Riders and the Controversy Over Noise

As you are all well aware, many jurisdictions across North America have an issue with motorcyclists whose bikes are excessively loud or ridden in a manner that makes them excessively loud.

The sad fact is that all of us get labelled as obnoxious, loud, rude.

Take a look at the latest thing happening in Kaslo, BC in the Kootenay's one of the most beautiful riding regions in Canada.  4,300 signatures on a petition!

"The petition asks Anton and the RCMP to crack down on excessive motorcycle noise.

Kaslo's Art Mason, one of the people behind the petition effort, said the bikers are a real problem.

"It's just one after the other, after the other, just all summer long," he said. "They may think they go by and they're the only one. They don't realize that two minutes after them, there's another group … it goes right into their houses, the noise." CBC News
The petition is asking the police to do their job, not implement new laws, but none the less, the selfish few are ruining it for the quieter, more respectful majority.

Noise is a huge issue folks and one of the only ways we as a community are ever going quit being targeted and discriminated against by law enforcement and citizens as noise offenders, is if we riders are all respectful of the fact that we SHARE this world.

Shift workers, really tired moms who have been up with sick babies, people trying to host meetings, have functions out of doors, these are just a few of the people that riding in an obnoxious manner can disturb and turn against us.

Riding with respect for all, that is the key.  

Another way to make people think about motorcyclists in a more positive light, is to educate people in a polite and informative way that #MotorcyclistsLivesMatter.

WE matter because we are moms, dads, siblings, grand kids and grand parents.

WE matter because we are Politicians, CEO's & Celebrities too.

We matter because we are taxpayers who contribute a lot.

We matter because we are charity and community minded, we matter because we spend money, we matter because we are a visible minority.

We are vulnerable on the road to all sorts of hazards (texting etc.), we are often subjected to discrimination, we are often tarred with a brush we didn't earn as a whole.

Yes our community has some in it that do bad things, rude things, selfish things and then there is the rest of us who work hard at being decent people.

#MotorcyclistLivesMatter BECAUSE WE ARE PEOPLE!

PLEASE Share the Infographic, the information on them will help educate the non rider.

Have you voted for Canada's MOST Rider Friendly Community?

If not, there's still time to support a community you love to ride to or are a part of!


Well, that's all for me today folks...

If you are blessed to be riding, PLEASE remember to ride like everyone around you is blind and can not see you, consider dressing for the slide, not the ride and please be respectful with your throttle hand.

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Non Profit Motorcycle Club being sued over NOISE

According to an article on the CBC web site and one in the National Post,  the City of Fort Saskatchewan, the RCMP, and the Fort Saskatchewan Motorcycle Association are being sued by an elderly gent who is tired of having his peace and quiet disrupted.

He says his complaints have fallen on deaf ears for 18 years and he's tired of it.

Noise, it has become such a bone of contention and as our cities get bigger, it will become even more contentious.

I know what the gent in these articles, Richard Jones, feels like. I truly can empathize.

When we bought our home in 2001, it was on a dead end street with a green space at the top of the T intersection that separated our community of Avondale from the bypass.  It was wonderful, two school yards in our back yard (so very quiet at night) and very little traffic in the front.

We felt like we lived in the country with all of the conveniences of being in a small city.

Then the city, in its wisdom, punched through that lovely green space and put a connector to the bypass in.

Our street became a race track.  To slow traffic down, the city the installed these hideous centre dividers with planted trees in them, and installed bike paths although the bicyclists still prefer to use the sidewalk.  They installed these ridiculous bulbous sidewalk turnouts at every intersection so that pedestrians didn't have so far to go to cross the road (Like 10' makes that much of a difference to a person on foot).

All through this process, no matter how much people didn't want this development, not the connector to the bypass or the stupid big cement planters, or the idiotic 3 blocks of bike path, no one would listen to the people who live here.

All of the planning and info meetings were nothing more than a delivery method that said this is what you are getting. There was no consideration for those who live here.

The hideous planters did little to slow people down and when you add the new fire hall into the mix, (we are now on a major route now for the fire trucks), let's just say what used to be a peaceful place to live is no longer peaceful.

Our street used to be a major school bus route and in the winter it was cleaned so fast and so well but now, because of those ridiculously hideous planters and the sidewalk turnouts at the intersections, our street is not the priority it once was and the grader operators have a hell of a time trying to clear our street now.

I understand Mr. Jones frustration with the noise.  For him the noise might be motorcycles, in our case, it's chipped up 4 x 4's and import cars with booming stereos and fire trucks. We have the odd biker that rips through our neighbourhood on the throttle, barking their pipes steady - they piss me off too, but most people who ride through our neighbourhood are polite and respectful.

I know this much:

- There are inconsiderate people in every walk of our society.
- Change is the inevitable.
- Growth has both a positive and negative side.

My husband an I still lament the changes, we still long for the "old" days when our community was a peaceful and restful place at night. (School yards during the day are noisy and we have two directly out back of our home.)

What are the answers to teaching people consideration?
What are the answers to having our elected officials actually listening to their citizens and being fair, impartial and realistic in their approaches to situations?
What are the answers to noise pollution?

I have no idea.

Richard Jones says he's in it for the long haul, that he's tired of being ignored.

Is this a frivolous lawsuit or is it meant to force the city of Fort Saskatchewan to adopt a motorcycle only noise bylaw or more?

I'd love to go set up a video camera on this man's street and record the traffic and noise he says he experiences.  I wonder if all that noise he talks about is truly motorcycles.

I still can't fathom someone suing a non profit association that does so much good in their community.

Did it really need to go this far?

I wonder if at any point it was ever suggested that all parties get together and have a chat?

While I empathize with Mr. Jones, I think his way of going about things is horribly wrong minded, that's my personal feeling.

What say you?

I'll be contacting people from the Fort Saskatchewan Motorcycle Association and seeing if there is anything we can do to assist them in their legal battle. I know all too well how time consuming, how costly and how frustrating it is to be named in a suit that is just so wrong on so many levels.

Have a great day, and if you are blessed enough to be riding today, please, ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you.

Belt Drive Betty,
Editor & Rider

Does being socially conscious really mean muffling your pipes?

Does being socially conscious really mean muffling your pipes?

Well, apparently not!

Watch this video from Jekill and Hyde an exhaust manufacturer from the Netherlands that seems to have hit on a product that can make your motorcycle more socially acceptable.



Some on my Facebook Page where I shared this, this morning, have asked the question how does it affect the tuning, I have no answer to that question, however, I can tell you that according to the company's LinkedIn page, it took them 14 years to develop the product!

Many riders will tell you that noise can be controlled by the way you use your throttle alone, and that statement is true enough to a degree, but what about those nasty Motorcycle Only Noise Check Stops where they rev your bike up?  Are you going to pass?

Well, with pipes like these one could pass, easily.

It seems like a solution that could offer the rider the best of both worlds, the sound of a throaty pipe and quiet when leaving your driveway at 6 am, or putting through the neighbourhood on the way home late at night.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on socially acceptable pipes!

Have a great Monday everyone!

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Bike Crash on 401, Drug Bust in Saskatchewan

A Bike Crash on 401 & Drug Bust in Saskatchewan head up the headlines today

In Toronto, a 28 year old rider has serious but non life threatening injuries after coming in contact with a car and loosing control. The crash had the 401 collector lanes shut down for hours.

The towns of Mistatim, Tisdale, Arborfield  Saskatchewan  were rocked when 67 police officers swooped in on 3 bars owned by Pam and Evan Ashdown.  

Begin Quote: In three simultaneous busts in three separate towns - Mistatim, Tisdale and Arborfield - police seized 32 pounds of marijuana, two ounces of cocaine and more than $230,000 in cash. They also seized five vehicles and four homes that were allegedly involved in crime. In all, 67 officers were involved in the bust. End Quote

In Sturgis South Dakota, Noise is an issue that that town is trying to deal with.  According to the article in the  Magic Valley News the towns bar owners have worked with city council to craft noise legislation surrounding the famous Black Hills Rally.

Begin Quote: The ordinance would prohibit:

• Disruptive noise or use of sound equipment in public or outside between 2 a.m. and 8 a.m.

• Operating construction equipment between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.

• Operating sound equipment in a vehicle causing any disruptive noise or a vibration 20 feet from the vehicle.

If the rest of us complain about the noise of the motorcycle rally, imagine what it’s like for yearlong Sturgis residents. The proposed ordinance is in response to Sturgis residents who want the party that is the rally to tone it down in the early morning hours. End Quote

It is a super busy day in the news feeds - check them out at www.beltdrivebetty.com where our job is keeping you informed!

If you are fortunate enough to be riding today, PLEASE, ride like everyone around you is blind and cannot see you and remember to dress for the slide, not the ride.

Belt Drive Betty

Editor & Rider