Ducati Owners Club of Queensland © 2009

Date Entered	Member	Title & Date & Description
09/03/2010	Gary	SLIP ME SOME SKIN? Date/Place: -- If you've just peeled off your sweat-sodden jacket, gloves, jeans and boots and feel tempted to ride in a tee and shorts and you weren't convinced by my article in Desmochronicle on "Riding with bare essentials", take a look at this website. You can either go to www.mates.org.au click on "riding tips" and scroll down to "it's too hot for protective clothing?" and click on the link or you can go straight to http://www.rockthegear.org/index.php?/testimonials/view/brittany morrow the roadrash queen/ It'll make your eyes water and suddenly the prospect of losing a few litres of sweat and having to frequently change your undies and socks won't seem so bad. Contact Details: GARY EDGAR
06/03/2010	Mortie	Club Monthly Ride Date/Place: --14 th March Caltex Castledine monthly ride, leaving from Caltex Castledine 7.30am meet for 8am depart heading norwest Kilcoy-Somerset-Esk-Hampton Contact Details: mortie 0428738967
26/02/2010	Gary	EXTRA REAR LIGHTS Date/Place: -- For some time I've clipped one of those flashing red cycle lights to the rear of my bikes (first the Monster now the GT) when riding at night as some added insurance against not being seen in the jumble of lights...car drivers need all the help they can get. It's a 20 buck "Huffy" light from K Mart and offers a range of modes including static, two different flash speeds and a running flash that radiates out from the centre (This last one is the mode I use because it's very distinctive). It's highly visible and I figure it just puts the odd more in my favour. Recently a scooter riding friend said they were illegal, but I have checked with Sgt Braydn Murphy who heads the police "Bikesafe" programme for motorcyclists and he assures me that such lights are not illegal as the legislation simply demands a red rear light not more than 1.2 metres above the ground and that there is no prohibition on having additional rear lights. Adding lights to the front is a little more iffy because you start to get into that grey area concerning fog light use in clear conditions. So there you have it. 20 bucks, a trip to K Mart and a little ingenious fiddling to work out how to fit it (where it doesn't obstruct your mandatory running lights)and you may just save yourself being rear-ended because of the SMIDSY syndrome (Sorry Mate I Didn't See You). Contact Details: GARY EDGAR
26/02/2010	Gary	SMILE FOR THE CAMERA Date/Place: -- At the last MRAQ meeting someone raised the issue of some of their club members reportedly being pulled over by police (especially on the Mt. Glorious & Mt. Mee routes)given a thorough "going over" with bike and licence checks then being photographed. I'd read of this practice a year or so back when the OC of the Gold Coast traffic branch went public in the press to state that riders on the M1 would be targeted, pulled over and photographed as a means of creating what he termed an "anti-hooning data base". How this could conceivably work is anyone's guess and it smacked more of a PR dog and pony show to impress Joe Public and to put the frighteners on motorcyclists. Whether it is legal remains the question and this is what the person was asking at the meeting. Another attendee (who appeared to have some legal knowledge) stated unequivocally that the police did not have a leg to stand on and that you were well within your legal rights to refuse to have your photo taken. The MRAQ is seeking to verify this through their legal counsel and will report back in due course (and I'll report back here). If (as seems likely) it proves to be correct, you will then need to weigh up the possible outcomes of standing your legal ground and refusing to be photographed. One can assume that in such a situation, the police officer with the camera will not take kindly to you declining, however legally or politely you do so. His intention was to photograph you and now you are thwarting him and it's quite conceivable he may seek to "find something" that will allow him to exert his authority. I suggest that if you were to be put in this position you would want to be 110% certain that there wasn't the slightest irregularity about your bike (eg non-standard pipes) your rego or your licence before you took a stand. You would need to be ultra-polite and calm in your manner as any sign of righteous indignation or bluster will invariably make matters worse. Being pragmatic, at the end of the day it may not be worth the potential agro of refusing, after all what are the police going to do with a snapshot of you? Unless you are on the wanted list it amounts to nothing other than a petty nuisance. So ask yourself if it's better to quietly co-operate and be on your way or take a stand that may just give you grief. As my old martial arts sensie used to remind us "the best tactic is simply to not show up for the battle". Contact Details: GARY EDGAR
26/02/2010	Gary	TUBULAR REGO HOLDER LATEST Date/Place: -- The latest word on the legality or otherwise of tubular rego sticker holders came up at the last MRAQ meeting. It appears that Queensland Transport has made a "ruling" against them. There doesn't seem to be any solid reasoning apart from a degree of doubt about whether they display the required info at the required distance, so of course when in doubt, just ban it. However it also seems that no specific directions have been passed down the line so it's become a "grey issue" for police to pursue at their discretion. This means that if you have one fitted you are "technically illegal" but at the mercy of the individual police officer. It's reported for example that Indooroopilly police (whose beat also takes in Mt. Glorious) will book you every time whereas police from another precinct will ignore them and others just issue a friendly warning. In other words it's a bit of a crap shoot...you may get away with it or you may not, but if push comes to shove the "law" is on the side of the police. Contact Details: GARY EDGAR