Op-ed submitted by “OneEyed” –
Well, Spring is coming and you know what that means….loud motorcycles. Most of which, I find very annoying. However, there are quite a few (emphasis on few), that are courteous and I really appreciate those few.
But the majority seem to take part in a few common disturbances.
The first is speeding down the street while banging through all the gears just to end up at another stop sign. I can understand out on the highway its fun to go fast, but why are they racing between city blocks? Please do us a favor and save it for the open road.
The second is the revving up the engine at the stoplights. From what I can gather, Harleys have been around about 100 or so years, right? So am I to believe that after all this time, they still just haven’t figured out how to set the idle on those pesky carburetors? I turn my stereo down, especially if I have the windows open, out of respect for other people on the road. I ask you to please do the same with the revving.
Which leads me to one last thing.
What’s with all the bikers that proclaim “Loud Pipes Save Lives!” It would appear that these people are primarily concerned with their safety. So, maybe instead of loud annoying exhaust sounds, they can emit a humming or chirping noise? Maybe a bell or chime? Put a nice bright orange flag on the back?…kind of like how the law required me to install on my moped when I was 14. But I guess those things wouldn’t be very manly now, would they?
If bikers are so worried about safety, how come they hardly ever wear helmets? If you want to live by the Loud Pipes Save Lives way of life, then you would think wearing a helmet would be a no brainer…( or no brains without one!). After all, helmets have been PROVEN to save lives.
So how come they almost never wear helmets? Freedom? Well, wait a minute…if it’s freedom, why does a law require me to wear a seatbelt? Where is my freedom? I have multiple airbags, anti-lock brakes, traction control, crumple zones and many others, but still the law requires ME to wear a seat belt regardless of everything else I just mentioned.
I’m no expert on motorcycles but it looks that your helmet is about all YOU have for safety features. Why not wear it?
If loud pipes factually did save lives, I would assume that manufacturers would install them as standard equipment, kind of like my seatbelts.
Of course I could care less about who wears a motorcycle helmet or not, but when you boast about something that ‘Saves Lives’, yet you totally disregard another that factually does, its hard for you to be taken serious about your safety.
It seems to me that this is more of a myth made up by bikers, that happens to roll off the tongue nicely, than anything else.
With that being said, I hope everyone has a nice Spring and lets all try to be a little more courteous to one another. Thanks you.
Some Harley riders love to rev at stop signs. The loudest bikes used to be at Rock-Cs Rock Club. See a little Artist Band, snort a little blow, get drunk and ride loud Harleys. Honey, I bought you a $30,000 vibrator!
…Oh yea…
In the summer, with air conditioner on, windows up, radio playing or talking on cell phone, does anyone really believe that loud pipes are going to be heard? No chance. And why do bikers think they are a special breed that can have loud pipes? Simple. Our incompetent police force either will not or cannot do anything about them. Maybe they’re afraid of the bikers. I don’t know. Maybe with the free money the city gave to Harley, they also received a free pass on loud bikes not being ticketed. Just saying.
It states very clearly in every motorcycle manual that it is against the law to modify your exhaust. When I purchased my last bike the parts guy at Harley tried to sell me pipes right away. I questioned him about what it said in the manual and he said don’t worry about it they don’t enforce the law here. You can make your own conclusion if the bikes Minnert donates to MCPD have anything to do with that.
I believe there are many motorbikes these days that are just far too loud. There should be a law such that the offending owners’ bikes are dismantled entirely and sold for scrap. The owners know exactly what they’re doing. It’s time to put these assholes in their place.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been driving along and a motorcycle pulls up and revs so loud, that it feels as though my ear drums are going to explode. That’s even with my windows up.
Enough is enough. If you’re a biker that has his/her bike sounding this offensive, I hope you drive it off a cliff and rid us of your stupidity.
I don’t give a flying f*ck what your reasons for a loud exhaust are. I could care less.
Thank you for writing this article. Amen!
Everyone should have to wear helmets whenever they leave the house! Think of all the lives it would save. People die everyday from head injurys that have nothing to do with motorcycles!
I just thought of something…what ever happened to that “noise” gun the police department bought a few years back. Don’t recall ever hearing of a story in which it was ever used???
And straight pipes actually worsen performance by robbing necessary back pressure at low and mid range (read “90% of the time you are riding”) rpm’s. Make all the noise you want, me and my baffled bike will be way ahead of you. Unless you own a strict 1/4 mile bike, you are dreaming about adding performance from a straight pipe.
“Loud pipes save lives” is the biggest crock of shit I’ve ever heard. They ain’t loud until after they have gone by. A little late by then.
Many cops ride loud bikes too. It’s called Little Man Syndrome. Makes ’em tough guys. So they are reluctant to write tickets.
Time for the 99% of us who are sick of the constant assault on our eardrums to call the cop shop and complain.
Take your harley to Colorado with drag pipes
and see how far you get
And remember, our tax money is tacitly supporting this behavior (through the taxpayer subsidized sale of Harley Davidson branded products). Does it matter if it distrupts a majority of citizens in the community?
Having just spent over $700 to make sure my vehicle is compliant with State Law (see Iowa Code 321.436), I am concerned that others are not held to the same standard.
Here is link to the city code on sound levels for motorcycles. I bet the only Harley’s that would meethttpthese are the one with stock pipes.
http://www.sterlingcodifiers.com/codebook/index.php?book_id=382
exactly!
you know that Iowa doesn’t recive all of the federal road funding it could get by not haveing a helmet law but yet they are going to make all of us pay by upping the gas tax instead of makeing motorcyclists wear helmets
Here in “Live Free or Die” New Hampshire we are finally making progress in getting control over obnoxiously loud motorcycles. Its slow progress,kind of like how long it has taken for smoking to become socially unacceptable. With persistence, eventually loud motorcycles will be socially unacceptable.
I encourage those retards to ride without helmets…Natural Selection will prevail.
Do you actually think that some people are going to see a orange flag if they can’t even see a damn RED LIGHT?! All people need to drive careful out there! Just dont pick on the motorcycles people because I can go on and on about the elderly that dont hear or see well and just plain dont look at where they are going! I have been in my car and had an elderly couple push me off the road in town! I honked and honked and honked and they still came over into my lane and I was almost right beside them! I also had my 8 year old in the back seat at the time, and had to go for the ditch! Do you think that Trains also need to stop using thier horns when they go through town? To me that is loud and annoying! But they say it saves lives and I think it does! I think your just an Idiot having a bad day! My husband had a brandnew bike last fall! Big beautiful black Bike, huge ya cant miss seeing it! Even has a radio! The only thing it didnt have is loud pipes! yep those loud annoying pipes! Well he was rearend at a RED STOP LIGHT! The lady never even slowed down! So let me see either she didnt see the bike, or she didtn hear it! But I know one damn thing for sure she never seen that RED LIGHT! And you can bet my husbands bike now has loud pipes!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And I think I speak for every rider out there your bike can have a thousands lights, bells and whistles, and all the orange damn flags in the world and someones still gonna hit your ass!
Why don’t you get rid of the bike then you won’t get hit. What a stupid thought process you have. Everything on the road loud or quiet, big or small, bike or car takes a risk of being hit by someone. It is called human error! Loud doesn’t help.
Still no excuse for roaring up and down
residential streets for now other reason then because they can. The bad apples give the rest of the bikers a bad rap. I agree about some of our seniors, some really need to give up the keys to the car! Was the lady that hit your husbands bike texting? Wouldn’t surprise me if she was.
I think Donna is off her rocker. Helmets save lives not loud pipes. Even if your bike had loud pipes he still would have been hit if he was sitting at a stop light. An idling bike is not loud. Mabe he should have been wearing a bright orange helmet or have have a flag on the back of the bike.
Enforced laws save lives. I would hope that Mason City Police step up enforcement on ALL traffic laws this summer so we can all enjoy more safe and quite season.
When other drivers stop driving distracted, actually pay attention, and SEE BIKERS, for that matter pedestrians and bicyclists also, I would gladly tone it down. Othwerwise, speaking for myself here, my bike is LEGAL and I operate it LEGALLY! I choose NOT to wear a helmet because it is LEGAL for me to do so, and the decibal level is within the LEGAL limits. I get that there are some that cross the the line and I dont like it either. How many cars do the same thing, racing between stop lights and “pumping up the jamz”! But in every aspect of life, you cant fix stupid as much as you or anyone else may try! Loud pipes in general do help to save lives! Share the road, be aware of your surroundings, and I agree, let’s have a great Spring!
Do you know what the legal decibel level is for a motorcycle in Mason city or have you just taken the word of someone who wanted to sell you something? You should look it up sometime, you will be surprised.
been there, done that, thanks for playing along!
what kind of bike do you have? when you rev it up do you go over the legal decibel limit?
98% are not legal.
why doesn’t the police department enforce the noise ordinance?
We constantly have motorcycles with loud pipes tearing down our street in the spring and summer. Now we even have one idiot driving his in the winter. To make those pipes loud they have to increase the RPM’s which in turn means they are speeding. (Some as fast as 60 or 70 MPH in the neighborhood). And they do this with children playing on the parkings and crossing the street not to mention the other vehicles that are on the roads. These people with their childish behavior are dangerous. Where the HELL are the police? They are breaking the law and we do have noise laws as well. Arrest a couple and the others will get the word and slow down. I am not against motorcycles as I have owned a lot of them over the years and loved riding. Just not at other peoples expense.