Future organ donor - BU 3641

My attention to this motorcycle was attracted this morning by its noise. Not the rumble of a Harley,  but the whining of a high-RPM engine coming up behind me while I was stopped on Route 47 by McDonald's. The motorcycle followed behind me as I passed the bp station, and then I could hear it accelerating. (To enlarge the image, click on it; then click on the Back button on your browser to come back here.)

Looking in the rearview mirror, I saw him come up close behind me, look back over his left shoulder for what I thought was too long (had I had to brake, he would have smashed right into the back of my bug), and then he swerved sharply into the inside lane and cranked it. Only to have to immediately slow down.

The rider turned right at McConnell Road, and I figured he worked at the bike shop there, so I continued straight, turned around on Wanda Lane and headed back north to finish errands.

And there, at the red light on McConnell Road, was the same bike, waiting to turn left. I was able to turn there and get this picture, along with the motorcycle license plate, BU 3641. I think the operator might be camera-shy; he didn't seem to like having his picture taken. Oh, yes, and there was that gesture with his left hand that I didn't get a picture of.

Most of the way north on 47 he didn't speed. He caught a red light at Country Club Road but, instead of waiting for a green light, he made a right and then immediately made a U-turn to the westbound, right-turn lane, slowed and turned right back onto Route 47. Once he got north of Country Club Road, he really cranked it to pass traffic in the through lane before reaching the lane-merge just north of Jewel-Osco. I guessed his speed 45-50MPH through that congested area, although I was well behind him and stopped by the red light. He turned right on Irving and went out of sight toward McHenry Avenue.

He'll probably buy the farm one of these days, and then his friends will say, "But he was a careful rider." Not!

Questionable Business Practices? (Honda)

Three weeks ago I needed to replace a small cosmetic part for my motorcycle, after it fell off as I rolled to a stop on a local street. Luckily, it fell off just as I stopped. I heard it, stopped and picked it up. Ordered a new part; it came in two days later and I picked it up, paid for it and installed it.

Two weeks later its matching part on the other side fell off. Now, what are the odds that two similar pieces would encounter the same stress failure and fall off? The second time, I was in traffic on a road with a sloping gravel shoulder and I had to keep going.

I ordered the second replacement part and put it on when it came in. Only then did I realize that I didn't have a bolt and "collar" (thick shim or spacer), because I hadn't stopped to pick up the second part when it fell off. (You'd think I was riding a Harley, not a Honda!)

OK, so why am I writing this?

Each of the other parts, which were shiny metal and molded to fit, cost $12.25; that's $24.50 for parts.

Yesterday I ordered the bolt and collar and expected to pay $1.00-2.00. Imagine my surprise when I picked them up and was told that the cost would be $11.03! For one bolt less than 1" long and one thick spacer. Outrageous! I asked for the phone number for Honda's Customer Service but got side-tracked and left without it.

It gets better. Stick with me. When I called later, the parts kid at Honda Northwest wouldn't give me the phone number for Customer Service and asked why I was upset. After all, the computer showed the price. Easy for him to say.

I came up with the phone number by first calling the Honda Rider's Club of America and then called Honda Customer Service, when a very polite, friendly, and professional young woman named Heather offered to help me.

I told her that my invoice showed a nice discount off the List Price, and then she surprised me by telling me that the MSRP was much lower than the List Price. Oh, really?

What pricing shows on the invoice from Honda Northwest?
.................BOLT...........COLLAR
LIST.......$17.56.............$7.82
NET........$ 6.69.............$3.62

Honda's MSRP for the bolt?... $7.60! (not $17.56)
Honda's MSRP for the collar? $3.69 (not $7.82)

Will I deal with Honda Northwest again? No way! Why would there be such a discrepancy between Honda's MSRP and the dealer's List Price? Computer error? Or questionable business practices, maybe?

So, while I still feel stung by the $11.03 for a buck's real worth of a bolt and collar, maybe I got off cheaply by finding out how they do business, before I gave them the bike for an expensive repair job.

My motorcycle repair shop of choice is Randy's Cycles in Huntley, where I have been treated fairly for more than seven years.

Motorcyclist Not Ticketed in Crash

A motorcyclist crashed his bike on U.S. 14 last Sunday during the Gavers Community Cancer Foundation charity ride. According to the Northwest Herald, he was eastbound on U.S. 14 near Dean Street, when traffic in front of him slowed and he ran off the roadway, presumably to avoid running into a vehicle stopping in front of him.

While it's nice to know that Woodstock PD didn't spend months investigating the accident, it's curious to me that the motorcycle operator was not ticketed. He was injured and taken to the hospital, and his motorcycle was towed from the accident scene.

The Northwest Herald did not publish the operator's name, nor has there been any follow-up.

I don't recall reading of any other accident handled by Woodstock PD that involved vehicle damage and injuries, when the driver was not ticketed.

Why should he have been ticketed? He failed to maintain control of his vehicle. He crashed his vehicle.

I've been on charity rides and one of the reasons I no longer go on them is that too many motorcycles ride too closely together, operate at speeds in excess of posted speed limits, disregard traffic control devices and generate too much noise. On one ride a pack of about 25 bikes rolled up to a stop sign. The first bike stopped, then went on. All the others, except yours truly, went through the stop sign on the first biker's stop. That was when I dropped back and just enjoyed the rest of the ride alone.

I don't object to the mild rumble of a throaty motorcycle exhaust. What I do object to is when operators "crack" the throttle and cause excessive, unnecessary noise. Also, when they decelerate sharply in lower gears to generate loud, excessive, unnecessary noise. That type of operation generates a black mark for all motorcycle riders.

Was this operator distracted by his buddies alongside or behind him? Was he talking while he was riding alongside another bike? Had he turned his head away from traffic too long and, when he looked forward again, Surprise!

Otherwise, why would he not notice traffic slowing in front of him and adjust his speed accordingly? We can probably rule out text-messaging or talking on a cell phone, although I did see a motorcycle operator the other day with his BlueTooth hanging on his ear. I thought, "There goes another Borg!"

So, what was the real reason that this particular motorcycle operator was not ticketed for something like failure to stop in time to avoid an accident or improper lane usage or following too closely? There is a good reason that the State form is called a Crash Report, not an accident report.

© 2008 GUS PHILPOTT

Motorcycle For Sale

A friend has a motorcycle for sale. If you are interested, send me an email (gus@woodstockadvocate.com) and I'll put you in touch with him.

1998 Honda Magna 750
Only 970 miles
Garage Kept
2 New Helmets
Tire Repair Kit
Battery Minder
Heel/Toe Conversion Kit Installed
Original Parts/with Instructions in saddle bags
First Aid Kit
Assorted Tools
2 Full Bike Covers
Motorcycle Tire Inflator
Wireless Helmet Brake Light
1 New Pair of Motorcycle Gloves (2X)

Need I add that the bike is in excellent condition. It sure needs riding, though! The current (second) owner bought it about two years ago (maybe three). The bike is strong! I've ridden it.

© 2008 GUS PHILPOTT

What's Ahead for WPD?

What kind of continuity planning is ahead at the Woodstock Police Department? Or does such a concept exist in the government of small towns?

Recently a second Deputy Chief position was created at the Woodstock Police Department, and a senior officer, who was presented last year with his 30-year pin, was tapped for that spot. Let's assume that he got more responsibility, more pay and a boost in potential retirement pay.

Without deep research here's what I think we have now in Woodstock. A chief who served 25 years at another department before coming to Woodstock about two years ago. Two deputy chiefs, each with 30 years' service.

What the City and the Woodstock PD should now be planning for is the retirement, likely within a fairly short time-span of one another, of the top three command officers. To what extent is the cost of retirement pay factored into decisions regarding promotions? Is the current administration grooming several current officers to assume command positions as these individuals retire? Or will an expensive outside "search" be launched to hire someone from the outside? Why not groom current staff and plan to promote from within?

Let's hope that Woodstock does not follow the expensive path of creating a civilian Director of Public Safety position, allowing a senior officer to retire and come back to work the next day as a civilian. The department should avoid becoming top-heavy with administration, when the need for officers on the street is high.

Continuity of policies and building of teamwork in the department will pay huge rewards in the future. A police force needs to be known and respected within a small community. Woodstock is not the City of Chicago.

We have several new programs in Woodstock. How are these really working out for all concerned? For the residents? For the businessowners? For the officers as employees? For the City?

We now have a "beat" program, where officers are assigned for one-year periods to the same quadrant of the City and for the same shift. It would be interesting to hear from officers about whether they like this program. Is it good for some? Boring for others? Boring for too many others? If so, this will lead to turnover, which is expensive for any business, including City government.

How is the Department-ordered rotation of officers working out? For example, an officer may aspire to becoming a detective. To be promoted to that position, he must acquire certain training and experience. The training isn't free and it intensifies after the officer is appointed to detective status. Then after a fairly short period (four years?), during which he has begun to acquire the experience and contacts that could provide years of benefits to the department and the community, he must leave the detective assignment for different work within the department.

Yes, this provides an opportunity for another officer to move to the detective division. Then his own expensive training begins, which includes off-site training programs (cost of the training program itself plus payroll while he is away from Woodstock). And then, about the time he is becoming profitable to the department, he must move out to make room for someone else to advance.

Woodstock P.D. has a couple of Harley-Davidson motorcycles. An officer must attend a training program to "qualify" for motorcycle duty. How are these motorcycles used? In a recent year, according to information discussed at a Coffee with the Chief last year, 800 miles were put on the motorcycles.

These motorcycles are excellent vehicles for traffic duty. That's what police motorcycles are for. If they were used for speed limit, stop sign, red light, illegal center-lane use and other traffic enforcement, it shouldn't be too hard to put 800 miles on a motorcycle in a week or two. If only 800 miles is put on a motorcycle in an entire riding season, is it time to get rid of the bikes?

Woodstock isn't big enough for a motorcycle traffic "unit", and the two motorcycles should be in use by street officers whose primary duty is traffic. If a supervisor utilizes one of them, can he focus his primary attention on traffic enforcement, when he has an entire shift to supervise?

Officer comments are invited. Create a free email account on Google, so that you can post comments without revealing your identity.

© 2008 GUS PHILPOTT

Gov't. Banner - Right Location?

Should a banner funded by tax dollars be displayed in a manner to look like advertising of a commercial business?

A large, yellow Start Seeing Motorcycles banner is tied to a chain-link fence next to the Harley-Davidson dealership in Woodstock. This banner was produced with government funding through a joint program of the U.S. Government, IDOT's Traffic Safety Division and the Illinois State Police. A photo of this banner appears with an article written previously.

The placement of the banner next to the Harley dealership may infer that it is advertising of this particular dealership. Its location, well off the highway, means that it is not generally visible to passing drivers.

Is there a better place for this banner? How about on the railroad bridge over Route 47? In front of Memorial Medical Hospital? In front of Farm & Fleet, Kmart, Wal-Mart? On the vacant property just north of the DMV? Perhaps it could be moved every 30 days so that drivers continue to see it and be reminded to "see motorcycles."

So far, in 1,500+ miles of touring on this trip, only one driver hasn't seen me. Many motorcycle operators ride defensively; that is, we expect driver not to see us, and we are continually prepared to take evasive action.

Where do you think would be a good place for this banner?

On the Road - Days 1-2

Traveling across the eastern USA mid-week on State roads was a delight. I left Woodstock last Wednesday morning and headed east on I-90, right through the Loop. There was a massive traffic jam on the outbound Kennedy, thanks to a tractor-trailer and two cars that tangled about 6:15AM. For once, drivers were pretty sane on I-90 and the Kennedy and even on the Dan Ryan.

At Schererville, Ind., I headed east on U.S. 30 and found traffic quite light. Continuing southeast in Ohio on State highways was also enjoyable, and again traffic was light. I stop about every 100 miles for gas for the motorcycle, and getting 45-50MPH at cruising speed certainly helped at the gas pump.

Night 1 was in Parkersburg, West Virginia, just across the Ohio-West Virginia state line. On Thursday morning I headed due east through the mountains. Route planning on my 1996 AAA Southeastern USA map, except all those roads that looked straight actually were full of 20-30MPH curves. Curve-warning signs were adequate in West Virginia and almost non-existent in Virginia. At Staunton I picked up I-64 and made good time to Richmond.

I lived in Richmond in 1993-1996 and it almost felt like coming home. Philpott is a pretty well-known name in Virginia politics, but that's a different branch of the family. This trip I probably won't visit the town of Philpott, which is northwest of Martinsville and near Philpott Dam & Lake. Last time I was through there was in 1992, and a retired professor of French and Spanish literature filled me in on considerable Philpott family history in Henry County.

Perhaps the light traffic on highways had something to do with the price of gas hovering around the $4.00 mark. I passed up one gas station in the mountains with regular gas at $4.19/gal. Ten miles up the road I paid $3.89/gal. Haven't had to pay $4.00 yet, but the day can't be far off.

© 2008 GUS PHILPOTT