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The famous Gunny. 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 < From The
GUNNY'S SACK
The 2004 West Coast Regional NCOM (National Coalition of Motorcyclists) Meeting is coming right up, so I don't want anyone to miss the opportunity: This year, it will be January 10-12th, 2004 in Sacramento, California, at the Holiday Inn N.E, 5321 Date Ave, Sacramento, CA. The $79.00 plus tax per night room rates are special and you should ask for them under The Regional NCOM Meeting reservations arrangements. Call them at: (916) 338-5800. Well worth the cost to get valuable information regarding the western part of this country, and there are lots of cheap flights there. And the conference is free. There will be seminars and work rooms just like the national NCOM Convention. We have them around the country, in between the big one every year. This one will be sandwiched in between the MMA & ABATE of California Legislative Seminar on Saturday, and their Freedom Rally at the State Capitol on Monday. There will also be a Confederation of Clubs meeting. Don't miss this weekend of education, motivation and information, not if you can help it. I'll see ya there. For MORE information, you can also call NCOM, at 1-800-ON-A-BIKE.
ANOTHER VICTORY: This month, our Oregon Aid to Injured Motorcyclists (AIM) Attorney Sam Hochberg is the figure we look to for the good news. What follows is proof of the puddin' as to what our AIM attorneys do for us all over the country. They really deserve our support and gratitude. Don't forget too, that they're nationwide 24/7, at 1-800-ON-A-BIKE, for biker discrimination and civil rights issues, as well as injury wrecks. So take a look at what's up in Eugene NOW:
EUGENE, OR: Civil Rights isn't just for racial minorities, it's for us VEHICULAR minorities, too. Or more to the point, it protects OUR right to display our freedom of speech and association, as bikers. I'm proud to announce that our Oregon AIM Attorney, Sam Hochberg, just settled a civil rights claim on behalf of a member of the Free Souls Motorcycle Club, in Eugene. We've talked about it here in the Sack before. This was the case involving Free Soul MC member Ray Fowler. He was at the Lane County Fair in Eugene with his wife, and the local police threw him OUT of the county fair, solely on the basis of his motorcycle club patch. A big no-no, particularly if there is NO history of any problems with the club! Ray was whistle-clean, and our favorite police agency, Eugene PD, decided that this was a "gang-free" event.
When will they learn? Absent prior problems or SOME reasonable basis, a government agency can't discriminate on the basis of the WRITING on your back! Sam was involved in the same sort of case twice before in this state in other municipalities. NEXT issue of the Sack, we'll print the LETTER OF APOLOGY that the Lane County Fair Board agreed to sign, as part of the settlement. Oh yeah -- there's also that $10,000.00 they're going to pay. Like I said, when will they learn? Sam is very happy about it, but he says he'd STILL rather spend his time helping his injured clients than having to stop idiotic police and government policies. Well, if somebody's gotta do it, I'm glad we have Sam. Thanx for your ongoing efforts in our behalf Sam, from all of us.
NHTSA is at it again: Whenever they can they will distort facts in order to forward the notion that if you don't wear a helmet you're gonna die on a motorcycle. The Associated Press ran a story recently about "FACTS" put out by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. They studied deaths caused by accidents in several states that had modified their helmet laws recently. It would seem that indeed deaths have gone up some, but so has the number of riders and the number of miles ridden! It looks to me like they are manipulating figures for some states to distort the real facts.
NHTSA went so far as to admit that some of the increase in motorcycle deaths could be attributed to the increased number of riders on the road. There must be something that can be done to reign in these folks and make them realize that in this country there is a thing called "Liberty for All".
MIAMI: Two Miami-Dade Police motorcycle officers collided with each other while providing a traffic escort for a New York Yankees team bus before Game 5 of the World Series. One officer was airlifted from the Pro Player Stadium parking lot, and was listed in stable condition at Jackson Memorial Hospital. The other officer was treated on the scene and released. Maybe they should've taken a motorcycle safety course.
SAN FRANCISCO: With new guidelines about police surveillance, law officers are being told NOT to attend political, religious, social or educational meetings unless they have reason to believe a crime is planned or has happened. This is in answer to the public outcry over increased surveillance by the California Attorney General. Maybe all the pissin' and moanin' over the Patriot Act is reaching some ears after all. And in this case, it seems those ears have some clout. This contradicts the intent of U S Attorney General John Ashcroft. It's about time someone hears what the public says.
THE HERPES THING AGAIN! Last month I commented on the biker image in herpes medication ads. I must have stirred the pot because the website has pulled the ad! I'm sure it's thanx to the comments from so many people who were offended by it. See? When ya stick together, things happen. We can win this stupid war over our identities as motorcycle-oriented citizens.
TIRE RECALL: Safety note here, on the METZLER SPORTED 120/17 ZR17 M-1 P MOTORCYCLE TIRE:.If your bike wears this one, check with your dealer. You might be on a dangerous ride. Metzler is recalling and replacing several of these tires due to a manufacturing defect. See your dealer now! You can contact Metzeler directly at (706) 368-5426).
MT. EVEREST, NEPAL: I mentioned in an earlier issue that Swedish lady rider Annie Seel was going to attempt to ride a motorcycle up the slopes of Mt Everest. Well folks, she did it on a 20 year old dual-purpose Honda XL250 and reached an altitude of 17,404 feet! She beat the previous record set by a Japanese man by over 200 feet. She had to ride the old bike because importation of new motorcycles to Nepal is forbidden. Quite an accomplishment, Ms. Seel. Congratulations from those of us who couldn't do half of what you did if our lives depended on it!
GUNNY AGAIN: I just want to say we are blessed by the people we associate with and we lose many every year to avoidable accidents. Please folks, do yourself a favor and take a rider ed course, and avail yourself of the training provided. You will not only make yourself a better rider, you might avoid being one of the statistics none of us wants to be. Let's not make it any easier for folks like NHTSA to get us off the highways.
Have the best holiday season ever.
Keep the round side on the bottom, Gunny, Oregon AIM Chief of Staff
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