Some time ago I blogged about a piece of obscure Utah legislation proposed by Rhonda Menlove that intended to encourage motorcycle riders to wear helmets.  The bill seemed harmless at the time and a rather benign way to encourage helmet use.  The bill, in its original format proposed a $10 reduction of certain highway tickets if the offending motorcycle rider was wearing a helmet.

House Bill 93 was titled MOTORCYCLE AND OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLE AMENDMENTS and was recently amended to add a vary important aspect.  The amendment adds to the language of the bill stating:

... provides that the failure to wear protective headgear:
does not constitute contributory or comparative negligence on the part of a person seeking recovery for injuries; and may not be introduced as evidence in any civil litigation on the issue of negligence, injuries, or the mitigation of damages; ...

This means that insurance companies can no longer claim in court that an injured motorcycle rider who is not wearing a helmet caused his own injury.  In Utah we have what is called contributory negligence where a judge must reduce the injured person's monetary recovery by the amount of negligence determined by the jury.  If the jury determines that the injured motorcycle rider was more that 50% negligent for not wearing a helmet the injured rider will receive nothing at trial.  If the jury determines that the injured rider is 30% negligent the judge will reduce the recovery by 30%.

This bill stops the insurance company lawyers from penalizing the injured rider for following the law - that is riding without a helmet.  In other words an injured motorcycle rider should not be penalized for following the law and choosing to ride without a helmet.

Utah Bike Law is a law firm and its lawyers represent motorcycle riders and their families across Utah including the counties and cities of Beaver, Box Elder, Cache, Carbon, Daggett, Davis, Duchesne, Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Juab, Kane, Millard, Morgan, Piute, Rich, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, Washington, Wayne, Weber, American Fork, Beaver, Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Delta, Draper, Duchesne, Fillmore, Heber, Kamas, Kanab, Kaysville, Layton, Lehi, Logan, Moab, Murray, Nephi, Ogden, Orem, Park City, Price, Provo, Richfield, Riverton, Roy, Salt Lake City, Sandy, South Jordan, St. George, Tooele, Vernal, West Jordan, and West Valley City.

1) Motorcycle Safety Fact: Over half of all fatal motorcycle crashes involve another vehicle. Most of the time, the motorist, not the motorcyclist, is at fault. There are a lot more cars and trucks than motorcycles on the road, and some drivers don't "recognize" a motorcycle - they ignore it (usually unintentionally).

2) Motorcycle Safety Fact: Because of its small size, a motorcycle can be easily hidden in a car's blind spots (door/roof pillars) or masked by objects or backgrounds outside a car (bushes, fences, bridges, etc). Take an extra moment to look for motorcycles, whether you're changing lanes or turning at intersections.

3) Motorcycle Safety Fact: Because of its small size, a motorcycle may look farther away than it is. It may also be difficult to judge a motorcycle's speed. When checking traffic to turn at an intersection or into (or out of) a driveway, assume a motorcycle is closer than it looks.

4) Motorcycle Safety Fact: Motorcyclists often slow by downshifting or merely rolling off the throttle, thus not activating the brake light. Allow more following distance, say 3 or 4 seconds. At intersections, predict a motorcyclist may slow down without visual warning.

5) Motorcycle Safety Fact: Motorcyclists often adjust position within a lane to be seen more easily and to minimize the effects of road debris, passing vehicles, and wind. Understand that motorcyclists adjust lane position for a purpose, not to be reckless or show off or to allow you to share the lane with them.

6) Motorcycle Safety Fact: Turn signals on a motorcycle usually are not self-canceling, thus some riders (especially beginners) sometimes forget to turn them off after a turn or lane change. Make sure a motorcycle's signal is for real.

7) Motorcycle Safety Fact: Maneuverability is one of a motorcycle's better characteristics, especially at slower speeds and with good road conditions, but don't expect a motorcyclist to always be able to dodge out of the way.

8) Motorcycle Safety Fact: Stopping distance for motorcycles is nearly the same as for cars, but slippery pavement makes stopping quickly difficult. Allow more following distance behind a motorcycle because it can't always stop "on a dime."

9) Motorcycle Safety Fact: When a motorcycle is in motion, see more than the motorcycle - see the person under the helmet, who could be your friend, neighbor, or relative.

10) Motorcycle Safety Fact: If a driver crashes into a motorcyclist, bicyclist, or pedestrian and causes serious injury, the driver would likely never forgive himself/herself.

These facts were reprinted from a great motorcycle website named Ultimate Motorcycling.

Utah Bike Law is a law firm and its lawyers represent motorcycle riders and their families across Utah including the counties and cities of Beaver, Box Elder, Cache, Carbon, Daggett, Davis, Duchesne, Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Juab, Kane, Millard, Morgan, Piute, Rich, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, Washington, Wayne, Weber, American Fork, Beaver, Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Delta, Draper, Duchesne, Fillmore, Heber, Kamas, Kanab, Kaysville, Layton, Lehi, Logan, Moab, Murray, Nephi, Ogden, Orem, Park City, Price, Provo, Richfield, Riverton, Roy, Salt Lake City, Sandy, South Jordan, St. George, Tooele, Vernal, West Jordan, and West Valley City.

Taxpayers who purchased a new car, motorcycle, light truck or mobile home on or after February 17, 2009, and before January 1, 2010, can deduct sales taxes for the first $49,500 of the purchase price. You don't need to itemize to claim this deduction.You can claim the sales-tax deduction even if you participated in the federal "cash-for-clunkers" program, says Amy McAnarney, executive director of H&R Block's Tax Institute.

The AMA (American Motorcyclist Association) has a good review of the law regarding this tax deduction.  In speaking with my accountant the deduction is legitimate and welcome.  If you are having your taxes done by someone else or you are doing them yourself do not forget this deduction!

I think Harley Davidson makes a great motorcycle - I own two of them and I love them.  I love everything about them - their bulk, their gutteral rumble and their classic design.

But things are tough at Harley Davidson what with the economic recession and their core market baby boomers reluctant to plop down thousands for a bike.  To add to their woes Harley kept producing bikes in the face of slowing sales leading to a product glut.  Not only is there a glut of new Harleys out there but as times are tough for current owners there is also a glut of Harleys on the classifieds pages.  To compound their problems Harley engeged in questionable lending to help support lagging sales in 2009 and that is coming home to haunt them as these soft loans have cost Harley dearly.  Harley stock got as low as about $10 in 2009 but has rebounded to about $23 recently.

On the bright side Harley Davidson is an icon and has survived over 107 years coming through the great depression and foreign motorcycle invasion of the 1970's.  What saved them then and what will save Harley now is the loyalty of their fans.  Harley has done a great job marketing to their cadre of loyal fans.  To survive they will have to keep up thier innovative marketing programs including HOG (Harley Ownership Group) and introducing models like the V-Rod that appeals to younger riders.

A man in Colorado's Weld County was arrested recently in connection with a 2007 motorcycle crash that killed a 21-year-old woman who was the passenger on his motorcycle when they crashed.  Tyrrell Kochenower, the motorcycle driver, was arrested and is being held on a $100,000 bond.

The crash, which happened on Sept. 21, 2007, occurred near Weld County roads 29 and 74, about three miles west of Eaton. A passenger on the motorcycle, Bethany Gibson, was killed, and Kochenower was seriously injured when the motorcycle they were on skidded out of control.  Kochenower was driving the motorcycle, according to affidavits, when it ran off the road. The motorcycle tumbled for 255 feet with both Bethany and Kochenower thrown off.  The crash occurred about midnight, but the victims weren't found for more than seven hours. When found, Gibson was dead and Kochenower was alive, but he was in serious condition with a brain injury.  Further investigation alleges that Kochenower was legally intoxicated at the time of the crash.  Kochenower suffered a severe brain injury, fractured skull and collapsed lung in the crash and hospital bills in Greeley exceeded $300,000.

In Utah, if a passenger is found to be 50% or more at fault, the passenger will receive no compensation whatsoever.

Motorcycle Tips & Techniques is a great motorcycle safety website.  The site contains videos and in-depth articles that detail the particular hazardds faced by motorcycle riders every day. Coincidence or not we had recently blogged about a motorcycle phenomenon called target fixation and so did Motorcycle Tips & Techniques where they perform what they call a "case study." 

Their case study talks about a woman named Karen that crashes into the side of a pickup truck.  After rounding a right hand turn Karen appeared to fixate of the oncoming truck and probably would have been killed had it not been for evasive manoeuvres by the truck.  Karen "... suffered massive body trauma during the accident.  Her left leg was peeled open (literally shredded) from hip to lower leg, compound fractures in several places both above and below the left knee, several ribs on th left side had been broken and punctured her left lung, her liver was 'fractured' as apparently was her spleen, and her diaphragm had been pierced."

This is an excellent blow-by-blow account of the effect of target fixation and Karen's injuries and recovery.

Utah Bike Law represent motorcycle riders and their families across Utah including the counties and cities of Beaver, Box Elder, Cache, Carbon, Daggett, Davis, Duchesne, Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Juab, Kane, Millard, Morgan, Piute, Rich, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, Washington, Wayne, Weber, American Fork, Beaver, Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Delta, Draper, Duchesne, Fillmore, Heber, Kamas, Kanab, Kaysville, Layton, Lehi, Logan, Moab, Murray, Nephi, Ogden, Orem, Park City, Price, Provo, Richfield, Riverton, Roy, Salt Lake City, Sandy, South Jordan, St. George, Tooele, Vernal, West Jordan, and West Valley City.

I am a Garmin addict - at least in my truck.  I am thinking about going to Sturgis this summer and I think I will have to buy a Garmin Zumo for my motorcycle - but which one is the question.

A recent review of the Garmin Zumo 660 with a price tag of $799 appeared on About.com where the author took it on a 570 mile ride in Italy.  His final appraisal was positive giving the gizmo a 3.5 stars out of 5.  The Garmin home page for the 660 will give you the full details.

To be honest the $799 price tag kind of staggered me so I looked at another model - the Zumo 220 - but it is still listed at $599.  One of the best reviews I found on this model is at GPS News.org.

Bottom line - I think I will just use my truck Garmin and wire it into my bike.

Utah Bike Law represent motorcycle riders and their families across Utah including the counties and cities of Beaver, Box Elder, Cache, Carbon, Daggett, Davis, Duchesne, Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Juab, Kane, Millard, Morgan, Piute, Rich, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, Washington, Wayne, Weber, American Fork, Beaver, Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Delta, Draper, Duchesne, Fillmore, Heber, Kamas, Kanab, Kaysville, Layton, Lehi, Logan, Moab, Murray, Nephi, Ogden, Orem, Park City, Price, Provo, Richfield, Riverton, Roy, Salt Lake City, Sandy, South Jordan, St. George, Tooele, Vernal, West Jordan, and West Valley City.

This is a reprint of an article from Facts About All - Interesting Facts Page.  I thought it was interesting!

1. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that in 2000, 631 motorcyclists were saved by wearing their helmet.
2. The German inventor Gottlieb Daimler is generally credited with building the first practical motorcycle in 1885.
3. Up to eight motorbikes can fit in the same parking space occupied by one car.
4. Motorcycles and scooters are, on average, about twice as fuel efficient as cars.
5. The first rider to ever go over 300mph was Don Vesco in 1975, on a 1496cc Yamaha-engined streamliner.
6. Kawasaki also makes spaceships.
7. The fastest motorcycle s the Dodge Tomahawk, a prototype with an unusual design, featuring the 500 hp (373 kW) 8.3 L V10 engine from the Dodge Viper.
8. MV Agusta is currently producing the F4 1078 RR 312. 312kph being the recorded top speed at the Salt Flats in Utah in 2007.The RR312 reached a recorded top speed of 195, but since speeds are averaged, it’s recorded top speed is 194mph, or metric, 312kph.
9. When Valentino Rossi was five, his dad Graziano built him a go-cart to discourage him from getting into bikes
10. Harley-Davidson built push-bikes between 1917 and 1923. The first Harley Davidson motorcycle built in 1903 used a tomato can for a carburetor.

Utah Bike Law represent motorcycle riders and their families across Utah including the counties and cities of Beaver, Box Elder, Cache, Carbon, Daggett, Davis, Duchesne, Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Juab, Kane, Millard, Morgan, Piute, Rich, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, Washington, Wayne, Weber, American Fork, Beaver, Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Delta, Draper, Duchesne, Fillmore, Heber, Kamas, Kanab, Kaysville, Layton, Lehi, Logan, Moab, Murray, Nephi, Ogden, Orem, Park City, Price, Provo, Richfield, Riverton, Roy, Salt Lake City, Sandy, South Jordan, St. George, Tooele, Vernal, West Jordan, and West Valley City.

Target fixation occurs when you go where you look.  It is a phenomenon that especially occurs when riding a two-wheeled vehicle but also happens when driving a vehicle.  Sounds simple, and it is, but the implications can be enormous. It plays an important role when faced with an immediate threat or danger.  Imagine you are riding your motorcycle along a road approaching an intersection.  A car comes to a stop at the stop sign and you have no stop sign and continue through the intersection.  All of a sudden the stopped car accelerates and enters the intersection directly into your path.  Quick - what do you do?

If you are honest with yourself and break-down the sequence in which you reacted the first thing you must have done was look at the car.  If it were otherwise you would not have seen the car start to enter the intersection.  Keep in mind that this is a sudden and unexpected event.  Next thing you do is probably slam on your brakes while looking at the car.  The target fixation phenomenon kicks in and the motorcycle tends to move toward the car.  Even the driver of the vehicle may look up and see you too late and the target fixation phenomenon also forces the driver of the car to turn in your direction - why - because he is looking at you - target fixation.

There are a lot of videos on YouTube that demonstrate the phenomenon but I think this is one of the best. A wobble on the rear end, maybe a little water on the road, and he appears to panic.  I think target fixation occurs as he is looking at the fast-approaching brick wall.  There is essentially nothing he can do at this point.  Sure, he might have been disciplined enough to accelerate and bear left but it was probably too little too late.  Now imagine if that brick wall were a car suddenly entering your "right of way" intersection.

Ronda Menlove, R-Garland, whose 1st District includes the rest of Tooele County along with parts of Box Elder County will be sponsoring legislation to provide a $10 discount for motorcycle and ATV riders who are wearing helmets when they receive a ticket for a moving violation.

This is a simple, fun and positive way to encourage helmet use.  It is a reminder to all riders that their safety will be increased if they wear a helmet.  However, it is not a law that will unilaterally force riders to wear helmets.  I think this is a good idea Representative Menlove - good for you - and us!

Utah Bike Law represent motorcycle riders and their families across Utah including the counties and cities of Beaver, Box Elder, Cache, Carbon, Daggett, Davis, Duchesne, Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Juab, Kane, Millard, Morgan, Piute, Rich, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, Washington, Wayne, Weber, American Fork, Beaver, Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Delta, Draper, Duchesne, Fillmore, Heber, Kamas, Kanab, Kaysville, Layton, Lehi, Logan, Moab, Murray, Nephi, Ogden, Orem, Park City, Price, Provo, Richfield, Riverton, Roy, Salt Lake City, Sandy, South Jordan, St. George, Tooele, Vernal, West Jordan, and West Valley City.