The GUNNY'S SACK

February 2006 I don’t know about all of you, but I’m GLAD the holidays are behind us. Don’t need the pressure. Now, on to a brand New Year and the promise and adventure of new things to come. Hopefully, we all at least stay healthy and are able to take in all the runs and shows this season will bring us.

I know everybody got all the maintenance work and paint jobs done along with the inevitable honey do’s over the winter. If not, ya still have a little time left.

My heart still goes out to the storm and fire victims around the country. Not much I can do but keep them in my thoughts as we all should. We have a lot of brothers and sisters that were affected. Well, let’s get right into the meat and potatoes of the Sack:

NEWSBITS ‘N’ PIECES:

HONDA MOTORCYCLE CO.: The new Goldwing has AIR-BAGS available on the 2006 models later this spring. Lots of people say the idea of an airbag on a bike is just downright NUTS! The new ‘Wings also have a GPS critter available that will take you wherever you want to go, maybe even to the mother-in-law’s. I understand it really works well. Also along with some minor design changes to the front end, the ‘06 Goldwing has a new sound system with 6, count ’em, SIX speakers, plus a six-disk CD changer, and even a plug for your I-Pod.

TIGARD, OREGON: Watch yourself in this town if ya like to go a little quickly. Tigard’s police force has a Honda motorcycle that's hard to spot until it's too late. I've heard a lot of comments about how hard this thing is to spot. Until they put the lights on, it just doesn’t look like a cop bike. Keep your eyes open for a Honda ST1300 sport-touring bike coming up fast.

ENGLAND SWUNG: Even the English property tax people are getting in on the game of spying on the public. Now we are hearing of the use of SATELLITES to check on home improvements. If they see your new garage or garden shed in these pics taken from space, they’ll just jack up your property taxes! This is fundamentally slimy, folks, and to my mind, a horrible invasion of privacy. What they are doing in England is an abomination. This stuff comes across the ocean faster than scat.

IS IT 1984 ALREADY? This next story comes to The SACK from Independent News and Media Limited, appearing in their online edition of The Independent, a British newspaper. What's more interesting, though, is how The SACK got the story: A link to it was posted online in the Sons of Liberty Riders (SoLR) e-mail listserve. These SoLR folks, plus all the bikers who get their e-mails and who also contribute information, opinion and links, are doing a HELL of a job for us all, and YOU ARE MISSING OUT if you haven't subscribed! My ever-popular Sack-editor and boss, Oregon AIM Lawyer Sam Hochberg, recommends you try it, too. You'll get daily information e-mailed to you about most anything to do with motorcycles, motorcyclists' rights, and Freedom issues in the US. Just drop an e-mail to HAWK, who runs the Sons of Liberty Riders websites and e-mail listserves (and he’s also our AIM/NCOM webmaster – www.aimncom.com). He'll get you set up pronto, and it's EASY. Just send your email to hawk@solriders.com, and Hawk will get back to you quickly! Oh yeah -- like a lot of the Internet, it IS FREE.

NOW, courtesy of SoLR, one of the SCARIEST STORIES I’ve ever put out there for ya, folks. I have condensed and rephrased parts of it, for space considerations.

MAY WE SEE YOUR PLATES, PLEASE? Britain is to become the first country in the world where the movements of all vehicles on the roads are recorded. A new national surveillance system will hold the records for at least two years.

The network will incorporate thousands of existing CCTV cameras which are being converted to read number plates automatically night and day to provide 24/7 coverage of all motorways and main roads, as well as towns, cities, ports and even gas stations.

By next March, a central database installed alongside the Police National Computer in Hendon, north London, will store the details of 35 million number-plate "reads" per day. These will include time, date and precise location.

There are plans to expand this surveillance to five-year storage. The next thing we know the authorities will be watching what we do in our powder rooms.

Remember folks, that which happens in Europe crosses the pond very shortly. When it hits this country we will be in a POLICE state. Helmet laws won’t mean a damn thing then.

OREGON: It has come to my attention that starting in 2006 when we renew our drivers licenses and want to keep our motorcycle endorsements we that are older than 40 years COULD be required to take a TEAM OREGON RIDERS COURSE. I will research this more and have better information next month.

I rebel when I am required to take riding training for the privilege of riding my heavy touring machine based on the notion that older riders are a problem. I ride a 2002 Goldwing and I’ve ridden heavy bikes all my life.

I endorse the idea of riding courses for my own enhancement. I’ve been riding well in excess of fifty years, and have taken the courses several times because I think it’s a good idea for me. It’s time we let folks know we are intelligent people and should have the right to make decisions in our own best interest. Too many times, the people who make the rules have no idea what riding motorcycles is all about.

NEW EPA LAWS LIMIT OUR BIKES! In the Sack several months ago, we mentioned new laws coming to the fore that would affect all of us who ride. Bikes manufactured from now on will have stringent emissions requirements and MODIFYING EXHAUSTS IS ILLEGAL, and you’ll get some HEFTY FINES if you do! And that’s FEDERAL LAW! Read on, and weep on:

Aftermarket bike builders are already restricted in the number of EPA- exempt bikes they can build and sell: 24!! After the first 24 in a year, the REST must all pass EPA restrictions. UGLIER STILL: Those first 24 EPA-exempt bikes can ONLY be ridden to and from motorcycle shops and events.

ONE Assembled BIKE per LIFETIME: As things are right now, you can only build ONE EPA-exempt bike in a lifetime! You CAN ride it anywhere, not just to bike shops, but once built, YOU CANNOT SELL IT for five years! Then, once its sold, or even if it’s destroyed or stolen, THAT ONE BIKE is all you get, my friend. The aftermarket builders are really under the gun. I’m tellin ya folks, this stuff is nasty. They’re after you and your bike, and these folks will not go away.

GUNNY AGAIN: This Sack column is made possible by the generosity of Sam Hochberg, Oregon’s Aid to Injured Motorcyclists (AIM) attorney. Just one more of those little perks that come from those very dedicated people that take such good care of us when we get hurt in accidents or get in jams with the authorities. Remember our AIM attorneys work on OUR behalf; and many times it’s a free thing for us. We can call them for any legal advice at most any time and they will at least talk to us and give us advice we can use. Call your nearest AIM guy when you need help. You just call the National AIM Hotline, at 1-800-ON-A-BIKE, and they will put you in touch with the AIM attorney in your area.

For you internet users, you can get ALL SORTS of info on the AIM and NCOM shared website, at www.ON-A-BIKE.com, or www.AIM/NCOM.com. Oh, and y’KNOW, Sam Hochberg has had his OWN site for many years, and what you want to do is tune yourself in to the section there called “Motorcycle Lawyer.” Sam’s site is www.YourInjuryLawyers.com. For SACK correspondence, even your old Gunny is on the Internet. Email me at AIMGunny@aol.com, and Sam’s email is SamBikeLaw@aol.com.