Todie's Wild Ride: Tricky

This mission of this coin is to raise awareness for motorcycles sharing the road with other vehicles and to help educate riders about the dangers of stunt riding on our roads.

Motorcyclists who pull 100 mph wheelies on the freeway, or do stoppies on the street in front of their homes, attract a lot of attention.
Unfortunately, it’s not the kind of attention the rest of us need. And in more and more places, we’re seeing the predictable result.
Not only are police cracking down on these riders, but state lawmakers are now getting involved, writing specific laws targeting motorcycle stunters. The lawmakers say they want to make sure that police have the tools they need to go after these riders.
Stunt riders on public streets don’t just pose a danger to others, they are also a danger to themselves. Consider:

• In Ontario, California, a 60-year-old motorcyclist was killed when he popped a wheelie on the street in front of his home and smashed into a parked car.

• In Sugar Grove, Illinois, a 21-year-old motorcyclist did a 100-yard wheelie in front of a police officer. He was chased, crashed, and then was charged with reckless driving, fleeing and eluding, disobeying a stop sign, and operating an uninsured vehicle.

• In Middletown, New York, two motorcyclists collided and were killed on a street called Industrial Place, which is in a warehouse district and is a popular gathering place for motorcycle stunt riders and street racers. Police have stepped up patrols there as a result.

We’ve all seen or read news reports involving incidents like these, including the senseless case from last year in which a young rider with no pants on died while doing high-speed wheelies on a freeway for a video. He died when he hit a stopped vehicle.

Lawmakers in at least three states have seen or read these reports, too, and are pushing laws targeting motorcyclists as a result.

In May, the Tennessee Senate unanimously passed a bill to make it illegal to do a wheelie. Specifically, the bill says that any rider who pulls a wheelie can be charged with reckless driving.

Sen. Dewane Bunch (R-Cleveland) says he introduced the bill because it’s unclear whether prosecutors can charge motorcyclists with reckless driving for popping wheelies under current law.

Tennessee’s House has passed a similar bill, and once the differences between the two measures are resolved, the proposal will go to the governor to be signed into law.

In New York, a lawmaker is taking a slightly different approach to the issue. Assemblyman Joel Miller (R-Poughkeepsie) has introduced a bill to prohibit “exhibition driving.”

Miller claims that under current law, a rider “can perform dangerous stunts such as wheelies, side-straddling or fishtailing without the threat of a ticket. This type of reckless driving is dangerous to the operator and also puts other motorists and pedestrians at risk.”

Police agencies across the state have indicated stunt riding is a growing problem, he says. The proposed law defines “exhibition driving” to include all motorized vehicles, so that motorcycle operators aren’t singled out, he adds.

Violation of the proposed laws in Tennessee and New York would qualify as a misdemeanor. But a measure working its way through the legislative process in Missouri would raise that to a felony for someone convicted of a second offense of “motorcycle stunt driving” without a license plate on the bike.

The Missouri bill, introduced by state Rep. Jeff Roorda (D-Jefferson), would specifically make stunt riding a crime. And the license-plate provision is designed to impose additional penalties on those who attempt to hide their identity while performing stunts.
Under the bill, stunt riding would be defined very broadly, and would include standing on the seat, frame or handlebars on a motorcycle; doing handstands while riding; or pulling a wheelie. But it would also include “removing both hands from the handlebars while operating the motorcycle.”

“The problem of riders pulling dangerous stunts on public roads has only been growing,” says Ed Moreland, AMA vice president of government relations. “Frankly, stunt riders aren’t doing the rest of us any favors, and it’s entirely predictable that we’re now seeing these laws.”

Please do not keep this coin as we want it to travel the world from cache to cache to remind people about motorcycle safety. Please help keep our roads safe and watch out for motorcyles!!
PLEASE HELP ME TRAVEL FAR AS I AM INVOLVED IN A MILEAGE/KILOMETER RACE TO SPREAD MOTORCYCLE SAFETY AWARENESS!