Elections 1988
Elections 1988
ROUNDUP
STEVE ANDERSON
POLITICS! ITS EASY TO LONG FOR SIMPLER TIMES, WHEN politicians and motorcycling were unrelated topics.
Unfortunately, that hasn't been true for several decades, and if anything, government is intruding more into our sport. Federal support of mandatory helmet laws, closure of public land to off-road vehicles, the proposed Danforth ban on superbikes, the ban on threewheel ATVs—these are only the most prominent examples of government actions that have affected motorcycling in recent years.
And, of course, we’re approaching another presidential election, a time when we, as voters, can most directly exert our influence. But do George Bush and Michael Dukakis really differ in respect to motorcycling? Would one or the other be any better, or any worse, for our sport?
Neither candidate is exactly filing position papers that answer those questions, or even pre-announcing their choices to head up the Department of Transportation (DOT), the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA), or the Department of the Interior. So, since little of this information is forthcoming from the candidates themselves, we thought we would turn to people who have direct knowledge and opinions on the subject: those lobbyists who fight in the trenches against anti-motorcycle and related legislation. We talked to two of the busiest, seeking their opinions on this election and its possible effects.
First was Jim Baxter, founder of Citizens for Rational Traffic Laws, the organization that has fought for most of the last decade to see the 55-mph national speed limit repealed. Says Baxter, “Mr. Dukakis in Massachusetts has supported retention of the 55-mph speed limit. He has supported mandatory helmet laws. He has supported the use of roadblocks for DWI enforcement. He supported a mandatory seat-belt law that was repealed by a referendum.” Baxter indicated that there was no knowing at this point who Dukakis might appoint to head DOT or NHTSA, but said, “The inklings are toward the (Ralph) Nader/(Joan) Claybrook element. The safety establishment are much more inclined to support a Democratic ticket because they haven’t been supported by NHTSA under the current administration.”
Baxter notes that the current DOT head, Jim Burnley, “tends to be pretty sympathetic to our point of view; he has been quoted as supporting returning speed-limit control to the states.” Baxter expects that an administration headed by George Bush will follow similar policies, including the “return of more authority to the state level of government. I would expect an endorsement of the repeal of the national (speed) limit.” For off-road and public land usage, Baxter expects Bush to be “more useroriented instead of more preservationist.”
Baxter concludes, “I don’t think we have a friend in Mr. Dukakis.” As for Bush? “Our issues aren’t likely to be major concerns of Bush, but at least he’s likely to be benign.”
Rob Rasor, head of the American Motorcyclist Association’s Government Relations Department, led this past year’s fight against the Danforth Superbike ban, and his conclusions are similar. Says Rasor, “In the past 12 years, it’s fairly easy to conclude that motorcyclists have done better under Republican administrations, even if it’s difficult to say why.” Rasor cited the anti-motorcycle bias of the Carter administration, which included NHTSA head Joan Claybrook, who early on argued for restrictions on motorcycle performance; and Department of the Interior Secretary Cecil Andris, who supported closure of public lands to off-road vehicles.
As for Governor Dukakis, Rasor points out that he “has been associated with the phrase ‘Mandatory Mike’ because of his positions on motorcycle legislation. He supported mandatory helmet usage in Massachusetts. In order to balance the Massachusetts budget, he pirated money from the motorcycle safety education fund, money that was raised by registration fees on bikes. Dukakis was identified in the Sierra Club Newsletter as ‘having embraced Cranston’s California Desert Act’ (the famous S7 bill that would close much of the California desert to motorcycle and other off-road-vehicle use). These three examples are very strong representations of Mr. Dukakis’s position about motorcycle issues.”
Of particular concern to Rasor with a Dukakis administration were what might happen at the agency level, and public land issues. “It’s hard to say, but (under Dukakis) we might expect a tightening of regulations concerning highway use; it might be a broadening of the federal highway funds blackmail. It wouldn’t surprise me to see someone like Claybrook appointed to DOT.” For public land usage, Rasor saw an off-road motorcycling disaster, because of Dukakis’s “strong alignment with the Sierra Club.” Rasor even said that the passage of the California Desert Conservation Act might become a “slam-dunk” with a Democratic presidential victory.
The alternative, says Rasor, is “to take Bush at face value that he will continue Reagan policies, with one exception: Bush takes a stronger stand on issues involving the environment. But he’s also very pro-recreational user; there’s a possible contradiction there. Despite that, as far as motorcycling is concerned, the Republican Presidential ticket is the better.”
Kawasaki ZXR-7
Prototypes of Kawasaki’s newest 750 streetbike were out in force for the Suzuka 8-Hour endurance race, and finished impressively in third, fifth and sixth places. Expected to have debuted at the Cologne show September 21, the production ZXR-7 should share chassis design and bodywork with the racer. Its engine, however, is likely to be a newer design, with a ZX-10-style downdraft cylinder head. The ZXR-7 is also expected not to replace Kawasaki’s strong-selling Ninja 750; instead, it will offer a racier alternative, and be competition for Suzuki’s GSX-R750 and Honda’s RC30. Price should fall in between that of the $5200 Suzuki and the $ 11,000 Honda.
Harley Rider
f/nder Harley’s aggressive marketing of its logo, the Harley-Davidson name has appeared in some most unlikely places: on underwear, beer cans and piggy banks, to name just a few. Well, add comic books to that list: The monthly Harley Rider debuted in August. Its publisher, Carl Hungness, says that at least four pages of each issue will be devoted to Harley history, along with more typical comic-book fiction. Some of that in issue No. 1 includes Heavenly Harleys (“that talk, think and see”) as well as “a continuing serial about Miss Janie Cheyney, a prim college professor who is also a foxylooking Harley rider battling evil forces.”
The comic will be available through all Harley dealers as well as comic-book stores. But if you can’t wait, you can buy a sample for $2.50 directly from Carl Hungness Publishing, P.O. Box 24308, Speedway, IN 46224.
Mr. Maico dies
One of the great figures in German motorcycling died earlier this year: 79-year-old Wilhelm Maisch. Together with his brother Otto, Maisch founded the Maico company in 193 1. A keen supporter of two-wheeled competition, Maisch built up the Maico name in the post-war period by active participation in two-wheeled sport of all
kinds. But the firm ran into financial difficulties three years ago that were resolved only in 1987 with its takeover. The buyout was by a father and son duo, both named Lorenz Merkle, who have since suffered delays in restarting production. The Merkles recently announced, however, that Maico would be at the Cologne show in September with a new range of bikes, including the customer version of the GP 250 motocrosser unveiled midway through 1987. No announcement has been made of any plans to bring Maicos back to the U.S.
More fuel injection
Expect to see more motorcycles in the future using fuel injection instead of carburetors. With the racing success of the fuel-injected Ducati 8-valve and the BimotaYamaha YB4 in European Superbike events, much of the Italian motorcycle industry is examining the WeberMarelli fuel-injection system for possible use. Cagiva may be the first to fit it to a 500 GP bike, with a track debut at an Italian championship event expected in October; if that’s successful, Randy Mamola’s 500 Cagiva may wear injection as standard equipment in 1989. Moto Guzzi plans to offer most of its large V-Twins in both carbureted and injected forms in the near future; the Le Mans may be among the first to be shorn of its carburetors. By 1990, many Ducati models are likely to be injected, as well.
Of course, BMW’s K-series bikes have used Bosch fuel injection ever since their introduction, and all the Japanese companies have sold at least one fuel-injected motorcycle in the past. But those were exceptions rather than a trend, and carburetors have remained the motorcycling standard. That may change by 1990, when injection begins to appear in earnest both on European and Japanese high-performance motorcycles.
