Duke's Den - Ride To Work, Right To Ride
Springtime is a joyous season for motorcycle riders, as beloved machines get to spin their wheels after a winter’s hibernation. Tree and flowers bloom from the earth as motorcycles blossom on the roads.
This seasonal influx of two-wheelers in an environment often hostile to motorcycles is nationally recognized by May’s Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month, in which car drivers are asked to be cognizant of our lesser-visible mode of transportation. This month, the onus for the positive image of motorcycling shifts to us.
Duke’s Den – Motorcycle Safety and Awareness Month
June 16 marks the 23rd-annual Ride to Work Day, a perfect opportunity for riders to show the cage-driving world that motorcyclists are their friends and neighbors. And, importantly, that there are lots of us.
“Many people do not always appreciate the societally positive value of transportational riding,” states Andy Goldfine, the primary man behind the RtW non-profit organization and founder of the Aerostich and RiderWearhouse lines of motorcycling apparel and accessories.
But the RtW org emphasizes the ride day isn’t just about encouraging riders to be seen on the roads, it’s also “about increasing the understanding of – and tolerance for – those who choose this form of mobility.”
So mark your calendar for Monday, June 16, and make sure your bike is ready to roll for your commute to work. It’s in our best interests for car drivers to notice more of us on the road. And, critically, for non-riders to see that we’re a responsible and friendly part of the transportation equation.
Check out the Ride To Work Day website: http://www.ridetowork.org/
The RtW website includes several images and graphics that can be printed so that you can display your support. My favorite (listed below) points out several good reasons to ride to work, which you are encouraged to share with the uninitiated.
I have ridden my motorcycle to work today because:
- Riding to work is fun
- Riding to work reduces traffic and parking congestion
- Riding to work uses less fuel than an automobile
- Riding to work leaves me alert and energized
- Riding to work results in less pollution than commuting in a larger vehicle
- Riding to work is less destructive to road surfaces, bridges, etc.
- Riding to work gets me to work (and back home) faster
- Riding to work demonstrates motorcycling as a social good
Preliminary estimates are for a record-breaking number of participants for this month’s RtW Day. Please do us all a favor and ride your motorcycle on June 16 to show the rest of the world we’re a segment of the transportation population that deserves their respect. It will help preserve our right to ride.
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I'm showing my age here, but when I started riding, people were still touring the country and the world on 500cc and 750cc bikes. They weren't blindingly fast, but they could do the job. All the torque arrived soon after idle. There was enough power to cruise at highway speeds if not Autobahn speeds. I remember riding a Kawasaki 900 Z1 for the first time and remarking how big and heavy it was. :) Fast-forward to today, when we have touring bikes that weigh close to half a ton and need car-sized engines. We have cruisers in the same weight and displacement class that are equipped to travel only to the nearest biker bar. We in the motorcycle camp seem to be where the car guys were in the late '60s, early '70s with their 500-cubic-inch Eldorados.
That sounds so right:D Great article:)