The liberties of our country, the freedom of our civil Constitution, are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors: they purchased them for us with toil and danger and expense of treasure and blood, and transmitted them to us with care and diligence. It will bring an everlasting mark of infamy on the present generation, enlightened as it is, if we should suffer them to be wrested from us by violence without a struggle, or to be cheated out of them by the artifices of false and designing men.
Motorcyclist hurt at fundraiser for injured sergeant Distracted by photographer By Joe Johnson | joe.johnson@onlineathens.com | Story updated at 11:41 PM on Monday, February 25, 2008 A Watkinsville woman is home nursing broken ribs and a bad case of road rash she suffered during a weekend motorcycle rally to raise money for a wounded Athens-Clarke police officer.
Kay Bradford Norris - one of more than 700 motorcyclists who participated in the group ride - skidded out on the Athens Perimeter to avoid other bikers shortly after the rally began. Riders were distracted by someone on the side of the road, Norris said.
Charity bikers finished the 40-mile rally after the crash, which happened near the Oglethorpe Avenue exit.
The group motorcycle ride raised nearly $20,000 for Athens-Clarke police Sgt. Courtney Gale, who nearly was killed in December when a man attacked her with a knife while she was working a private security job.
Bikers in the rally slowed suddenly about 11:20 a.m. when they came to a woman who stopped her car in the highway's emergency lane to take photographs, Norris said.
"Numerous people were commenting on how this pedestrian with a camera was motioning for people to slow down," she said.
Norris, 36, slammed on her brakes and swerved to avoid hitting a motorcycle in front of her, she said. Norris and her Harley Davidson slid for more than 100 feet, according to a police accident report. The motorcycle hit a guardrail and stopped, but Norris slid right under the rail.
"There was no chance for me to stop for the motorcycle that was in front of me," Norris said. "I broke a couple of ribs and have some pretty bad abrasions, but I'm very fortunate to walk away from it."
Norris, who works for the Athens-Clarke Department of Transportation and Public Works, was treated at St. Mary's Hospital. No one was cited for the wreck, police said.
Norris said she was driving under the posted 55 mph speed limit. She was wearing a helmet, leather jacket and other protective clothing at the time, she said.
The motorcycle ride was co-sponsored by a company Norris owns with her husband - The Hawg Pen - along with two other local motorcycle dealerships, Cycle World of Athens and Top Gear Motorsports.
Gale was off duty working as a security guard at the Alps Road Kroger on Dec. 11 when a man who has a history of mental illness lunged at her and stabbed her a dozen times, severing a femoral artery. She nearly died from blood loss and spent two weeks in a coma.
Supporters have held several fundraisers for Gale since the near-fatal attack.
By last month, supporters had raised nearly $65,000 from private donations to a trust account in her name at SunTrust Bank and from Kroger charity events.
The Oconee County Sheriff's Office earlier this month hosted a barbecue that netted more than $48,000, and a benefit golf outing is scheduled for March 31 at the Athens Country Club.
Published in the Athens Banner-Herald on 022608Add to Technorati Favorites
(Rogue on left with Bandit, Daytona 1973.)Sturgis Freedom Fighters
Motorcycle Hall Of Fame Member 2005
He also has been a long time motorcycle rights activists helping to form MRO's in various states and working with "easy rider" Magazine in the beginning when they were instrumental in forming ABATE. HE is a lifetime member of ABATE of FLorida So he knows from where he speaks and when he speaks people listen.
He sent us a link to an article he recentlly had posted on Bikernet and we are proud to pubish his article in it's entirety here:
"ABATE needs your help to continue these efforts! Currently, less than 1 percent of Florida�s 900,00+ endorsed motorcyclists are among the 7,500 members, in 30 Chapters that make up ABATE of Florida, Inc. These dedicated motorcyclists represent and work to preserve and protect the rights of all Florida bikers; sport riders, cruisers, organized riders and free-riders alike. Come for the party! Stay for the mission! For additional information on ABATE of Florida, Inc. visit us on the web at www.abateflorida.com.
Myself and others received the message above from ABATE. The first part has been deleted because of its length and I have some disagreement with their claims as well. I want to be very clear that I Support ABATE as an organization BUT like many members I have problems with the current leadership. They have not been successful stopping anti- motorcycle legislation I, and others, feel should not have passed.
Here is an organization claiming to represent the motorcycle riders of Florida yet they openly admit their membership is less than 1 percent. The president of ABATE James �Doc� Reichenbach gets upset when other motorcycle rights organizations like the American Motorcycle Association get involved. The AMA has been fighting unjust laws for many years around the country and has been very successful. Their Florida membership is large, and I, and other members of that association request they represent us on issues in the state until ABATE of Florida is successful.
Many people join ABATE as they become motorcyclist then fall out, disillusioned. Until recently their newsletter listed folks who didn't renew. Now many long time members are not renewing as well. I am not sure why this is but obviously ABATE did not turn out to be what they expected.
There is much disagreement among members on how to handle various situations, pending legislation and present laws that need to be repealed. There are those who feel it is time for new leadership and that the $50,000 that �Doc� gets as lobbyist is not worth what the members of ABATE and the riders of Florida are getting in return. It should also be noted as President of ABATE he does not get paid but his expenses are covered. Exactly what those expenses are is not entirely clear to some of the membership. The majority of dues paying members are the ones who need to decide who runs their organization.
For those who disagree with �Doc� and or ABATE�s policy, you have a right to support other organizations and have them represent you in Florida. As always you do not need to belong to any organization to contact your legislator with your opinion on issues that affect you.
ABATE's success rate of stopping laws that make things mandatory for motorcycle riders is not good. Years ago they did repeal the mandatory helmet law for those over 21, if they had insurance. That was a compromise situation that some favor and others think should not have been linked to insurance. With folks defending this country in foreign lands and putting their lives on the line and then be told they have to wear a helmet because they are not 21 yet is not acceptable. Then, of course, there are those who will argue everyone should wear helmets. This discussion has been going on for years and will continue for many more.
Motorcycles are more and more popular, and many people and organizations are looking to see how they can make money from this growth. One organization is the Motorcycle Safety Foundation who is funded by the major motorcycle manufactures. They originally started out offering a course to teach people how to operate motorcycles. Over the years they have grown and now are lobbying to make their schools Mandatory. Now let me get this right. The motorcycle companies make a product then they have a foundation that will teach you for a fee how to operate their product and NOW they want to Force You To Take These Courses.
At present there is a law in the state of Florida forcing anyone, under the age of 21, to enroll in the mandatory motorcycle courses before they receive a motorcycle license. There is no law to make schooling mandatory for other types of vehicle to my knowledge. The answer is not to play along with these for-profit organizations by making schooling mandatory for any type of motor vehicle license.
The state issues the operators permit for operating motor vehicles and they should do the testing. If some one can pass the test they should be allowed that opportunity to do so. If they do not pass, then they should have the option of going to a school or learning from other sources. They should then be required to return and be retested by the state and not by supplying a note saying they passed the test they paid for. Is this buying a license?
When I last checked the Harley Dealer was charging $295.00 to take their course and there are reports of others charging more. Since these are private businesses there is no cap on what they can charge for these classes and the price is likely to go up with supply and demand.
ABATE has Not Defeated or overturned this law and as a matter of fact there is a new law that is scheduled to take affect in 2008 that will force everyone without a motorcycle endorsement to take the mandatory course.
There is also information that the organizations pushing for Mandatory schooling are going to try and make re-schooling mandatory every 5 years. Yeah, you got that right, you will be forced to pay to go to school on a regular basis to ride your motorcycle.
There are a couple of bills that are in the works. One is House Bill 137 that will allow for the confiscation of motorcycles for traffic offenses. Through the efforts of numerous motorcycle rights groups and concerned motorcyclist this bill has been tabled. That does not mean it will not come back again, as the sponsor said he would re-write and re-submit it. Then there is a companion bill Senate Bill 802.
There will also be other bills to watch and act on. Hopefully we can all work together for the benefit of motorcycle riders of Florida.
I will continue to support ABATE and the American Motorcycle Association in their efforts to improve motorcycling in the State of Florida. I will look forward to information from both of them so I can make informed decisions and let my elected officials know how I feel on the issues. Yes it will take a little work but I want to make decisions on the issues that affect me and not have some one else do it.
HOPEFULLY YOU WILL DO THE SAME!!
2008 is going to be a very important year for ABATE of FLORIDA. Hopefully they will resolve their internal problems and their membership will increase, but more important is that they defeat pending bills that infringe on the rights of motorcyclist and also repeal laws mandating schooling. If they are successful, they will prosper. If they are not successful I believe membership will continue to decline.
RIDE FREE
-- ROGUE" FInd Rouges website here!Add to Technorati Favorites
We wont post the whole release and editorialize about what we already know, the government is broken and we (Bikers) are currently under an onslaught of attacks by "compassionate conservatives" that claim to be believe in less Government. Some excerpts of note:
(photo of Tracy)
