A few months ago, California State Senator Fran Pavley introduced legislation which would have required smog checks for all motorcycles of model year 2000 or newer, beginning in 2012. The proposal has been amended to authorize police officers to fine bikers who have removed catalytic converters but the smog test provision has been dropped after the senate objected. The senate … [Read more...]

Lane splitting, the practice of slipping between the lanes of backed up and slowly moving cars, is currently only legal in California. State Senator John Carona of Dallas, Texas, wants to change that and has introduced Senate Bill 506 to allow lane splitting in Texas. Lane splitting is usually subject to some controversy wherever it isn't legal but the ability to move … [Read more...]

For those of you living and riding in the state of California, you should be aware of a proposed senate bill that will require smog checks for motorcycles. Senate Bill 435, introduced by California State Senator Pavley on February 26, proposes smog checks on motorcycles, beginning January 1st, 2012, for all motorcycles model year 2000 or newer. All motorcycles had previously … [Read more...]

Considering all of the discussion in the comment section after the Mission One electric motorcycle post about how the bike is too quiet followed by comments by some riders saying loud pipes alert drivers to their presence and keep them safer, this article by the AMA addressing the noise issue seems very timely. The problem is loud pipes do attract a lot of attention, very … [Read more...]