EPA: They Blinded Us With Science

We’re less than a week into the NFL lockout where billionaires are arguing with millionaires about compensation and now there’s whining reports from players who say they can’t afford health insurance premiums.  Normally, teams pay for that but during a work stoppage each player is responsible for their own coverage.  And under the federal COBRA law it allows employees to continue coverage at their own expense where the average monthly fee for a family policy is about $2400.

So we have a group of players whose average salary is approaching $2M and where a minimum rookie salary was $320K last season… is “worried” they can’t pay COBRA over a long term?!  This is utterly preposterous.  Many of us are worried about paying for the next tank of gas so welcome to the real world NFL players!

And speaking of fuel prices, are you ready to pull out larger bills from your wallet for even higher prices due to the imminent delivery of boutique fuel called E15?

Here’s the background:  Growth Energy, an ethanol industry trade group, petitioned the EPA in March 2009 to raise the limit on ethanol in gasoline from 10 to 15 percent. Several engine product and auto manufacturers as well as others urged EPA to be deliberative in its review process, and do adequate testing to assure that E15 would not harm existing products or pose safety risks. Despite the fact that E-15 blends were proven to cause engine failures from overheating as well as emission increases and emission (durability) impacts and material compatibility issues, in October, 2010, the EPA approve higher levels of ethanol (E-15 or 15% ethanol) in gasoline for use in only 2007 and newer automobiles. It seems that scientific facts were ignored.  Not the first time the EPA has ignored facts.  Remember the Uniroyal/Alar truth?

At any rate, motorcycles are exempt from E15 use, but there is significant risk that consumers will unknowingly or mistakenly put E15 in motorcycles (“misfueling”).  Since we’re all smart and would never knowingly misfuel our precious ride, the more likely case is where fuel retailers are not prepared to offer both E10 and E15 at their stations, and given the choice, will likely opt to offer E15 only.  I don’t know about you, but in my motorcycle travels across Canada and the western U.S., there were many stations ill equipped to accommodate an additional fuel.  This would then lead any business to choose between E15 and E10 fuels – and E15 will win out since it’s more profitable for them to carry for automobiles and motorcyclists will have no choice but to fuel with E15 and suffer the mechanical consequences.

You might think the EPAs got your global warming back, but the agencies prior experience with fuel transitions isn’t stellar.  In 1974, as the EPA led the transition to unleaded fuels, the Agency reported a misfueling rate of 15 percent over ten years after the introduction of unleaded gasoline.  We’ve all seen the reports of station attendants fueling diesel in non-diesel automobiles which resulted in huge expense so it happens.

It turns out the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute (OPEI) has recently filed an E-15 Partial Waiver Legal Challenge to request that the EPA, consistent with prior precedent, ensure continued consumer choice by requiring the continued sale of gasoline blends of no greater than E10 fuel.  Clearly the potential of reduced volume of E10 fuel in the marketplace will likely result in the elimination of supply, and/or increase the price of what little there is available for motorcycle fueling.

Photo courtesy of Growth Energy.

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Lifewise Beatdown

Let’s face it.  Planning for the unthinkable isn’t fun.

Healthcare benefits are important and they are complex.  Choosing health benefits is challenging and making an informed decision requires focused effort to understand how the benefits are changing or understand all the intricacies of your insurance service and how any of the changes will affect you.  A daunting task to say the least.

In addition, it’s been a year since President Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, but many of us don’t know enough about the basic law let alone understand the fine print.

Speaking of the president, back in October I blogged about Obama visiting Oregon to stump for now Governor Kitzhaber and with his visit occurring in the middle of rush-hour traffic it triggered an accident on I-84 when eastbound traffic slowed to watch the president motorcade traveling west from the Portland Air National Guard Base.  A motorcyclist and northeast Portland man (Peter Kendall Gunderson, age 59) may have failed to see traffic ahead of him was slowing down for the presidential motorcade and as a result of the injuries sustained in the accident died at the hospital.

A couple weeks ago, Steve Duin, of The Oregonian published a compelling follow up report about the incident and the story reads like an old fashion motorcycle club “beat-down” by a privately held, for-profit company — Lifewise.

The Lifewise mission is: “To provide peace of mind to our members about their health-care coverage.” But five months later, Mr. Gunderson’s wife, Ellen, is still held captive to all the gray areas of the cost of trauma services; the imprecise terms of insurance policies; and the ethical dilemmas that arise over the exact moment when a donor’s death is certain and his organs become available.   I suspect like many of us, Mr. Gunderson never anticipated there would be so much uncertainty in the wake of a personal tragedy.

I suggest you read the story.  Then take action to review your beneficiary designations, understand your medical rights and responsibilities and plan for the unthinkable. Mr. Gunderson organs probably saved three lives but, the process for his family of navigating the billing intricacies, months of lien notices, collection threats and double billings has certainly been painful.

Lifewise has a reputation for trying to get out of their responsibilities to pay for the cost of medical care, but it’s important to note that according to the BBB there have been 3 complaints closed in last 3 years with no significant government actions involving the LifeWise Health Plan of Oregon.

Photo courtesy of Lifewise.

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Oregon, Who’s Your Nanny?

Stop "Nanny" Bills

We’ve been told a number of times that Oregon legislators know what’s best for us.  They seem to have a motto of just ‘trust us,’ now go out there and have some crazy fun.  But govern that fun because there are a lot of well intentioned legislative bills that treat citizens like children incapable of making a good decision — called “nanny” bills — which in my view try to mandate common sense and are simply telling people how to live their life.

For 2011, they don’t want you to smoke.  Anything anywhere.  Don’t even think about driving with a pet in your lap or riding a bike with headphones.  And when your windshield wipers are on (happens a lot in the northwest) they want it mandatory to use your headlights too.  Yeah, legislators want to lower the boom on all these so-called questionable habits and are as busy as ever protecting us from ourselves.  In fact, 2,837 measures have been introduced since January.  Some read like duplicates and some contradict other bills.  Yep, it’s “March Madness” from Salem!

One of the more prolific sponsors is Rep. Mitch Greenlick (D) who after reading a bike safety study by OHSU decided to authored a bill that would make it illegal to carry a child under the age of 6 years old in a bike trailer (HB 2228).  I’m curious if he collaborated with Eugene-based Burley Design, who have employees engaged in the making of trailers for more than 30 years and if they see this as a job killer?   Not even slightly distracted about jobs, Mr. Greenlick also wants to require a prescription to smoke cigars or cigarettes and wants to add a special tax on soda to discourage its consumption (HB 3223).

The Legislative Counsel’s office says it costs $980, on average to draft and circulate a bill.  That suggests there is a $2.7M cost for the drafting and routing of the 2,837 measures for 2011!  While we can debate the actual costs and if a House Concurrent Resolution (HCR) is less cost, what isn’t debatable is the loss of productivity of the people put there to serve us and the wasting of the states time and money on non-sense bills versus working to grow the economy and create jobs.  Some examples of those all-important issues (and there are many, believe me) that legislators think face our state:

1. HCR 14 – adopts Code of West as model of conduct in State of Oregon.
2. SCR 3 – designates Border collie as official state dog.
3. HB 2010 – requires public schools to offer students instruction in Mandarin Chinese if school offers student instruction in two or more second languages.
4. SB 160 – creates offense of driver operation with obstructing animal (makes it illegal to drive with a pet on your lap).
5. SB 805 creates offense of unlawfully confining egg-laying hen.

So, by now you’re asking how does this relate to motorcycles and/or transportation measures?  I didn’t read all 2,837 measures, but I quickly scanned them and below are the measures motorcyclists might be interested in keeping an eye on:

SB 948 Declares that data used to diagnose, maintain or repair motor vehicles that is created, collected or contained in motor vehicle is exclusively owned by motor vehicle owner.
SB 945 Prohibits manufacturers from selling or offering for sale, and other specified persons from knowingly selling or offering for sale, brake friction material or motor vehicles or trailers with brake friction material containing specific amounts of certain fibers or elements that are hazardous when released into state waterways.
HB 3579 Prohibits advertising that seller will value property being offered as payment toward purchase or lease of motor vehicle at certain amounts.
SJR 36 Proposes amendment to Oregon Constitution to allow revenue from taxes on motor vehicle fuel and ownership, operation or use of motor vehicles to be used by state police for policing highways.
SB 873 Requires persons 75 years of age or older to renew driver licenses every two years and to take driving test prior to renewal.
SB 845 Requires Department of Transportation to issue driver license or driver permit to applicant who has complied with all requirements for license or permit but does not provide proof of legal presence in United States.
SB 846 Directs Department of Transportation to adopt standards for bicycle trailers designed for human passengers.
HB 3504 Authorizes civil forfeiture of motor vehicle if person is convicted of offense relating to driving while suspended or revoked.
HB 3377 Authorizes photo radar in City of Salem.
HB 3513 Creates Ignition Interlock Device Program Fund and continuously appropriates moneys in fund to Department of Transportation to pay for installation and maintenance of ignition interlock devices for use by persons who are indigent.
HB 3483 Requires use of headlights when windshield wipers are on.
SB 767 Creates offense of unlawfully idling motor vehicle engine.
HB 3259 Directs Department of Transportation to provide photograph on driver license, driver permit or identification card to licensed private investigator.
HB 3250 Directs Department of Transportation to issue Keep Kids Safe registration plates.
SB 647 Increases penalty for driving while suspended or revoked.
HB 3149 Establishes standards for personal vehicle sharing programs.
HB 3141 Requires only persons under 21 years of age to wear motorcycle helmet while riding on or operating motorcycle. I blogged on this previously HERE.
HB 3072 Requires use of headlights at all times.
HB 3039 Directs Department of Transportation to erect and maintain roadside memorial sign under certain circumstances for police officer killed in line of duty.
HB 2738 Directs Department of Transportation to consult with Oregon State University Marine Mammal Institute when designing Gray Whale registration plate.
HB 2768 Adds driving while fatigued to offense of reckless driving.
HB 2749 Creates offense of driving while drowsy.
HB 2545 Establishes tax on motor vehicle rentals.
HB 2333 Prohibits use of studded tires.
HB 2507 Permits person to use mobile communication device while operating motor vehicle in frontier counties.
HB 2042 Permits person to provide Department of Transportation with odometer disclosure form for vehicle 10 years old or older.
SB 160 Creates offense of driver operation with obstructing animal.
SB 180 Prohibits Department of Transportation from administering examination for driver license in language other than English.

And sticking with that ‘cowboy’ code theme and applying it to the 2011 legislature… I’m thinking “big mouth, no cows” might be more appropriate.

Photo courtesy of Flickr

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Millionaires Don’t Feel Wealthy

Millionaires Don’t Feel Wealthy

According to a recent survey, 4 out of 10 millionaires don’t feel wealthy.  The point at which they do “feel it” is about $7.5M according to the Fidelity Millionaire Outlook who tracks millionaires confidence viewpoint.

And speaking of millionaires, it’s unclear if Mr. Keith Wandell (CEO, Harley-Davidson) is feeling wealthy versus feeling a bit pinched because according to the AP and papers recently filed with regulators Mr. Wandell received compensation valued at $6.4M in 2010, only up 1% from 2009 when he spent just 8-months on the job.  There were stock and option awards totaling $3.02M and a performance-based cash bonus of $2.3M which accounted for most of his compensation.

I know what you’re thinking… in this day an age of splendiferous benefits, where Milwaukee County bus drivers are making a 6-figure income along with many other working class heroes… we need to cut Mr. Wandell some slack, right?  He’s unified the company, changed whatever can be changed, clearly communicated that everybody’s got to get better at everything and today the road signs suggest a turnaround for the heavy-cruiser company.  In fact, if we go by the past year’s stock (NYSE: HOG) price it has hit a 52-week low of $21.26 and a 52-week high of $43.14 which is a home run in anyone’s portfolio!  Yet, with continued oil fears and the Japan crisis who knows if Harley will drive home better numbers.

To be fair, I’m a little guilty of treating some millionaires a bit like a piñata, but I just read a report about how half of the ‘rescued’ borrowers still default.  That’s not the millionaires issue, but when I hear they don’t “feel” wealthy it’s difficult for me to relate!  The housing market is up and then it’s down depending on which paragraph you read in the SAME article!  Where are the jobs?   Just about a month ago we were stunned and hopeful over the unrest in Tunisia and Egypt.  Then concern followed with the Libya unrest and now war preventing Qaddafi from harming civilians which has been quickly followed with what seems like a weekly double-digit hike in…doesn’t it feel like ‘we’re working just for gas now’?  And then how ’bout that whining from one of the more famous multi-millionaires:

“I’m not broke, but I was kind of counting on some of that money to get me through the summer.  Now I’ve got to like work.  But that’s alright.  Work’s good.  Work fuels the soul.” – said the ‘peaceful man with bad intentions’, Charlie Sheen.

Hey Mr. Sheen quit whining like a little butch and get a grip that your gravy train is done.  We’re all trying to get a little work and counting on some motorcycle rally money to get us through the summer.  Although we don’t all roll with a baby-sitter porn-star mistress.   Winning opportunity – Duh?!

Far be it for me to use the troubles of another to further my blog career, but Mr. Wandell doesn’t get a total pass — it was just last September when he stated that Harley-Davidson management had lost control of costs.  The key item he mentioned was employees at the Harley Menomonee Falls Plant were making an average $32 per hour in wages and with benefits added were costing the company $75 per hour.  He then made reference to General Motors – sort of a connect the dots if you can with the media — and the inability to remain profitable under the burden of its payroll, pension and benefits costs.  Many perceived this as whining and some had an “allergic reaction” to the fact that a CEO who makes more than $6M a year was whining about how out of control workers wages have become….was shall we say, less than gripping.  I’m sure if Mr. Wandell could have a “do-over” he’d try and not alienate the workers again.

And speaking of CEO bonuses, they’ve bounced back faster than a Charlie Sheen Google search.  Mr. Wandell might be thinking his $2.3M performance-based cash bonus was rather paltry when compared to: Howard Schultz (CEO, Starbucks) $3.5M; Jeffery Immelt (CEO, GE) $4M; Daniel Ustian (CEO, Navistar) $3.9M; Robert Iger (CEO, Walt Disney) $13.5M?  According to this WSJ report the median cash bonus at 50 major corporations jumped 30.5% in 2010.

A wise man once told me that there’s no “I” in ‘team, but there are two in whining…

Photo courtesy of Harvey Comics.

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Oregon Makes Top 15 Route List

Two words:  Rattlesnake Grade!

The editors of American Motorcyclist magazine used their 230,000-members to nominate and vote on members’ favorite roads. Nearly 100 roads made the ballet box, and the magazine published the top 15 roads in the April issue.

Oregon made the top 15 with an amazing piece of pavement called the Rattlesnake Grade. Typically any rider who’s done this twisty piece of paved paradise will just smile and their face will light up when ask about it.

Here are the top 15 routes and I’ve bolded the northwest routes:

15. Washington Route 129 and Oregon Route 3, Clarkston, Wash., to Enterprise, Ore. (Map HERE)
14. Ohio Route 170, Calcutta to Poland.
13. California Route 58, McKittrick to Santa Margarita.
12. U.S. Route 33, Harrisonburg, Va., to Seneca Rocks, W.Va.
11. Natchez Trace, from Natchez, Miss., to Nashville, Tenn.
10. Angeles Crest Highway, California Route 2.
9. U.S. Route 12, Lolo Pass, Idaho and Montana. (Map HERE)
8. California Route 36.
7. Cherohala Skyway, North Carolina and Tennessee.
6. Going to the Sun Road, Glacier National Park, Montana. (Map HERE)
5. California Route 1, Pacific Coast Highway.
4. U.S. Route 550, from Ouray to Durango, Colo.
3. U.S. Route 129 — The Tail of the Dragon — on the North Carolina-Tennessee border.
2. Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina.
1. Beartooth Highway, Montana and Wyoming. (Map HERE)

There are more detailed descriptions in the magazine which can be viewed online HERE.

Beside truck drivers, no other group puts in more miles and samples more road than motorcyclists and these are some great rides to consider.

Photo courtesy of AMA.

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Repercussions

The Japan earthquake (9.0) rates in the top four with the 1952 Kamchatka quake, the 1960 quake in Chile with 9.5, the Alaska quake in 1964 with 9.2 and the Sumatra quake in 2004 with 9.1.

I’ve visited Tokyo and the surrounding areas a number of times and want to express my sympathy to those affected by this tragedy during what can only be described as very painful times.  Faced with the horrific news and pictures from Japan, everybody wants to do something, and the obvious thing to do is to donate money to some relief fund or other.  Or if you prefer something different (I’m not making this up) someone set up a well-intentioned “Socks for Japan” drive.

I’m not insensitive to the nuclear dangers, but the tragic loss of life and destruction caused by the earthquake and tsunami will likely dwarf the damage caused by the problems associated with the nuclear plants, however, the media is now doing a “Charlie Sheen” minute-by-minute obsession with these plants.  According to a number of reports (including the more negative HERE) the Japan situation isn’t going to be another Chernobyl.  And speaking of Chernobyl, next month marks the 24th anniversary of the Chernobyl (April 25, 1986) accident.   Back in 2009 I blogged about the Chernobyl Motorcycle Ride and due to recent events in Japan it seems to be getting a lot of hits. Unfortunately.  But I’ve digressed.

There will be repercussions in the Worldwide motorcycle community as the economic impact and stories of the prices we pay and heavy losses are just beginning to ratchet up.  All the motorcycle manufactures are cooperating with electricity conservation efforts and the rolling blackouts to help in the prioritizing of the relief and recovery of affected areas.  For example the motorcycle production facilities at:

Honda: The company reported on some of the more serious damages including the death of a 43-year old male employee at its research and development center in Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, as the wall of a cafeteria crumbled. Honda said that more than 30 employees at several facilities in the same prefecture were injured.   The company also decided the following:

1. As of March 14, all production activities are suspended at the following Honda plants: Sayama Plant at Saitama Factory (Sayama, Saitama), Ogawa Plant (Ogawa-machi, Hiki-gun Saitama), Tochigi Factory (Moka, Tochigi), Hamamatsu Factory (Hamamatsu, Shizuoka) and Suzuka Factory (Suzuka, Mie).
2. From March 15 through 20, Honda will suspend all production activities at its plants listed above as well as at Kumamoto Factory (Ozu-machi, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto).
3. From March 14 through 20, Honda will suspend regular operations at all Honda facilities in the Tochigi area, where damage was more serious, (including Tochigi Factory, Honda R&D Co., Ltd. R&D Center (Tochigi) , Honda Engineering Co., Ltd., etc.), and focus on the recovery of each operation. Honda associates will not come to work during this time.

Yamaha: reported one employee injured and sections of the roads surrounding their Motor Sports facility had collapsed.

Suzuki: shut down all of its plants (including Takatsuka and Toyokawa facilities) and will consider re-establishing operations after March 17th

Bridgestone:  reported no serious damage to five of its production facilities in the affected regions, however the company has a number of sites in the Tochigi Prefecture, including the Nasu tire plant. The Nasu facility is the sole motorcycle tire production site for Bridgestone worldwide. The production at these sites was stopped, pending safety evaluations and Bridgestone plans to resume production “based on electricity restrictions and other issues.”

Wild Road Choppers: the owner Souji Abe is located in Sendai City and while he personally is safe the damage to the area where his shop is located is clearly extensive.

Motorcycle Show Cancellations: Osaka Motorcycle Show and the 38th Tokyo Motorcycle Show (March 25)

In addition there is unofficial word about the Japanese Grand Prix which was to be held April 24th at Motegi is being reviewed and dependent on the Mobilityland complex and physical structure may get cancelled.  For reference, Motegi is about 110miles from Sendhai (near the epicenter) and Fukishima, where the damaged nuclear reactors are located is about 75miles north of Motegi.

The area of Japan affected by the earthquake and tsunami produces around 4.1% of the country’s GDP, suggesting that first-round economic effects could be limited, yet at this stage, with the fate of the Fukushima nuclear reactors still unclear, it’s too early to come up with any meaningful estimates of the overall impact to the motorcycle community.

My thoughts and prayers are with the survivors and the families.

UPDATE: March 25, 2011 – A couple of weeks after all the destruction in Japan some of the motorcycle manufactures have reopened with limited production.  A good report HERE at Power Sport News.

Photo courtesy of Google Maps.

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The Daytona Bike Week Road Signs

Dave Zien

Florida’s warm breezes welcomed the motorcycle community to what most consider the grand opening of the east coast motorcycle season.

I’ve been to Daytona Beach for the Daytona 500, but unfortunately never able to visit during Bike week.  Something to add to my ‘bucket list’ I suppose as Bruce Rossmeyers Harley Davidson at Destination Daytona and New Smyrna Harley Davidson play host to tens of thousands of bikers from around the world.   There are a number of biker venues like, Main Street’s Boothill Saloon, Iron Horse Saloon, Cabbage Patch, Gilly’s Pub 44, Broken Spoke Saloon, and Froggys to keep a person occupied.

The official stats have yet to be released, but antidotal media reports suggest that attendance is a bit mixed.  Some merchants blamed the economy and/or high gas prices for a less than spectacular attendance record this year..  One attendee interviewed by the local paper said:

“People just don’t have as much discretionary money to spend on a bike. And let’s face it, this is a frivolous vacation,” said Phil McAllister, pausing before adding, “But it’s still a lot of fun.”

I’m not sure if this is a predictor of the 2011 riding/rally season across the U.S. or not.  What do you think?  Will you be attending more, same or fewer motorcycle rallies than last year?  I’ll be attending fewer this year due to scheduling issues.

But, there were a couple of other notable items that will mark this years Bike week in the history books.  One was a sonic boom as the space shuttle Discovery began its rapid descent over the Atlantic Ocean and skillful final landing. After 39 missions, the space shuttle Discovery landed for the last time March 10th at Kennedy Space Center, about an hour from Daytona Beach.  The other and one that is most unfortunate was former Wisconsin state Sen. Dave Zien and AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer was seriously injured on Sunday in a motorcycle accident in Florida.

The accident occurred at 6:15 a.m. Sunday on eastbound Interstate 10 near Marianna in Jackson County.  Mr. Zien was driving in the inside lane when a Ford SUV crossed over from the right lane and into the median. The driver lost control of the vehicle and it rolled, flipping onto its side on the interstate facing north.

Zien attempted to avoid the crash scene but was unable to, clipping the back of the SUV. Zien was thrown from his 2009 Harley-Davidson bike where he was reported to have lost part of his left leg, and was airlifted to Tallahassee Memorial Medical Center, where at last report he was in stable condition.

Mr. Zien is best known as an AMA Hall of Famer, for defending motorcyclists’ rights while serving in the Wisconsin Legislature and true to his words he was not wearing a helmet in this accident.  Mr. Zien served as vice president of the Wisconsin Better Bikers Association and was known for riding around on his Harley-Davidson with a full-size American and Wisconsin flags on his bike. In addition, back in 2005, Zien was the main author of the Wisconsin RURA (Roadway Users Responsibility Act) 466.  That bill provides for increased penalties for vehicle operators who violate the right-of-way of other roadway users.  And in my opinion I hope there is a similar law in Florida because the driver of the SUV, Ryan G. Matheny of Marietta, OH., was charged with failure to maintain lane and driving with a suspended license.

Here’s hoping Mr. Zien a speedy recovery.

Photo courtesy of AMA.

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The Forum Network

Sanjay Sabnani - CEO of Crowdgather

Those of us who have lived longer than two decades know that there is no substitute for knowledge and experience.  We also know that no individual has extensive knowledge and/or experience in all aspects of life and why sharing those experiences with others is an empowering activity.  Thus the internet message boards (‘boards’) were created during the pre-internet days of networked modems.  For some of you you’ll remember that the earliest version of these ‘boards’ were newsgroups that started back in the ‘70s such as what existed on Usenet.

As a recap, message boards (sometimes called discussion, bulletin boards, forums etc.,) are places on the internet where people can go and ask questions, find answers and share their thoughts.  The ‘boards’ are typically geared toward a specific topic (Autos, Health, PC help, Gaming etc.,) and there are many which cover everything about motorcycles, motorcyclists and the riding lifestyle where you can reminisce about the good old days or pontificate Pan Head repairs.

The question to ask – have social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, etc.,) subsumed the role of motorcycle forums and permanently cast them into  the obsolete trash bin of “You’ve Got Mail” (i.e. AOL)?  Here is a small sampling of various motorcycle forums:

BMW Sport Touring Forum
Ducati Monster Forum
Harley-Davidson Forum
HD Forum
Honda Forum
J&P Cycles Forum
Kawasaki Forum
Motorcycle USA Forum
Motorcycle Forum
Yamaha Motorcycle Forum
Victory Forum
V-Twin Forum

It’s my view there is a great deal of ignorance about forums and their place in the whole social media eco-system.  It’s been somewhat overlooked because of a general reluctance amongst advertisers to advertise on user generated content.  Twitter and Facebook are not what I would call a “deep internet experience.”  What matters most on a forum is the worth of your intellect, the merit of your thoughts and your ability to communicate them.  I would debate this is true for blogs too.  Unfortunately, the presentation of that material on a ‘board’ is not very pretty. There are legacy issues in how pretty they can be made to look because of how arcane the software is, but if you look at them for what they are — as vehicles for many-to-many communication — they are one of the best applications.

Facebook is not many-to-many. It is me and my friends and at any given time it’s me communicating with my friends or me participating in the communication of my friends. We are never all in it together because I may not have friends that overlap with your group of friends.  Forums are designed for a multiplicity of people to communicate and done in an organized fashion with a taxonomy that makes sense.

On a good forum you can read a motorcycle review. You can have a member write a tutorial on how to wire a ballast compensator for a LED tail-light or how to modify/hack engine codes. You have your typical Q&A threads where you can post a question to the community. You can also share. There are very few places that have this aggregate of knowledge.  In fact, forums are the only class of web site other than like say, Wikipedia that has a built-in peer review mechanism.

Sure, Facebook allows you to share social linkages. You’ll see pictures of your friend’s new ride or trip to the beach and you get to congratulate them. LinkedIn captures your work history; who has recommended who and the chronology of your work experience. Twitter allows you to broadcast to any of your followers what you ate for breakfast or if you live in Libya and a member of the anti-Qaddafi revolution where to stage the next surprise.  Foursquare provides everyone a timeline of where you’ve been minute-by-minute, but there is nowhere else [besides forums] on the internet where your passions, your hobbies and your knowledge base is sufficiently given credit for.

So as an advocate of the ‘boards’ I wanted to do a shout-out and give them a bit more love and respect than they get at present.

Photo courtesy of Sanjay Sabnani who is the chairman and CEO of Crowdgather, a network made up of over 65,000 forums generating over 90 million page views per month and 4.5 million visitors a month.

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Shining A Stronger Light

The partners took an extraordinary low profile and didn’t want to be like other projects who banged the drum for support until a real plan came together.

But, the time has come to ‘shine a stronger light’ on a new racetrack being built a few hours north of Portland.  It’s time for motorcyclists to support this new race track facility in Mason County as the Ridge Motorsports Park project faces its last and final step: the special use permit hearing.

The hearing will be at 10AM on April 6th in the Mason County Commissioner’s chambers at 411 North Fifth Street, Shelton, WA. 98584. It will be in front of an independent Special Hearings Examiner, who will set the conditions under which the track can operate based on the testimony of the public hearing.

I want to encouraging as many people possible to show up and support Ridge Motorsports Park by attending the hearing. So come in force and let all the motorcycle groups know.  Getting as many people as possible to show support for the benefits of responsible usage of a new road course and drag strip facility is key.  The Special Hearings Examiner has ten days after the hearing to submit a ruling, after which construction can begin immediately!  If you are looking for more information there is a great write up at the WMRRA.

Please attend the hearing if you can.  Of not, then take a drive up to Shelton to show our collective spending power in the community and eat lunch at one the fine restaurants in downtown.  You might tell them why you’re eating lunch in Shelton and ask “Have you heard about the Ridge?”

Thanks for all your support.

Photo courtesy of Ridge Motorsports.

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Inside Job

“Forgive me, I must start by pointing out that 3-years after our horrific financial crisis caused by massive fraud, not a single financial executive has gone to jail, and that’s wrong,” stated Charles Ferguson as he accepted the Oscar for the documentary movie, ‘Inside Job’,  which explored the financial crisis of 2008-09.

And now a word from our sponsors – JP Morgan Chase, who ran a series of ads during the Academy Awards promoting and defending its’ small business and home lending practices.  At one point an ad even stated they would reconsider small business loans for those denied.

Talk about a ballsy “green washing” campaign and a bizarre spectacle to say the least.  It’s similar to when BP donated money to America’s WETLAN Foundation (a shell group established by Shell oil) who then partnered with a group called “Women of the Storm” to spread the message that U.S. taxpayers should pay for the damage caused by BP to the Gulf Coast.  Nowhere in the star-studded “Restore the Gulf” campaign is BP ever mentioned, but when this situation was ‘outed’ by the press – Shell along with primary “sustainability” sponsors Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil, Citgo, British Gas, Spectra, Hornbeck, the America Petroleum Institute and BP – stated that the funds were for “purely scientific or ecological functions.”

Words matter.  The most powerful words have helped launch social movements and cultural revolutions around the world.  The right words at the right time can literally change history.

Harley-Davidson management could really teach JP Morgan Chase and BP a couple things about public relationships.  They understand that words matter and it’s not what you say, but it’s about what people hear.  The Global financial meltdown cost people their homes and jobs.  Many families were seriously hurt and like we now want to hear JP Morgan Chase defend their actions.  What the hell happened Mr. James “Jamie” Dimon?  You can’t be serious!  It’s clear that JP Morgan Chase could learn from Harley-Davidson who more than ever these days live the following phrases with their customers:

“No Excuses” – Of all the messages used by American business and political elite, no phrase better conveys accountability, responsibility and transparency.  This phrase generates immediate respect and appreciation.

“Uncompromising Integrity” – Of all the truthiness words, none is as powerful as “integrity,” but in today’s cynical environment, even that’s not enough.  People need to feel that your integrity is absolute.

If you are not enraged by the JP Morgan Chase advertising activity then you’re not paying attention.

Photo courtesy of Wall Street.  Mr. Ferguson further explains his Oscar comments HERE.

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