woman and child can be allowed to fall into the state of disrepair that our roads are in?
I for one have experienced "wows' in the road that have lifted me right out of the saddle of my bike at proper highway speed. I have seen the road snakes that mask awful cracks that can grab the front wheel of a motorcycle and make for treacherous, gut wrenching minutes. I have experienced road repairs that are so awful that I wished I could take the person who globbed the asphalt for the repair on the road and have that person ride pillion over that rotten repair a hundred times before letting them wander away.
I have been face with debris from semi's that make riding an obstacle course and I have been salt and peppered by silt, sand and chaff coming from the trailer of a grain/gravel or sand hauling semi whose driver was too lazy to tarp his/her load down or from trucks that have come out of the bush covered in mud and spewing it for miles down the road.
I have seen unsafe loads where 4 x 4's come off of welding decks and boomers come off of cats and other heavy equipment that is being hauled because some one forgot to secure them properly.
I have had people throw cigarette butts, pop/beer cans and coffee cups out the window and have had to dodge them and in some cases just suffer being hit.
I have ridden on roads where the highway department has not cleaned the sand and gravel from the winter and had vehicles drive on the shoulder where all of that debris ends up in my face.
We riders are tax payers. We pay our license fees...we deserve to ride our motorcycles on roads that are safe - at least far safer than what they are right now.
Larry Darrell Kientz died after a motorcycle accident in Alberta just north of Calgary over the long weekend. He was operating a touring motorbike when he hit a marked bump and lost control. Police say they ruled out alcohol and speed as factors in the crash.(From the Energy City Article)
According to police reports this chiropractor was not speeding - and yet he hit a bump in the road that was so severe it caused him to loose control of his motorcycle and cost him his life.
I think people, that with all of the 'garbage' being flung at our community over the excessive noise that some in our community generate, that it is time - long since time, that we start demanding road ways that are repaired properly, not in some hap hazard way.
It is time we start holding the companies that pave roads and repair and maintain them to some level of accountability and consequently every municipal government for the state of repair they are in and the quality of the repairs that are effected.
It is time we start demanding that DOT and Highway Patrol start handing out tickets for the unsecured loads and untarpped trucks that barrel down our highways. I think we need to start seeing people fined for littering and causing harm not just to the environment but to the other motorists who have to dodge the debris...the laws are on the books - let's see them be enforced - otherwise, what's the point to them being there?
As always, your comments, feedback and input are deeply and gratefully accepted here! It is only through divergent dialogue and ideas being shared that we will ever learn and grow.
In other news:
The ladies on the Conga III for Breast Cancer have hit the $20K mark in their fund raising efforts.
The funeral for the BC Chiropractor that was killed on the long weekend happens on July 10th.
The rider killed in another long weekend collision was Will Stuck of Premium Exploration in Billings Montana.
BCCOM wants to remind you of their upcoming meetings - these are really important ones for all riders on Vancouver Island to attend...
If you own a 2010 Kawasaki Z1000, there is a recall that could affect you (Yes I know it is US, but lots of people now a days buy in the US)
If you are amongst the lucky and you are riding today - PLEASE, ride like everyone around you is out to get you and is BLIND. Remember to Ride PROUD NOT Loud - save the pipes for when someone drifts into your lane while on that cell phone of theirs.
Mom's in mini vans take their kids to the next town over for hockey and softball games and people of all shapes and sizes driving all means of conveyances travel to and from work.
Yes our roadways are vital to the economy. They bring tourists to spend money in our communities - they connect us and they define us.
In this province as in others in this fair country, our road ways are killing members of the motorcycling community. And no, I am not referring to accidents/incidents or collisions.
I am referring to the state of our roadways. From tire debris left on the roads by semi's to the horrid frost heaves, cracks, pot holes and terrible repairs to road construction where little or no signage warns motorcyclists of the danger they are about to face, our roads are killing and injuring riders.
So why is it that something so vital to a community's survival, so important to every man , woman and child can be allowed to fall into the state of disrepair that our roads are in?
I for one have experienced "wows' in the road that have lifted me right out of the saddle of my bike at proper highway speed. I have seen the road snakes that mask awful cracks that can grab the front wheel of a motorcycle and make for treacherous, gut wrenching minutes. I have experienced road repairs that are so awful that I wished I could take the person who globbed the asphalt for the repair on the road and have that person ride pillion over that rotten repair a hundred times before letting them wander away.
I have been face with debris from semi's that make riding an obstacle course and I have been salt and peppered by silt, sand and chaff coming from the trailer of a grain/gravel or sand hauling semi whose driver was too lazy to tarp his/her load down or from trucks that have come out of the bush covered in mud and spewing it for miles down the road.
I have seen unsafe loads where 4 x 4's come off of welding decks and boomers come off of cats and other heavy equipment that is being hauled because some one forgot to secure them properly.
I have had people throw cigarette butts, pop/beer cans and coffee cups out the window and have had to dodge them and in some cases just suffer being hit.
I have ridden on roads where the highway department has not cleaned the sand and gravel from the winter and had vehicles drive on the shoulder where all of that debris ends up in my face.
We riders are tax payers. We pay our license fees...we deserve to ride our motorcycles on roads that are safe - at least far safer than what they are right now.
Larry Darrell Kientz died after a motorcycle accident in Alberta just north of Calgary over the long weekend. He was operating a touring motorbike when he hit a marked bump and lost control. Police say they ruled out alcohol and speed as factors in the crash.(From the Energy City Article)
According to police reports this chiropractor was not speeding - and yet he hit a bump in the road that was so severe it caused him to loose control of his motorcycle and cost him his life.
I think people, that with all of the 'garbage' being flung at our community over the excessive noise that some in our community generate, that it is time - long since time, that we start demanding road ways that are repaired properly, not in some hap hazard way.
It is time we start holding the companies that pave roads and repair and maintain them to some level of accountability and consequently every municipal government for the state of repair they are in and the quality of the repairs that are effected.
It is time we start demanding that DOT and Highway Patrol start handing out tickets for the unsecured loads and untarpped trucks that barrel down our highways. I think we need to start seeing people fined for littering and causing harm not just to the environment but to the other motorists who have to dodge the debris...the laws are on the books - let's see them be enforced - otherwise, what's the point to them being there?
As always, your comments, feedback and input are deeply and gratefully accepted here! It is only through divergent dialogue and ideas being shared that we will ever learn and grow.
In other news:
The ladies on the Conga III for Breast Cancer have hit the $20K mark in their fund raising efforts.
The funeral for the BC Chiropractor that was killed on the long weekend happens on July 10th.
The rider killed in another long weekend collision was Will Stuck of Premium Exploration in Billings Montana.
BCCOM wants to remind you of their upcoming meetings - these are really important ones for all riders on Vancouver Island to attend...
If you own a 2010 Kawasaki Z1000, there is a recall that could affect you (Yes I know it is US, but lots of people now a days buy in the US)
If you are amongst the lucky and you are riding today - PLEASE, ride like everyone around you is out to get you and is BLIND. Remember to Ride PROUD NOT Loud - save the pipes for when someone drifts into your lane while on that cell phone of theirs.
Belt Drive Betty
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