This issue will focus a lot on veterans and their upcoming events up in June. The Freedom Fest, Brotherhood of Veterans, Combat Vets and many more have events that will help our veterans with hands on services and boots on the ground assistance here in Colorado. It has always been my policy to donate and support charities that help actual residents and not send my funds to a charity outside of my local community.
We have put a veteran list of motorcycle events happening in our community and ask all of you to attend and support these great causes.
As a daughter of a Vietnam Vet, and the mother-in-law of active military, I see first-hand the sacrifices of not only the soldiers but of the sacrifices of their families. I was happy to see on social media homes honoring our military, their families and the sacrifices made for freedom. I lost count last weekend of how many front-yards had an American flag flying! I wished that our country felt this type of pride every day and honored our veterans and each other, EVERY DAY.
It is our honor at Colorado Rider News to help our veteran organizations and fundraisers this month, by not charging any of them for AD space and to give back to a military community that means so much to me personally and professionally.
Motorcycle Accidents
While this past weekend was fun and relaxing… many of our Colorado riders suffered horrendous accidents and fatalities. Our prayers go out to the riders from Colorado Springs who were riding in Red River New Mexico when a motorcycle rider came over the center line killing themselves but also severely injuring a group of our riders. We also lost a rider at the hands of a drunk driver, and a couple were hit by a guy driving a truck and trailer and after taking the couple out, left the scene… leaving them on the side of the road.
We continue to be told by CDOT and the MOST program that our motorcycle community needs more training. Here is an idea CDOT, spend your marketing dollars asking drivers of vehicles to take REFRESHER DRIVING COURSES and while they are in the class, educate them and put them in driving simulators that teach them about distracted driving, impaired driving… or better yet, law enforcement could start actually pulling drivers over for being on their phones and start writing tickets. It is clear to this writer, that until drivers are having to dig into their pockets and get points taken off their license, they are going to continue to do whatever they please but there is no consequence for this dangerous behavior.
Organizations like CORD, Rider Justice, BikerDown, Abate and others continue to meet such resistance at the legislative level to take distractions out of drivers’ hands. Yet with all the laws on the books, you can still drive down any road on any day of the week and see drivers of all ages on their phones while their car is moving, and if you have the nerve to honk at them, they flip you off… like they have a right to do whatever they want in their vehicles.
Legislators crushed the SB19-012 to take handheld mobile devices out of driver’s hands with the most piss poor excuses I have ever seen in my life and yet continue to focus their energy on the decriminalization of mushrooms, or let’s give drug addicts a clean safe place to shoot up illegal drugs. Better yet, Gov. Polis just defelonized single use drug possession for schedule I & II substances. Who knows, soon we will all be able to just run down to 7-eleven and get whatever drug we want or drug-infused drink, and then get behind the wheel.
As President of BikerDown Foundation, I take such offense to that implication that WE riders need more training. Is training a necessary step in becoming a better ride, of course. I feel CDOT and the MOST program has lost touch with what Colorado rider and drivers need which is CHANGE. Our community continues to lose their lives and suffer life-changing injuries at the hands of distracted drivers, hit/run drivers, and lastly driver’s driving impaired.
We ask all riders to wear the safety gear they are most comfortable to keep them safe while riding, but we also ask all riders to please check your insurance coverages to make sure in the event of an accident you have what you need to give you time to recover.
Please ride safe out there!
