Press Release

Contact: Pat Hahn
(651) 282-2916

May 2, 2000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

STATEWIDE, MOTORCYCLE RIDERS WASH WINDSHIELDS MAY 6 TO ASK MOTORISTS TO "START SEEING MOTORCYCLES"

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- More than 40 motorcycle clubs, chapters, and organizations will team up on Saturday for the 13th Annual "Washout" to kick off the motorcycle season and remind motorists to watch for motorcycles. The volunteer bikers, armed with squeegies and wearing bright yellow T-shirts, will stake out highway rest areas throughout Minnesota, scrub windshields clean (to provide a better view of motorcycles), and give out safety information and bumper stickers. Through their efforts, these motorcyclists also hope to remind motorists there’s a human being under all that leather!

In Minnesota last year, 517 motorcycle crashes were collisions with other motor vehicles, resulting in 470 injured and 13 dead motorcyclists. In these collisions, the two factors most often cited were "failure to yield right of way" and "inattentive driving," both attributed to the drivers of other motor vehicles. Many drivers claimed that they didn’t see the motorcycle or didn’t see it until it was too late. A typical example: a car turns left in front of a motorcycle, cutting it off, and the motorcycle crashes or slides into the car. While motorcycle crashes can occur any time of day, a large proportion happen during the afternoon rush hours of 3 - 6 p.m. These types of crashes are avoidable.

Pat Hahn, Motorcycle Safety Instructor, offers some tips to help motorists see motorcycles: "Be aware that motorcycles have their headlights on all the time—this can help you pick them out in traffic during the daytime. Bikes can be easily hidden by a car or truck, so it’s particularly important to check your blind spot before merging or changing lanes, especially in heavy traffic. Also, watch carefully for a helmet above, tires below, or a shadow alongside a vehicle that you can’t see around. Most importantly, take a second look for motorcycles before pulling out into traffic. Motorcycles have been virtually absent from the roads since last fall, and your brain, eyes, hands, and feet haven’t gotten used to seeing them yet.

"As motorcycle rider, there are ways to make yourself more visible. Be careful not to hide in traffic: try to maintain a minimum two-second following distance, and use all of your lane (right, left, and center) to see and be seen. Wear brightly colored clothing: red, yellow, orange, and white are highly visible and make a rider more conspicuous. Use your turn signals for every turn, even if there’s no one else around. You can also combine hand signals with electric turn signals to draw more attention to yourself. Finally, remember that even in daylight, motorcycles are smaller and more difficult to see -- even more so, now that many cars have daytime running lamps. Learn to anticipate situations where other drivers may be distracted or look right through you, and take measures to avoid those situations."

**NOTE: A list of participating clubs and contacts, by location, is available upon request.

Call 651-282-2916