NHTSA director Runge uses anti-motorcyclist statements in Charlotte, NC speech. Also Detriot Free Press editorial is anti-bikers. MRF issues letters in response. MRF News

SUV in attack mode against Pedestrian or Motorcycle always wins. Lady rider seriously hurt.
Daytona. On Saturday, 3/12, just before 5pm, Rev. Algernon Williams of Daytona, who was driving a 2002 Ford Sport Trac SUV, hit Terri M. Phelps, 27, of Lockport, N.Y. , knocking her to the ground and running her over, then fled the scene in fear of motorcyclists. Terri was very seriously injured and had to be EVAC’d aboard a helicopter to Halifax Medical Center. Prior to this, Williams was driving west on 92 and cut off a motorcyclist, Carol Kufasik of Pennsylvania. It is reported that he also nearly rear-ended another. According to police and witnesses, Williams weaved between lanes at high speeds and drove on the shoulder of the road trying to get around other vehicles on the road. According to Carol’s sister, Wendy Kufasik, who witnessed the incident, Williams was endangering the lives of people driving on the road. According to Williams, there were bikers ahead of him speeding up and slowing down, “playing games”, and he admitted to passing in between them. (Note: This sounds like the Toyota Tundra commercial we all complained about). According to court records, Williams has previously been charged with driving with a suspended/revoked license, running a stop sign, and failure to display a driver's license. At the intersection of  92 and North Amelia, motorcyclists boxed him in. He claims that a group of 10 to 14 angry motorcyclists began kicking his SUV at the intersection, and one or more yelled a racial slur. Reports about hitting Terri differ. One report says he backed up, knocking her down, then ran her over. Another report says he tried going around the bikers, hit the motorcycle she was on, knocking her off, then ran her over. He claims he was trying to get away and Terri jumped out in front of him. There was an ambulance crew at the scene which witnessed the event. After he ran over Terri, he drove off, then showed up at a family fish fry, where he phoned police. Williams wants the kicking of his SUV and use of racial slurs treated as a hate crime. Obviously, motorcyclists would like to stop this kind of multiple acts of reckless driving and do not like the use of the SUV as a weapon against either motorcyclists or pedestrians. When an SUV picks a fight with either a pedestrian or a motorcycle, the 4137 pound SUV always wins. The incident is being investigated to determine who gets charged with what. I called the hospital to find out Terri’s current condition and am awaiting a return call by the head nurse. The last report was that she had been in intensive care and was in serious but stable condition.

This article was pieced together by BIKERS USA on 3/19 from accounts as reported by the Daytona Beach News-Journal and the Orlando Sentinel. The article was written to balance some stories which have shifted the focus to the driver being a reverend rather than a menace. Cutting off a motorcyclist, almost rear-ending another, intentionally driving between bikers, driving on the shoulder, then running over a girl leaving her seriously injured qualifies the use of the term menace.

3/14/05 Daytona Bike Week is over. Deputies on the streets say it was the most well behaved bike week they’ve ever seen. Some of the vehicular fatalities attributed to Bike Week were caused by automobiles hitting pedestrians and motorcyclists. A few fatalities were single vehicle accidents caused by motorcyclists speeding or not driving with caution. A tee shirt vendor was displaying a tee that is hateful towards African Americans. (Personally, I hope Bikers begin boycotting such businesses if we see crap like that in the future. Racial Hatred Sucks.) There was an incident involving a motorist named Rev. Algernon Williams, 34, of Daytona Beach who ran over a biker with his SUV. It should make for an interesting trial, so I won’t report more at this time. (Responsible media sometimes needs to avoid jeopardizing cases by staying away from them.) I had been linking to a Daytona newspaper, but they started doing the old “was not wearing a helmet” reporting, even if there might have been other causes attributed to a fatality. Like a helmet is going to save you in a head-on crash with a semi...Overall, hundreds of thousands of bikers did good at Daytona this year..

Not all news from Florida during bike week was about Bikers. Did you see the article about the Orlando guy who admitted to taking coke but refused to give a urine sample? The cop had medical workers try to force catheter him. (He said it was like being raped). That didn’t work so the cop tasered him with 50,000 volts twice until he submitted. What’s up with that?!?!?!

BIKERS USA and Biker Tee has no ties to organized crime.
3/13/2005 Raleigh, NC
Researchers from York University recently listed a sister site of BIKERS USA, Biker Tee, under the category of Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs on their Organized Crime Web Links Page. If it were worth my time, I’d correct them. I’d have to explain, and they wouldn’t understand. For the record, BIKERS USA is owned by independent bikers. Note: One percenters are serious bikers who ride every day. They work, have families, and have a reputation for riding hard and partying hard. The one percent patch does not imply criminal, outlaw motorcycle gangs, or organized crime. It implies dedication to their brotherhood and riding.

Daytona 200 - Great Racing! If you watched the Daytona 200 on Thursday to see Tommy Hayden of Owensboro, KY on a KZ win the Supersport final, and the great job by all the other racers, you saw a spectacular race. This Harley Biker Lady was on the edge of her seat the whole time. It was an exciting race. I bummed out when brother Roger Hayden’s KZ fell apart when racing for third. The fluid caused his rear tire to slip about 4 times on 2 corners when there were only 3 laps to go. In Superstock, Vincent Haskovec, a native of the Czech Republic, did a fine job to win the Superstock. His M4 SUzuki seemed to come from nowhere on the final laps. There is a lot of speculation as to whether or not he got his edge from Perrelli tires since other top contenders all had Dunlop.

Daytona Beach Bike Week is in full swing. 3/9 10:25pm. Approximately 500,000 bikers estimated. Right now, the Steppenwolf concert at the Speedway should be just about ending. Weather outlook for the next few days is an occasional shower, highs in the 70’s during the day. Lows slightly less than 50 at night. Sunday should be sunny. There have been two motorcyclists killed in seperate crashes. One was a biker from Orlando who was killed when a logging truck swung and took up the whole road. In the other accident a motorcyclist ran into the back of another in New Smyrna Beach.

9/11/2005 Bikers for Freedom Against Terrorism - Never Forget!
Worldwide Gatherings and Moment of Silence at 8:46 am ET.

Sunday, 9/11/05. Bikers and motorcyclists across the nation and in freedom loving nations throughout the world are asked to gather as Bikers for Freedom Against Terrorism.  Get together with as many of your brothers and sisters as possible, hold remembrance ceremonies and observe a worldwide moment of silence at 8:46 am Eastern US Time. This should be followed by a “resolute” starting of your motorcycles at 9:04 am Eastern US Time. Flags should be flown at half mast all day. Never forget the victims of terrorism at the NYC World Trade Center, the Pentagon, the heroes of Flight 93, emergency responders who gave their lives or damaged their own health to help others, the many people who have died at the hands of terrorism in many countries, the gratitude we need to show troops or free nations, and the resolution to end terrorism worldwide.Find local ceremonies and please post local ceremonies also.

2/9/05 NC to introduce Bill to make May of every year, Motorcycle Awareness Month.

Add a 2005 Motorcycle Event Now. List your 2005 biker event. Add an event.

North Carolina law makers introduce House Bill 39, HB39 to stop any child under 10 from being a motorcycle passenger. Gestapo? Soviet Union? No. This is America. Bikers from other states need to also contact the NC legislators or else there may be a domino effect. Say no to Police State Politicians. LETTER

2/8/05 BIKERS USA has added a section for Biker Professionals.

MRF Press Release, 2/8/05, Washington DC - The Motorcycle Riders Foundation (MRF) is pleased to announce a new, vital feature on the MRF web site at www.mrf.org called the States MRO Legislative Online Database. This new area is designed for State Motorcycle Rights Organizations (SMROS) to use as an information tool.

Womens Motocross Association racing to be on Speed Channel 2 Wheeled Tuesday. Coverage has been moved to February 15th.
The 2004 Z1R Helmets WMA Cup was held at the Cycle Ranch MX Park, Floresville, TX, November 28, 2004.
Spoiler: Do not view the press release if you do not want to know results before viewing: See our new section: Womens Motorcycle Racing news.. 

North Carolina Biker News: January 26, 2005  NORTH CAROLINA LEGISLATURE, Raleigh NC
North Carolina Bikers and Motorcyclists, NC BikePAC, CBA/ABATE of North Carolina, BIKERS USA, Full Throttle of NC, NC Rider, US Rider News and others welcomed the North Carolina legislature back in session by visiting the Legislative Building in Raleigh. See our event coverage....Opening Day.

AMA announces election results
1/21/05
PICKERINGTON, OHIO, AMA Board of Directors

According to several sources, Harley-Davidson, Inc. expects to recall some 2005 models in January 2005 for faulty fuel valves. The 'ON' position and the 'RESERVE' position of the valve may have been reversed. 9501 units among Dynas, Softails, Sportsters (XL), and Touring models may have been affected. Contact your dealer or call 1-414-342-4080.

1/1/05 The New Jersey legislature wants to begin imposing mandatory helmet laws for snow skiers now. However, a 29 year study undertaken in Vermont has determined that injuries of helmeted skiers is more severe than injuries of non-helmeted skiers. Researchers attribute the reasons to 1. a sense of invincibility. 2. Helmets don’t do much after 14 mph. They have found those with helmets tend to ski faster and attempt dangerous terrain beyond their abilities. Skiiers are finding out helmets are no panacea at ski resorts.

12/14/04 - Wake Forest, NC. After several months of operating as a folder hanging off BIKERS USA, Bikers USA finally has a new home. www.bikersusa.com Features sites verified as run by real bikers.

12/14/04 - Durban, South Africa - Pat Savage finally got his new chopper! It’s a fine looking machine. Custom Harley-Davidson Sportster. That, along with the release of the Purple Skies CD should have Pat riding high in the saddle this ‘summer’ in the southern hemisphere. Go to Bikers USA.

11/21/04 A bill to close the current health insurance discriminatory loophole has been passed by the United States Senate. This legislation, S.423 Health Care Parity for Legal Transportation, was authored by Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI). It still needs to be passed in the house and signed into law. See Biker Rights.

Harley-Davidsons’ 2005 lineup is sensational. What else is new? (They don’t pay me to say this). Personally, I am in love with the 2005 Harley-Davidson Softail models. They have all the classic vintage styling, yet they are engineered for better performance.

‘tis the season to think about the 2005 motorcycle riding season. Bikers looking for used Harley motorcycles can go to hawg used harley.

Oh Deer. It is that season again, when deer are getting hit by automobiles and motorycles. Always be aware that animals can suddenly appear. (In memory of Mr. Clean, Vietnam veteran, bartender and Outlaws MC prospect, Charlotte, NC who died when a dog ran out in front of him in 1999).

STOP GOVERNMENT FROM STOMPING ON BIKER RIGHTS - SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL MRO.

MRO - Which Motorcycle Rights Organizations are right?

11/18/04 - AMA Advisory - Ducati will be the "Featured Marque" at AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days 2005, to be held July 15 - 17 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio. STORY