News of Note (March)

Photo at left is from the Sunday March 18 ride in Charlotte, NC. Wanted to share some news of note. First part concerns Virginia-my other home. Some good news from the legislative front. The Governor of Virginia signed two laws of note- the first which is HB187 outlaws "Motorcycle Only" checkpoints. Be advised though, that checkpoints for all vehicles are still legal. Second, Virginia now allows (or will when both of these laws take effect as of July 1, 2012) motorcycles to ride side by side, which was previously illegal, with the passage of HB97 and the Governors ok., Second, I ride a Kawasaki, you can check them all out at the Kawasaki Test Ride which will be held April 14-15 at Westchester Commons (near the Regal Cinemas) in Midlothian, VA. Go to Kawasaki.com to register to ride. If not in Virginia, there are other events to be found around the country at the web site. Its a good chance to check out a variety of motorcycles. There are some requirements (a motorcycle endorsement to your license being one of them) before you can ride.

This is worth noting. Read in American Motorcyclist in the April 2012 issue that Lake Lure, NC almost required EPA labels on all exhaust systems. The Lake Lure Town Council voted to change to a "92 decibel limit  for any type of motor vehicle."    Loud pipes may save lives (as the myth goes) but certainly the noise is resulting in many more restrictive rules, and even outright bans on ALL motorcycles in many areas-both street and trail.

Check out the AMA web site for some competition events, as well as some interesting group rides in your area of the counrty. Many are listed in NC, SC and VA. I also have links to some events in North Carolina via Full Throttle Magazine, and also a site which tells of rides in Virginia at the top of this web site. However some events of note don't make those sites and I will be bringing them here as riding season gets into full swing.

Many of the bike nights are firing up. Coming in May is Bike Night at Quaker Steak and Lube in Concord, NC (one of my favorites), and many other places will be cranking up those events in the next few weeks. Great way to come out, check out some other motorcycles and their riders, and enjoy some great food and drink specials as well as (usually) some live music. I plan to make some of those events this year. They have many in North Carolina, and also in Virginia as well as some other places in the US of A.