[Summit] MOTORCICLE NOISE

[Emlyn Addison]

An excellent link, Coryndon--this pretty much hits the nail on the head.

Nobody for a second is questioning the safety factor for motorcyclists
(particularly in RI!); they have every right to the road as others do, but
let's get real about this:


   1. It ain't about safety (otherwise they'd all be dressed in luminous
   orange and WEARING THEIR HELMETS);
   2. it ain't about the environment (otherwise they'd all be riding
   bicycles or electric scooters);
   3. it ain't about parking (otherwise these conscientious citizens would
   be taking public transportation, thereby negating the need for parking in
   the first place);
   4. it ain't about what *others* do--low-ridin' sub-woofers, texting
   teenagers or any number of other in-car distractions.


These are all distractions form the real point: That modofied pipes on
motorcycles are unusually--and unneccessarily--loud and that recognizing
their pollutive impact on others is key to their continued enjoyment of it.

It's human nature to want to express one's self in public, but there are
limits to this, and my guess is that, like everything else, it's simply a
matter of being considerate and respectful of others.

Hmm.

Emlyn



Date: Mon, 8 Jun 2009 08:36:09 -0400
> From: Coryndon Luxmoore <coryndon at luxmoore.com>
> Subject: Re: [Summit] MOTORCICLE NOISE
> To: Summit Neighborhood List <summit at sna.providence.ri.us>
> Message-ID: <096D6BBE-220D-4F5A-A0C7-7A69F2A5211A at luxmoore.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; Format="flowed";
>        DelSp="yes"
>
> Yup, Harley Riders with illegal pipes will have free reign. They are
> the good ol' boys & girls of rhode island and therefore won't have the
> laws enforced by the local police many who ride the same illegal bikes
> off duty.
>
> Here is a nice rant from a biker about the issue:
> http://www.virginiawind.com/byways/loud_pipes_save_lives.asp
>
> -- C
>
>
>
> --------------------------------------------
> Coryndon Luxmoore
> Interaction Designer
>
> coryndon (at) luxmoore (dot) com
> ---------------------------------------------
>
> On Jun 8, 2009, at 6:39 AM, Emlyn Addison wrote:
>
> > Marco, I wrote a letter to the Journal about the problem of
> > motorcycle noise a couple of years ago, and was "educated" by one of
> > the local hog riders that motorcycle noise is actually a safety
> > mechanism.
> >
> > No really, you gotta hear this:
> >
> > "Loud pipes save lives", she insisted. Apparently, old ladies in
> > their Buicks, who can't see these gargantuan monstrosities, will at
> > least hear their 120Db bleating, and so will presumably stop short
> > of crushing these poor folk under their menacing tires.
> >
> > Another great justification on offer from this same freedom-loving
> > noisemaker was that motorcycle noise is not worse than teenagers
> > texting while driving, as if these have anything to do with each
> > other.
> >
> > Of course there are laws against excessive muffler noise in RI, but
> > good luck seeing it enforced.
> >
> > Emlyn
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://sna.providence.ri.us/pipermail/summit_sna.providence.ri.us/attachments/20090608/4df77d4b/attachment.htm>