First Oregon, now Washington..what is wrong with the NW law makers?

SB5544: The End to Motorcycle Riding, Racing, & Track Days in WA State

To all motorcycle riding enthusiasts in receipt of this email: I will attempt to make this as short and sweet as I can.

There is currently a Senate Bill (5544) being considered VERY SERIOUSLY by legislators that will make illegal - in WA state only - riding and racing offroad motorcycles AND even street bikes on paved tracks . If passed, this bill will put 2Fast out of business, Pacific Raceways, motocross tracks, supermotard, the new NASCAR facility, other track day companies, WMRRA... all will be done. If you think this is in question, then note the comments of Jason Fiorito, owner of Pacific Raceways, on 710 KIRO this morning. He said if this bill passes, PACIFIC RACEWAYS WILL BE PUT OUT OF BUSINESS. This bill is not just against offroad motorcycles, according to representatives of CLOUT and WOHVA: it will apply to all virtually any machinery (ie. cars, snowmobiles, 4 wheelers) operating on anything other than public roads. Think your private track on your own land is safe? Wrong: even private land is included in the bill. Dirtbikes, track days, motocross, snowmobiling, four wheeling, dune buggies... all are at risk if the Sierra Club, WTA, and the liberal politicians we somehow put in office get their way... and right now... they're on a path to getting this thing done in an effort to accommodate the environmentalists, their money and their votes.

If ever there was a time to be proactive, to not let others do the work, to not make the excuse that you're too busy, it is now. This is VERY, VERY SERIOUS. So there are several things each of us needs to do, and do now. Do not delay. They are:

1. Spread the news. Tell your riding buddies, and then tell them to tell their buddies. And then make sure everyone ACTS. Email this to as many people as you can. Get on forums too.

2. Read this article, courtesy of Sound Rider: http://soundrider.com/current/sb5544.htm. By the way, several OHV representatives contacted the offices of Kline today to see if he actually wrote the email, and he personally told them "yes, I did." Stunning.

3. Write your senator and legislators telling them that SB 5544 must be stopped, that it is blatant discrimination against motorcyclists and OHV'ers, and you won't stand for it. Put "Con SB 5544" in the subject line. Be courteous, but be firm. Make your voice herard. Here's how: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx. This step takes maybe two minutes, and it is the most important of any of these.

4. Attend the March 9, 2007 OHV Rally in Olympia at noon. Be there: don't make excuses. You need to attend. And your friends.

5. Get yourself and your PRO-OHV friends to send an email to clout@hpgmc.com with "CLOUT" in the subject line along with their name, their voting zip code AND your name as a reference. This will get you and your friends signed up to receive email alerts on this matter, and that's all there is to it. Get them to do this TODAY so motorized recreation will have an even stronger voice in Olympia: we're a whisper compared to the yelling of environmentalists. They're winning.

We're in serious trouble: the environmentalist lobby, their dollars, and the volume level of environmentalist voices is much larger than ours, and politicians are acting on their wishes. If you do #1 through 5 above, we might have a chance.

Brian Orton
2Fast Motorcycle Track Days & Instruction
http://www.2-fast.org