EastBayDave
Needs a job
Posts: 2245
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posted March 05, 2003 06:36 AM
more bad press for South/West bay riders
http://www.santa-cruz.com/archive/2...ies/09local.htm
http://www.santa-cruz.com/archive/2...ies/09local.htm
http://www.santa-cruz.com/archive/2...ies/08local.htm
http://www.santa-cruz.com/archive/2...02/edit/let.htm
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Enjoy the ride!
02' ZRX1200
00' ZX12R sold
  
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Ninjaman12R
Needs a job
as a Deal's Gap tour guide.
Posts: 4767
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posted March 05, 2003 06:47 AM
????
EBD,
All I keep getting is their "File Not Found" page????
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What we're dealin' with here is a complete lack of respect for the law.
Sheriff Buford T. Justice of TEXAS
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EastBayDave
Needs a job
Posts: 2245
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posted March 05, 2003 07:17 AM
quote:
EBD,
All I keep getting is their "File Not Found" page????
Ok, don't know what's wrong w/the links. I was just there this morning reading it. Maybe they were getting too many hits or something...
Here's one of the articles:
Driving fast is costly
Summer is coming and that means thousands of motorcyclists from all over the world will flock to the top of Highway 9 at Highway 35 for some socialization and a ride through Santa Cruz County.
Among the riders will be some daredevils, who use the public road as their own personal racetrack. Street racing up there is a big deal. It draws hot dog vendors, as well as professional racing videographers and photographers. Motorcycle racing magazines have featured Highway 9 as a premier site for riders to test their skills.
But Highway 9 residents like Len Arneson want the racing to stop.
"I'm not against motorcycle racing," said Arneson, a 30-year resident of Highway 9. He lives a mile from the top of the hill. "I used to race professionally on the dirt track. But these are criminals who don't give a darn about the law."
Arneson commends the California Highway Patrol for its work, but he and other mountain residents say more could be done.
Well, Len, the CHP hears you. Normally, only a handful of officers patrol San Lorenzo Valley. Jim Crouch is one of them. The husband and father has been working this mountain for years. He knows where the racers hang out, as well as where to position himself to catch motorcyclists and other motorists who disobey traffic laws.
Now, Crouch and the other officers at the Felton substation will have help catching rogue drivers on Highway 9. The CHP has received a grant to increase patrols of the highway, both on land and from the air.
While the department increased patrols earlier this month, it plans a real crackdown this summer. They'll look for drivers who speed, race, pass unsafely and cross the double yellow line. Fines for breaking these laws range from about $100 for crossing the double yellow line to roughly $1,000 for engaging in a speed contest. These penalties increase with each subsequent infraction.
Running from the law increases the penalties. Other costs involved include increased insurance premiums and loss of work to make court dates.
But there is much more at risk.
Sometimes motorcyclists on Highway 9 don't make it down on two wheels. When that happens, ambulance services may be required. American Medical Response charges a $716 base fee, plus $14 per mile. They also charge for equipment and supplies used, such as oxygen. The average cost of an AMR ride is $950.
Crash victims who require a CalStar ride to one of the area's trauma centers can expect to pay between $3,000 and $9,000, depending on the level of care needed in the chopper and to which hospital the patient is taken.
Typical motorcycle-crash injuries include head trauma, ranging from simple scratches to brain damage, as well as broken bones. The more serious the injury, the higher the bill and the longer the healing time. Some injuries, such as to the brain or spinal cord, may never heal.
When hospital bills start coming in, medical insurance providers may pick up some of the tab, depending on the type of coverage the patient has, according to Blue Cross of California. Meanwhile, typical car insurance firms that cover motorcycle riders will not cover medical expenses, said a State Farm representative.
Prevention is key
The key to stopping deliberate unsafe driving, whether it's motorcycle street racing or otherwise, is to start at home. The driver who is using Highway 9, or any other road, the wrong way may be a relative, friend, a person you do business with or a parent of your child's schoolmate.
If you know someone who drives recklessly, talk to them. Tell them how you would feel if the driver was hurt or killed, or if someone else was hurt or killed. Listen to their feelings, as well.
Write to motorcycle racing-oriented magazines and Web sites, urging them not to condone racing on public roads.
If you participate in street racing or other illegal driving activities, think about how your actions affect those who love you and drive safe.
Ramona Turner is a Sentinel staff writer. Her column appears on Mondays and Thursdays. If you have a transportation question or idea, contact her at streetsmarts@santa-cruz.com or call 429-2447. Be sure to include a name, city of residence and daytime telephone number.
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This was just one of an ongoing series in the Santa Cruz Sentinel badmouthing riders for "racing" on public roads.
I'll find more info (links) & repost.
Dave
____________
Enjoy the ride!
02' ZRX1200
00' ZX12R sold
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Ninjaman12R
Needs a job
as a Deal's Gap tour guide.
Posts: 4767
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posted March 05, 2003 07:21 AM
Thanks....
Thanks Dave, sounds like some major "cracking down" is happening.
____________
What we're dealin' with here is a complete lack of respect for the law.
Sheriff Buford T. Justice of TEXAS
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FastBikes4Life
Novice Class
Posts: 82
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posted March 07, 2003 06:17 PM
I encourage everyone to drive/ride safely but it seems like they're setting up laws in hopes of overcharging the heck out of someone who crahses. One thing I like about the article is that it includes drivers, not just riders.
It's my opinion that the riders should just set up shop somewhere else for a couple years. When the local businesses start losing money due to the fact that the riders select other places to congregate, we'll see how far this stuff goes. The local businesses will have to charge the locals extra to make up for the loss of business of the bikers going somewhere else. Then Joe Public will have a complaint about higher prices and it can be shown to them that THEY WANTED THE CHANGE.
RW
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12RPilot
Pro
Posts: 1094
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posted March 08, 2003 07:57 AM
So let's set up a hypothetical situation here. You lowside into a gulley and are only semi-conscious. Someone calls this incredibly expensive ambulance and they cart you off to a hospital where you refuse treatment because, well because men are often stupid about such things when we want to suck it up and "be a man". So now you get a bill from this $14 per mile ambulance you never called and were too groggy to decide if you even wanted. I say fuck 'em. I am the first to appreciate help when I need it but it looks to me like someone is taking advantage of folks' misfortune. $14 a mile? $716 just to roll out of the station? And those little oxygen bottles could be filled for under $3. I think if this outfit sent me a bill like that I would tell them that I didn't authorize any of their actions and just might sue them for transporting me without my consent. Granted, my premise for suit is ridiculous, but so is their gouging of folks. There...I feel better now.
 
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Zhooligan
Moderator
Post Whore Extraordinaire!
Posts: 3829
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posted March 09, 2003 06:07 PM
Damn if you do and damn if you don't. If they only transported people with their permission there would be a lot more organ donors. I would love to see the justification for the $14 a mile charge. Although it is Clifornia and I would imagine that there are 14 lawyers ready to sue the ambulance service upon every delivery! 
____________
To those who do not count their life in years, but in how life
has touched them in the past and how much it can hold in the
future; -- Youth is forever.
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