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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsPolice want bikers off streets after deadly Texas shooting
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/19/us-usa-texas-shooting-bikers-idUSKBN0O400820150519The local Harley Davidson dealership was closed, motorcycle riders were asked to stay off the roads and police snipers took to rooftops to watch Waco streets after a deadly gangland shooting caused many to cast a colder eye on bikers.
Police did not say how long the request would last.
Riders asked the public to take a breath, relax and realize that criminality is the rare exception for members of motorcycle clubs.
Waco Police said they have been threatened by motorcycle gangs after a Sunday shoot out between rivals at a Twin Peaks restaurant that left nine dead and 18 injured. They asked bikers to stay off the streets because it was difficult to distinguish between law-abiding riders and those bent on criminality.
Aerows
(39,961 posts)law-abiding riders would grant that request so that the scumbags that were involved with this can be taken off of the streets without more bloodshed.
NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)Seriously.
DeadEyeDyck
(1,504 posts)lonestarnot
(77,097 posts)NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)Ya damn kids and your skateboards.
Get a haircut!!!
Jesus Malverde
(10,274 posts)Response to NYC_SKP (Reply #2)
enough This message was self-deleted by its author.
Ghost in the Machine
(14,912 posts)I am assuming that you live in NYC, and I can't speak for there, but I know out here in the country where I live that more often than not you hear a bike long before you see it... especially a Harley. I live up on a hill, maybe 3/4s of a mile from the highway, and I can sit outside and listen to the rumble through the hills.
I haven't ridden for many years now, but the sound of a Harley still makes me smile... and makes the old blood tingle a little...
Peace,
Ghost
NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)I'm out in California now, drive an electric Chevy Volt that is noise-free and I need to sometimes beep to let people know I'm there.
But at least if a car hits me I'm surrounded by airbags.
If I was on a bike, I'd want people to know I was there, too.
Still, in a quiet neighborhood it can be annoying, especially modified bikes.
Gormy Cuss
(30,884 posts)Lane splitting is one of the peculiar features of the vehicle code here that should be revisited.
NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)I support cyclists, it's more sustainable than one person--one car.
But let them use the emergency lane or median.
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)Ghost in the Machine
(14,912 posts)ago, they had a debate over the issue when they resumed emissions testing and excluded bikes because of the whole "loud pipes save lives" issue. I could be remembering incorrectly, but I know that's when I first heard the "loud pipes save lives" meme. They had bumper stickers and smaller "helmet stickers" they were passing out. You can still find them in bike shops today.
Always good to hear from you, my friend
Stay safe,
Ghost
Glassunion
(10,201 posts)Now do all bikers follow those rules? No.
California
Max sound levels:
1)Pre-1970: 92dba;
2) After 1969, and before 1973: 88dba;
3) After 1972, and before 1975: 86dba;
4) After 1974, and before 1986: 83dba;
5) After 1985
80dba
yellowcanine
(35,699 posts)Going to hear the loud pipes of an APPROACHING MC? I don't think so. Maybe if they are behind the MC or even beside them. Otherwise, no.
Ghost in the Machine
(14,912 posts)37. Car with windows up, radio on, AC on waiting to turn left......
Going to hear the loud pipes of an APPROACHING MC? I don't think so. Maybe if they are behind the MC or even beside them. Otherwise, no.
When I had my Jeep Grand Cherokee I could hear them with the windows up, AC on and listening to the radio... as long as the radio wasn't cranked up when I was jamming to a good song. Listening to the radio shouldn't be an issue anyways, as there are laws in the books about being able to hear approaching emergency vehicles so you can move out of the way.
I am currently driving a '95 Dodge Ram 1500 with a 318 Magnum w/ dual exhaust and FlowMasters and I can still hear a bike coming or going. I don't jam the stereo either. I used to when I was younger, but now I use my driving time as my "quiet time" where I can think to myself... or just listen to the sound of my own engine.
Maybe being a former rider makes a difference too. I am always on the lookout for bikes, especially when approaching intersections or side roads. I drive by the motto "Look Twice, Save A Life. Bikers Are People Too!"
Peace,
Ghost
Major Nikon
(36,827 posts)I've never seen a motorcycle safety expert perpetuate that myth. I've never seen a motorcycle manufacturer perpetuate that myth. I've never seen any hard data that supports that myth, but have seen some that suggests the opposite.
So lots of people who certainly are around motorcycles quite a bit don't agree.
Most of the people I see with loud pipes aren't wearing a helmet, aren't wearing bright and/or reflective clothing, and aren't riding responsibly. So the idea that they are doing it to be safety conscious doesn't seem to have much merit.
yellowcanine
(35,699 posts)I can't tell you how many times I have had bikes come up behind me and I did not hear them until they were right beside me. And my bike does not have loud pipes. I use an airhorn when necessary for the cars with no lane discipline. It works.
Major Nikon
(36,827 posts)Yet those with loud pipes tend to do neither. Cars tend to be much better soundproofed these days. With the radio playing even at a moderate volume I rarely hear bikes with loud pipes until they are beside me. Riding inside a car is just not the same as listening outside your home where there is no soundproofing or slipstream.
It's just not that great of an argument. People modify bikes to sound louder because they think it makes them appear cool and there's really no other reason. Meanwhile everyone else has to put up with the needless noise pollution.
MosheFeingold
(3,051 posts)I am getting a bit old and any help I can get to keep from changing lanes on top of a biker is appreciated.
AuntPatsy
(9,904 posts)On a motorcycle because they "might" be committing a thought crime? Honestly
A HERETIC I AM
(24,368 posts)Goodonya.
Skittles
(153,160 posts)who knew?
libdem4life
(13,877 posts)Rachel is waxing eloquent at this moment...LOL
Oktober
(1,488 posts)Then they magically become white as the driven snow....
libdem4life
(13,877 posts)Or, White non Hispanic Caucasian. It's a maze out there.
NaturalHigh
(12,778 posts)Gormy Cuss
(30,884 posts)The Bandidos have white and Latino members but it was founded by and is principally populated by white men.
MosheFeingold
(3,051 posts)JonLP24
(29,322 posts)Cops generally profile. One could have the certain look, homeless are profiled especially. There is you look like a drug user profiling, all kinds of profiling based on preconceived notions of a type of look.
Skittles
(153,160 posts)but plenty of DUers certainly do not
yellowcanine
(35,699 posts)I don't think so and I think this is b.s. When there is a gangland drive by shooting they don't ask people to quit driving cars. Sorry but it is not that hard to tell an outlaw biker from someone who is just out riding their Goldwing.
AuntPatsy
(9,904 posts)gratuitous
(82,849 posts)You'll take my Schwinn from my cold, dead hands, ya fucking fascists. Nobody's bike killed anyone in Waco, it was the fucking guns.
Damn but Texans are a stupid bunch.
Response to gratuitous (Reply #14)
NuclearDem This message was self-deleted by its author.
AuntPatsy
(9,904 posts)gratuitous
(82,849 posts)I figured the reference to my "Schwinn" would be a dead giveaway that I was talking about a bicycle, not a motorcycle, but it's still early on the West Coast. Not everyone has had enough to drink yet.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)A law enforcement spokesman said the outrage was sparked by tongue-in-cheek statements on social media by a bicyclist in California...
gratuitous
(82,849 posts)Now, if it was some yahoo from Oregon, everyone would know to take it with grain of salt, because those guys are certifiable. They ride in the rain and stuff.
AuntPatsy
(9,904 posts)Schwinn, good choice
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)Jamastiene
(38,187 posts)Guns don't kill people. Bikes and people on bikes do.
SoCalDem
(103,856 posts)MosheFeingold
(3,051 posts)I saw a group of Cossacks on the way to Roswell today, in fact. I presume they are headed to Alb.
Jamastiene
(38,187 posts)that it was open season on the cops there in Waco. In this case, I can see the caution and the request to the law abiding motorcycle riders. That doesn't mean all people who ride motorcycles are in gangs and are criminals. It just means this shootout that DID involve gangs has created a mini-war between those gangs and cops. I would stay away from that area right now even walking or in a car. If more bullets might be flying, it might be best to lay low and not get caught in the crossfire. Too bad gangs have to ruin what is a perfectly enjoyable hobby for a lot of people.
kelliekat44
(7,759 posts)Initech
(100,076 posts)Glassunion
(10,201 posts)"They asked bikers to stay off the streets because it was difficult to distinguish between law-abiding riders and those bent on criminality." - Tough shit.