Passes & Canyons Blog

Just because it’s cold is no excuse not to ride.

The Colorado Legislature is in session and one of the top issues of interest to motorcyclists is the proposed extension of the Motorcycle Operator Safety Training program (MOST). I’m now the legislative liaison for ABATE District 10 so I get periodic messages from Stump, who is ABATE’s primary legislative guy–basically our lobbyist down at the capitol.

I figure one of the best things I can do to keep folks apprised of what’s going on down there is to publish his messages, so here’s the latest.

Hello LegTeam,
As of February 25th, 198 Senate Bills and 209 House Bills have been introduced. There really aren’t many transportation bills being introduced this year, but we still have 2 that are of concern to motorcyclists: HB17-1044 (Autocycle Bill) and the MOST Program Bill.
HB17-1044 will be discussed by the Senate Transportation Committee on Tuesday, February 28th at 2:00 p.m. in room 352. The bill is still defining autocycles as a type of motorcycle, but it includes verbiage requiring autocycle drivers and passengers to use safety belts and, if applicable, child safety restraints. I just received word this week that the Polaris (Slingshot manufacturer) lobbyist wants an amendment added so no “M” endorsement is needed to drive an autocycle, only a driver’s license. ABATE doesn’t have an official position on that issue, our only real concern is a way to keep autocycle and motorcycle accident and fatality statistics separate. We’ll keep pushing for a solution to do that.
The MOST program bill is entirely different. Senators Priola and Todd were assigned the task of drafting a bill. They want input from the stakeholders as to what should be included in the bill. To that end, we held a meeting on Friday, February 17th at the ABATE Office. For various reasons, 6 of the 11 invited stakeholders didn’t attend. We had a good discussion about the current administration of the program and suggested possible changes that could improve the program, with a bottom line of saving lives. After discussions this week with some stakeholders and updating the Senators, we feel we need more input, so another meeting is being scheduled. This time it will be at a neutral location, the State Capitol, on Friday, March 3rd, time TBD. It’s being organized by an MOST Advisory Board Member so hopefully we’ll get better attendance. There’s still plenty of time to get the bill drafted and sent through the process. Right now we want to concentrate on getting stakeholder’s input so the drafters know exactly what we want included in the bill. Maybe we’ll need a couple more meetings. I’m sure you know what ABATE’s concerns are and what we would like addressed in the bill, but with numerous stakeholders involved there’s no telling what “suggestions” might be introduced. This just might turn into one huge contentious battle. We’ll keep plugging along and communicating seems to be the common theme. I’ll keep you all updated.
That’s about all the hot topics for now. Stand by to get legislatively active once the bill gets written and we need to contact our legislators.
Stump

Biker Quote for Today

Motorcycling is not, of itself, inherently dangerous. It is, however, extremely unforgiving of inattention, ignorance, incompetence, or stupidity.

Get out there and ride that thing!

Did I do a lot of riding in 2016? No. In fact, I think I may have set a personal record for the fewest miles driven/ridden for my entire life.

I always make note of my mileage at the end of each year and this one is really strange. My total mileage on my three bikes AND my car is only 6,268 miles. Holy smokes!

Most of that was on motorcycles. I rode the Honda 901 miles, which is actually the only increase. I rode it 531 miles in 2015.

I rode the Suzuki just 7 miles miles than the Honda: 908. And I put the most on the Kawasaki: 1,952. I only put 2,507 miles on my car, so that’s 3,761 on the bikes.

What the heck kind of a year is it if you only put a little over six grand on your vehicles? Did I just live at home?

Actually, no. In fact I did a lot of traveling. It’s just that most of it was either in my wife’s car or by airplane. We drove to Big Bend way down in Texas. We flew to Spain. We flew to Georgia. We drove to Montana. I did the summer ride with the OFMC. Only that last one put any miles on my vehicles.

Of course the other factor is that I’m working this job for the National Park Service. Again. The difference is that this time I’m working at home, so no commuter miles. That’s a huge factor.

The year 2017 is going to be different. I’m pulling the plug on this National Park Service job at the end of January. And this time I’m done for good; no more call-backs. And I’m going to do a lot of riding. I have ambitious plans for updating the website and a lot of that will involve revisiting a lot of these roads. And I’m going to be doing some rides with the Rocky Mountain Motorcycle Riders Club. Plus, I intend to take off by myself at least a few times.

Now, if I only put another 2,500 miles on my car I don’t care. In fact, I like that. But if I don’t get at least 10,000 miles on the bikes this year I’m going to be very disappointed. Check in a year from now to see the score.

Biker Quote for Today

The lure of the open road never goes out of style.

Yeah, we can at least dream about this kind of riding in the next few months.

The new legislative session will begin shortly after the first of the year and there will for sure be two bills of interest to motorcyclists on the docket. This bill would create a new classification of motor vehicles, removing autocycles, such as the Polaris Slingshot, from some rules applying to cars, some rules applying to motorcycles, and removing things such as autocycle crash statistics from being merged with motorcycle crash statistics.

The Motorcycle Operator Safety Training (MOST) program will also be coming up because when it was created the Colorado Sunset Law required that it be periodically renewed. The Department of Regulatory Agencies has conducted a sunset review and is recommended it be continued for another five years.

ABATE of Colorado, as well as other interested parties, will be watching those bills. According to Stump, ABATE’s legislative liaison, the language of the autocycle bill is not exactly what ABATE would prefer but it is good and it may be able to be improved in committee.

MOST is something ABATE would like to see either abolished or revised to take it back to its original intent. Again, revisions are possible in committee.

Because I am interested in these and other legislative matters concerning motorcycles, I recently allowed myself to be elected the ABATE District 10 Legislative Affairs representative. The following are some excerpts from the letter Stump sent each of us about what we’ll be doing this year.

The emphasis this year is getting as many ABATE members legislatively active as possible. We’re going to have a very busy schedule down at the Capitol and we need a lot of help.

I’ll be sending out weekly updates on legislative issues. It will be your job to get this information to your district members. More important, I’ll be sending out “Action Alerts”, when I need you to contact your legislators. Sometimes I’ll send out talking points and sometimes I’ll send out a form letter, depending on where the bill is in the process and how much time we have to take action. A personal letter from talking points is more influential than a form letter, but sometimes we might only have 1-2 days to contact them. In such case, a phone call to your legislator, which is probably even faster than sending an e-mail, might be more appropriate.

Besides waiting for an “Action Alert” and a specific reason to contact your legislators, there is a lot more you can do to help our “cause”. Everyone should be contacting both their Senator and Representative and introducing themselves, mentioning you’re a constituent and an ABATE member. You might even explain a little about ABATE. Also congratulate them on winning their election, if appropriate, especially if they’re new.

Lastly, you can all help out by coming to the Capitol. Set up a time with your legislators and have a face-to-face with them. It’s the best way to introduce yourself. Or you can just come to the Capitol without an appointment, but chances are you’ll wind up talking to an aide rather than the legislator. Either way, you get to express your concerns as a constituent. Try it; you just might have some fun!

I was down at the capital a lot last session so this won’t be much of a change, I’ll just be operating in a more official capacity. And of course I’ll keep you up to date right here.

Biker Quote for Today

The only impossible journey is the one you never begin.

As far as HOV lanes are concerned, these are motorcycles.

I got a note the other day from William, at Iron Buffalo Motorcycle Training.

Hello Ken

Just something you might ad to your post as no one thought of it until after the fact…
There are a growing number of 3-wheel riders out there that seem to get ignored.

Straight from CDOT:
“Here is the official definition of what is a motorcycle, including a 3-wheeler:

(55) “Motorcycle” means a motor vehicle that uses handlebars or any other device connected to the front wheel to steer and that is designed to travel on not more than three wheels in contact with the ground; except that the term does not include a farm tractor, autocycle, low-speed electric vehicle, or low-power scooter.”

So in case anyone was unsure, yes, three-wheelers do count as motorcycles in using HOV lanes without needing a transponder. Although I’m curious. It mentions “autocycles” as not being considered motorcycles. Autocycles is the term that is more and more in use around the country to describe all these various three-wheelers that are not out and out motorcycles, i.e., two-wheels one behind the other.

Counting three-wheelers as motorcycles skews crash statistics because these things just handle differently, have different problems, and crash differently, at least in some instances. So what happens in the future if Colorado decides to rewrite its legislation to create an autocycle category that would include trikes? I do suspect, however, that bikes with sidecars will always continue to be considered motorcycles, even though they do have three wheels.

So this latest success at getting procedures changed so motorcycles don’t get ticketed/fined for using HOV lanes without transponders was very much a topic of discussion at Sunday’s ABATE District 10 meeting. It turns out the fix to the computer system was not as simple as you might think it would have been.

According to Bruce Downs, the system now has the ability to distinguish motorcycles by the size of their front tires. For the first 90 days they’re doing a side-by-side comparison with the computer making the ID and a person making the ID. The idea is to be sure the computer is identifying bikes successfully. If it’s working sufficiently well it will go completely by computer after the 90 days.

And there is back-up. Before any dunning statements are mailed, a human views each one, and if a motorcycle has slipped past, that person will remove them.

Beyond that, there is always the possibility of a screw-up. Nothing and nobody is perfect. Carol Downs told of someone they know who received a letter demanding payment and it turned out when she protested that the license plate number had been read incorrectly and the vehicle in question was a car belonging to someone else entirely. So the bottom line is, you’re free to use any HOV lane on your bike and if you get a bill, don’t just pay it, protest it. It will be dismissed.

Biker Quote for Today

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I can’t change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know when to just go riding.

By law, motorcycles are free to use HOV lanes at no charge.

This email I got a few days ago says it all:

Some good news. ABATE worked hard to get this issue resolved. Not that we should have had to, after all CDOT and E470 broke federal Law when they originally started to charge on these highways. But without ABATE being on guard it would have been allowed.

Effective this weekend (October 15, 2016) motorcycles will no longer be charged tolls — with or without a transponder — for using Hwy 36 and the I-25 central and north corridor HOV/HOT lanes.

Humans will be reviewing the system for 90 days to ensure the system is recognizing motorcycles. If you (or anyone you know) gets a Notice of Violation while traveling on these roads via motorcycle beginning October 15th, please notify Bruce immediately so that he can let the E470 authority know of any glitches and get the fee removed.

Just to recap, federal law states that motorcycles use HOV lanes for free at all times. When Colorado set up the new HOV/HOT lane system the set it up so that motorcycles could use the HOV for free but you would still need to get a transponder. And any motorcycle using the lane without a transponder would be sent a bill. So not free, contrary to federal law.

This is why I’m a member of ABATE. Sure, the group has done a few things in recent years that I wasn’t very happy about. I even considered dropping my membership. But a change in leadership has put the group pretty much back on a steady keel now so I continue to belong. This HOV matter is a perfect example of why we need a motorcycle rights organization operating in this state.

Biker Quote for Today

On a motorcycle, happiness isn’t just around the corner, happiness IS the corner.

BMW of Denver must be doing very well. It doesn’t seem like all that long ago that they moved into a new building on Havana not far from me and now they have already moved again into a much bigger, even nicer building.

I had the opportunity to see the new digs on Saturday when that was the ultimate destination for the RMMRC’s Roy’s Mystery Ride. It’s down in the Tech Center area at 10350 E. Easter, just half a block off Havana down there.

First off, the setting itself is much nicer than the old one on Havana. Looking away from the parking lot in one spot what you see is grass and trees and water (see photo). It’s almost like being out in the country while in the city.

And the design of the building is pretty cool. You walk in and overhead there are motorcycles on display on glass balconies. Again, see the photo.

Rather than tell any more, I’ll just show:

The new BMW of Denver.

The main showroom, not completely set up yet.

The entryway with one of two glass balconies.

One view from the parking lot.

Biker Quote for Today

I believe the machine I sit on can tell the world exactly where I stand.

Getting ready to ride.

ABATE of Colorado is a motorcycle rights organization, and one of the strongest voices on motorcycle-related issues that we have down at the state capitol.

Of course a lot of what ABATE deals with at the capitol is dictated by what bills are introduced each session. Nevertheless, it is useful to also set priorities as to which issues we want to push to have addressed. Stump is our legislative liaison down there and he has asked the group what we think the priorities should be for the next session, which will start in January. He offered six and would like to hear how we would rank them, plus I’m sure if someone offered another one that made everyone say, “Well, of course!”, then that would be welcome, too.

So I figured, why not throw this out there for anyone I can reach to offer their thoughts, too. I’m going to list the six, with a bit of explanation, and would love it if you would leave a comment with your thoughts. Thanks.

Lane-splitting: Although it has been allowed there for years, California just became the first state to officially make lane-splitting legal. This allows you to go up the middle between cars when traffic is either stopped or going extremely slow. I don’t really need to explain this further, do I?

The MOST program: The Motorcycle Operator Safety Training program was originally set up as a way to encourage riders, or especially prospective riders, to take training courses so they can become better, more competent, and presumably safer motorcyclist. The idea is that we all pay a couple bucks extra when we renew our plates and licenses each year and that money goes to reduce the cost for the trainee.

The Colorado Department of Transportation, which administers MOST, may argue differently among riders it is generally considered that MOST has strayed far from its mission and needs to either be revamped or eliminated. This is especially pertinent this year because it is up for sunset review. Is the riding community going to support keeping the program alive or will we push our elected representatives to kill it?

Autocycles: These are this proliferating group of three-wheeled vehicles that, because legislation does not keep up with society, are now classified as motorcycles. This classification creates a number of problems. When crashes occur, even though the factors involved may be completely unique to the three-wheelers, they get counted in motorcycling statistics. Plus, to ride one you might need a motorcycle rider designation on your driver’s license, which hardly seems appropriate if you’re riding one of those little Polaris Slingshot things.

There is movement all across the country to create a new classification of vehicle, the autocycle. Certainly this is something we should support here, but how much of a legislative priority is it considering that so far none of our legislators seems to be pushing it on their own.

Red light bill: Not all traffic signals that require triggering by vehicles to make the light turn are capable of detecting motorcycles. You can sit there for a long time waiting for it to turn. At some point you really ought to be able to go through the red without fear of being ticketed.

Right-of-way enhanced penalties: I posted on Monday about this Michigan legislator who was killed on his motorcycle when a car turned in front of him. He had the right-of-way and that driver violated his right-of-way. We all know this happens to us way too often, and it is often due to inattention or distraction. Should those people face extra harsh penalties for their negligence that led to a rider being killed? As it is, reports are all too common about these drivers getting fined $50 or some other such minor slap on the wrist.

Motorcycle-only checkpoints: Some states like to set up checkpoints where all they do is pull over motorcyclists to see if they have a valid motorcycle operator’s license and perhaps to do equipment safety checks on the bikes. They only pull over bikers. And they don’t always take motorcyclists’ special needs for stable footing and such when they select the places they’re going to do this. There is pressure to have these profiling events banned; some states have already done so.

That’s the list. What are your priorities?

Biker Quote for Today

It’s not a phase, it’s my life. It’s not a hobby, it’s my passion. It’s not for everyone, it is for me.

It's soon going to be time to head for the hills for some color.

Judy was gone all last week which meant her car was not in the garage. That allowed me to park my V-Strom right next to my car, rather than perpendicular to both our cars at the head of the garage. That in turn made it so much easier to get the bike out and ride it.

Guess what: I rode it a lot more than I otherwise would have.

Normally, to get it out I need to move one of the cars out and then to get it back in I have to muscle it backward into position, with all the typical jockeying that that entails, although I’ve gotten pretty good at it so there’s usually not a lot of jockeying. The point is that while I might opt to hop on the bike to make a quick run to the grocery store, it’s just not worth it when getting it out and in is such a hassle. When there was no hassle I did use it for those sorts of quick trips. It was so nice!

Getting either of my other bikes out is equally as involved. They are stored next to the garage in a workshop/storage area. I have to go in there from the garage and open the door, then roll a bike out, then go back in and pull the door shut and lock it, then exit through the garage. And if I want to ride the bike that is in front, that means I have to roll the back bike out, roll the front bike out, then roll the back bike back in. Again, it’s just not worth it for a quick run to the store.

This is one reason I’ve thought for a long time that I’d like to have a scooter. I figure with a scooter I could figure out some place and manner for parking it that would make it a lot more quickly and easily accessible, so I could take it on these quick runs.

Now, though, I see that the real answer is just to get Judy to agree to park her car on the driveway all the time. And really not even all the time; she could park in the garage when it’s snowy because I don’t ride when there is snow on the streets. I’m sure she’ll be happy to do that for me, don’t you think?

Right, me neither. Oh well, it was nice for a few days.

And Other Doings
Having this website and this blog mean that I get a lot of email from a lot of different people about a lot of different things. One thing I’m always getting is proposals from people who want a link from my site to theirs. Some of them really make me scratch my head. A recent one was from a guy with a site where they say they will buy your motorcycle from you. “We buy any bike,” they say. Now, that could be something of real interest to many of you except for one thing: these guys are in the UK. It’s true, of course, that some of my readers are just about anywhere you can name. The traffic to the site comes from all over the world. But the majority of traffic is from the U.S. Doesn’t matter. I get a lot of these sorts of requests from the UK. Go figure.

Biker Quote for Today

Riding motorcycles is like taking drugs . . . bikes should come with a warning label that reads “Warning: Riding a motorcycle is addictive. It will change your life forever.”