The MTCV Home Page took 274 hits during March (down 140 on February) and has taken 19,557 since April 1996. We continue to generate new members via the web and our ads in the bike magazines are doing well. I have deleted the out-of-date picture gallery and cleaned up a few things. Sorry for the delay in getting the magazine up.
Seen at the March Social Sip: Ron
Johnston, Peter Weyermayr and Liz Oliver, Ian Payne, Kate Stewart and Pete
Pondeljak, Ben and Julie Warden, Joel Haley, Bruce Saville,
Peter Philferan, Di Welsford, Paul Southwell, Martin
Hastie and Carmen de Bono. Only 15 people, possibly down because I didn’t email
out a reminder. Martin had lots of stories from the Peter Steven’s firesale auction.
AGM digital slide show. The technology worked so well for the February guest speaker, it has
inspired Ben to run a slide show of recent Club rides at the next meeting – the
May AGM. Lots of
pictures from our weekends away and Sunday Club rides. If you have any
digital photos, email them to Ben and he will incorporate. Be there, and you
might see yourself on the big screen!
The Points
System. The Club Participant of the Year is based on aggregate
points accumulated at 1 point per ride, an extra point for leading or being
rear rider, and 1 point per Magazine article (maximum 2 per Magazine). It runs
till the May AGM. We are now eleven months into the 2004 points and at the end
of March the top eleven points’ scorers are: Ben Warden (81), Pete Weyermayr
(49.5), Ian Payne (44), Paul Southwell (43), Liz Oliver (37), Greg Hales
(34.5), Kate Stewart (34.5), Ron Johnston (34), Mark Easterbrook (32.5), Rob
Langer (31), and Martin Hastie (31).
Paul Southwell continued accumulating points and is about to overtake
Ian. He was on almost every ride, leading, or at the rear. Martin has broken
into the top eleven and Kate moved up a couple of places as Mark drops out of
contention, having moved to
We have run out of Magazine covers. After strong positive feedback from the recent colour magazine covers, I will continue in the same vein for a while. This month’s cover picture was taken at Myrtleford on the last day of the Harrietville via Omeo ride in glorious weather. From left to right, back row: Peter Weyermayr, Paul Southwell, Ian Payne, Trevor Harris, Dave Ward, Clifford Peters, Darryn Webster, Stewart Lee. Front row; Julie-Ann, Bronwyn Manifiold, Peter Pondeljak, Kate Stewart, Liz Oliver and Ben Warden. Greg Hales took the photo!
It has been another excellent month in terms of motorcycle crashes on Club rides with zero recorded, for the third month in a row!
On the Friday Julie Johnston will be driving
the car down and can carry luggage if requested. To book call Ron Johnston 03
9725 7303
Ray
Walker got his car and bike licenses back two weeks ago. He is back riding and
driving and has purchased Craig Morley’s old (1994) Yamaha YZF750. To get his
car license back he had to pass a medical test consisting of testing his
reaction times in a car simulator. Each set of tests lasted 5 minutes and he
had to repeat the tests three times, successfully. He then did a full practical
car license test – drive, parking, etc.
For his bike license, he had to attend a bike education course and ride
a push bike and demonstrate a sense of balance. He ended up riding 10 km with
the instructor. No on-road motorcycle test was required! He has received
letters from Vic Roads reinstating his licenses and indicating that no further
action will be taken against those licenses.
Ray was a bit rusty riding but has managed
to get his knee down all the way around the long sweeper heading onto the
Workwise, he is working 3
days a week for 6 hours. Tiredness is still an issue. The TAC subsidises his return to work to the tune of 90% of his
pay, a real bonus for his employer.
Physically, he still suffers from Post
Traumatic Amnesia, has a limp, can’t run, and has pins and needles from his hip
downwards. He was effectively unconscious for 5 days after the accident and has
no memory of those days, though is starting remember events of the day leading
up to the crash. It is expected that he will continue to recover, albeit
slowly.
We wish Ray well in all his pursuits and
hope to see him soon.
Last month Renzo Cunico was seriously looking at a BMW
R1100S. Now he is seriously considering a Kawasaki ZX12R – similar to Paul Grosser’s bike, only silver. He bid on it at Fowles Auctions and is now negotiating with the purchaser.
Dave
Ward has purchased a new matte black MV Augusta 750 F4 SPR. Rave reviews
everywhere.
Race News from Around the World, March 2004 c/o mcnews
'Ride For Life' 2004 - presented by Honda and Roadsafe
- April 3rd and 4th
Honda Motorcycles and “Roadsafe” have joined forces to present a weekend of
motorcycling at the Honda Australia Rider Training (HART) complex in Tullamarine. A wide range of motorcycle activities and
presentations are planned to include all of the family from the youngest to the
older members Motorcyclist’s Greg Evans and Sue Stanley will officially open
each day’s activities. As motorcycle riders they are both keen to encourage
others to experience riding in a safe manner. Honda Motorcycles will be
displaying a wide range of motorcycles, including some new models. The Honda Riders Club of
For the
non-motorcyclist - HART will offer free “Try It” training sessions for people
wishing to try motorcycling. This is only available to persons over 18 years of
age. These will be a basic 1.5 hour “learn to ride” session, and will be
operating both days. HART will conduct 4 of these sessions per day, with up to
12 participants in each course. People wishing to participate will need to
phone 03 9335 2766 to book a session.
Other Displays - Displays on the day
will include both the Honda Road Racing team, and on the Sunday the Honda
Off-Road Race Team. The Victoria Police Road Safety Caravan and a number of
Motorcycle sporting clubs, ranging from Junior to Racing will be on display.
Show and Shine - this will be a
popular part of the overall event with entries accepted on the day.
We are very sad to report that
Bob Martin passed away late on Sunday night after his long battle with Motor Neurone Disease. Bob has been an extremely important and
highly valued member of the Victorian racing community for longer than some
racers have been alive. There is hardly an Australian racer currently competing
that has not had his machine carted back to the pits by Bob or one of his crew
over the years. Our best wishes to his family and friends.
'Bikers' fault in most crashes',
Recently 'The Age' newspaper
published a piece sensationally headlined 'Bikers' fault in most
crashes'. Motorcyclists were at fault in three-quarters of fatal or
near-fatal crashes involving them, according to a detailed Victoria Police road
crash investigation from May 2002 to April 2003. Excessive speed and alcohol
and drug consumption were found to be key elements in causing serious
motorcycle crashes. But the study, to be released today, also found left-hand
bends with a downhill slope particularly lethal for riders. Unlicensed riders
accounted for one in five motorcycle deaths. Learner and probationary riders
were involved in a fifth of crashes. Almost half the crashes were at weekends.
The major collision investigation
group analysed 47 fatal or near-fatal motorcycle
crashes amid criticism from motorcycle groups that police investigations were
biased against riders. Thirty-nine crashes resulted in deaths and eight
resulted in life-threatening injuries. Eleven riders found to be not at fault
were killed in collisions with other vehicles, usually when the vehicle failed
to give way or suddenly turned in front of the bike. Ten of those riders were
not speeding and had no alcohol or drugs in their systems. The study raises the
possibility of more interceptions and drug testing of riders in the early
morning. This follows the finding that riders injured in all collisions between
The major collision group normally investigates crashes involving three or more fatalities, hit-and-run collisions or crashes where there is evidence of criminal negligence. But because of queries over police methods, the group examined all fatal or near-fatal motorcycle crashes between May 2002 and April 2003. The study concluded that motorcyclists were at fault in 77 per cent of those crashes, although in crashes involving other vehicles motorcyclists were at fault 64 per cent of the time.
Assistant Commissioner (Traffic)
Bob Hastings said the study was not intended to "belt people around the
head - it's about setting a base line and looking into causal factors as to why
these things occur.” The study, the first of its type in
Inspector Geoff Alway, from the major collision investigation group, said the findings would not necessarily hold true for less serious accidents. "With the 'at fault' we are talking about the major causative factor, but there's always more than one factor in accidents," Mr Alway said. He said bike crashes were far more frequent on left-hand bends than on right-hand ones. On average, riders who crashed in left-hand turns were going 23 km/h faster than those who crashed on right-hand bends.
Of the crashes studied, 63 per cent involved collisions with another vehicle. The report noted that "those riders who exceeded designated speed limits tended to be younger. Riders with alcohol detected in their blood were also on average younger.” Mr Alway said the motorcyclists not at fault had all been injured in the metropolitan area. The bikes were evenly divided between small, medium and large engine capacities.
Is this report released now by the Victorian Police Media Unit for the purposes of an upcoming offensive targeting motorcyclists? The more suspicious amongst our ranks would suggest that the timing of the release seems to be strategically staged in the run up to a major motorcycle event. The World Superbike Championship visits Phillip Island this coming weekend and the normal huge volume of motorcycle traffic this event brings with it from all states, could be seen as a perfect target for a healthy dose of revenue raising in some form or another.
Honda Australia Rider Training Manager, Frank Allan, has penned this enlightening analysis of the flawed research used for this article. The comments below are related to a report from the Vic Police major collision investigation unit into fatal and serious injury motorcycle collisions that occurred between May 2002 and April 2003.
”The timing of the release of this report
is interesting, almost a year after the end of the report period and days
before a major motorcycle event in
A figure of 77% of riders were assessed as being at fault for the
collision. It is rare to find a study into road accidents that attribute a
causal factor (fault). One that I am aware of, from
One area of this report that should be investigated further is the claim that
38% of the riders were exceeding the speed limit. The report contains no detail
as to how the speed of the rider prior to the collision has been determined.
For vehicle crashes, the damage to the vehicle is often used to determine the
speed at the time of impact.
A large database exists from
places such as MUARC etc. of the physical damage that will be sustained by
various makes/models of cars at particular speeds, for particular types of
impacts. Unfortunately this type of data does not exist for motorcycles.
Possibly the speed prediction has come from the measurement of marks left at
the scene. eg. skidmarks. If this is the case,
then from which tyre did the skid mark come? Front or
rear, or both. Was the tyre correctly inflated? What
was the coefficient of friction for the road surface at the time? The inclination of the roadway?
Without information regarding how the police have determined the speed
of the riders, the prediction of 38% of riders exceeding the speed limit can
only remain open to question. It would be of more use if this report included
comparison figures for all road users.”
World Superbike
2004 - Round 2 -
Laconi the clear winner by over 7
seconds while Vermeulen got second while the drag
race for third was won by Toseland by a nose over
Martin with McCoy a fraction behind in fifth.
World Superbike
2004 - Round 2 -
McCoy the winner, Vermeulen second, Chili third, Borciani fourth, Corser fifth, Haga sixth
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Race 1 Results |
Race 2 Results |
Championship Points |
Manufacturer Points |
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World Supersport
2004 - Round 2 -
Last lap Brookes challenging
Curtain everywhere, gets him at MG Hairpin, run to the line, who will it be,
Brookes, he has got it, or has he, slipstream by Curtain but no the timers say Brookes
has it by 0.02 of a second, what a race. Van Der
Goorbergh third, Parkes
fourth, Charpentier fifth, Foret
sixth.