December 2021

by Gary Klinker

Here we are in the depths of winter. It is a good thing there are still many things to keep us occupied to take our minds off the lack of riding time. Even if we still ride in the winter, the rides are usually much shorter and not as comfortable. The Safe Rider crew will be getting together on December 4^th to hold our Christmas Party and do the scheduling for the next year. You should be able to see the schedule about the first of January.

As for things to take your mind off riding time, Wisconsin still has two December antlerless deer hunts. It is the season for many Christmas parties. If we get snow, there are winter sports. There is always the fallback-curl up with a good book. In the past I have listed a lot of good motorcycle books on training and techniques. You can always learn something.

Speaking of books, at Meeting of the Minds I got the bid on the auction for a book by Charles Umbenhauer. Politics Biker Style is his autobiography and story of his many years as the lobbyist for ABATE of Pennsylvania. I first met Charles at the Meeting of the Minds in 1990 in Carlisle, PA. He and his wife were driving forces in PA, and he eventually became the lobbyist for the organization. In 1986 he helped found BikePAC for funding legislative candidates in the state. The story of their long-time effort to modify their mandatory helmet law is very interesting. Here in Wisconsin, it took us ten long years to change the mandatory helmet law. Pennsylvania had to work for 35 years to get it done. That is a testament to the dedication of bikers in Pennsylvania, and Charles Umbenhauer. The book is a good read.

For me, and I’m sure many more of our older members who lived through the Helmet Law Wars, it seems like Déjà vu today. At the time, many said that it was not about helmets, it was about the freedom to choose and that it was not the function of government to determine what we wear. Now we face the same dilemma. Should the government be allowed to tell people they must follow government health policy? Should the government be able to take away a person’s livelihood for arbitrary bureaucratic policy? This has nothing to do with getting a shot or not. I don’t care what side of the argument you come down on. The underlying principle is individual freedom-just like it was in the 1970’s. Patriotism and Constitutional Rights are not dependent on specific issues. They are the foundational belief that America was founded upon.

Keep up the fight!

Ride Safe,

Gary