The two-day event included motorcycle skills demonstrations, lectures on the proper use of safety equipment and a motorcycle rally. Event organizers had motorcycle simulators available for participants to test their riding skills and learn about critical decision making in various traffic scenarios such as inclement weather and increased vehicle volume.

Read the Full Story here…

Visit www.GRASP4Virginia.com for more information.

Ride ends Boneshakers where will have Door prizes, 50/50 Raffle, Trophies for oldest/youngest rider, sweetest ride, and most group or club riders.

All money raised benefits Relay for Life American Cancer Society

For more information or preregistration please contact Shirley Core at
Shirley.core@norfolk.gov or 757-289-7032

Willard goes on to state that the MRF has actually taken steps recently to strengthen our government relations and lobbying efforts in order to be in the best possible position to positively advocate for street motorcyclists as we face a change in administration in Washington D.C. and will begin to see new Bills that include motorcycles and motorcycling moving through Congress shortly. It is noteworthy to point out that the MRF has also made recent investments in the D.C. Office located close to the U.S. Capital in an effort to be well poised to serve our State Motorcycle Rights Organizations and MRF members as they travel to D.C. in early 2009 to join the MRF and lobby their members of Congress and relevant Secretaries on their annual lobbying trips.

The confusion was likely the result of the recent announcement that the MRF was successful in also forming a 501c3 called the Motorcycle Riders Foundation for Awareness and Education (MRFA&E) which is a tax deductible organization. This is a separately run organization accepting donations
and grants that will be providing educational information, fund legislative and historical research, develop motorcycle safety campaigns, and assist in sponsoring a portion of the Workshops put on by the MRF at Regional and Annual Conferences held each year.

It should be no surprise to anyone that the entire motorcycling community is seeing tougher economic times than we have in the past several years including the Motorcycle Riders Foundation. In anticipation of that, a few years ago the MRF conducted research into well funded advocacy
organizations and found a common theme that they all had a tax deductible element to them. In response to that, the MRF began last year to pursue a similar tax deductable element to provide valuable service to the Motorcyclists Rights Movement now known as the MRFA&E as described above.
This separate organization is the entity that will not be engaging in issue advocacy or lobbying, not the MRF as reported.

The MRF is focusing on individual membership growth and State Motorcycle Rights Organization funding to combat these tougher times.

Willard ends by saying how disappointed he is that Biker Magazine did not contact anyone at the MRF for the story and feels this article does a genuine disservice to the bikers rights movement and that they will be officially requesting that the editor of Biker magazine print a clarification in an upcoming issue to correct this misconception that has been created.
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Ride With The LeadersTM by joining the MRF at http://www.mrf.org/join.php or call 1-202-546-0983

(c)All Information contained in this release is copyrighted. Reproduction permitted with attribution. The Motorcycle Riders Foundation, incorporated in 1987, is a membership-based, national motorcyclists’ rights organization headquartered in Washington, DC. The first motorcyclists’ rights organization to establish a full-time presence in Washington, DC, the Motorcycle Riders Foundation is the only Washington voice devoted exclusively to the street rider. The MRF established MRFPAC in the early 1990s to advocate the election of candidates who would champion the cause of rider safety and rider freedom.

The MRF proudly claims state motorcyclists’ rights organizations and the very founders of the American riders’ rights movement among its leading members. The MRF is involved in federal and state legislation and regulations, motorcycling safety education, training, and public awareness. The MRF provides members and state motorcyclists’ rights organizations with direction and information, and sponsors annual regional and national educational seminars for motorcyclists rights activists, as
well as publishing a bi-monthly newsletter, THE MRF REPORTS.

“It’s cheaper overall to own and maintain a motorcycle and parking is cheaper,” said Vance, 25, adding that if he were to use a motorcycle, he wouldn’t have to pay to park on the streets of Arlington, Va., where he works.

Vance, a resident of Arlington, recently completed a course in the Rider School at Howard Community College, which teaches novices how to properly and safely handle motorcycles.

He is one of many recent students in the program who, thanks in part to the rise in gas prices, are taking a closer look at motorcycles, according to Jim Schmidt, the Rider School’s director.

“Before, when we would ask people why they would take the class, they would say, ‘To save money on gas — wink wink.’ That’s what they would tell their spouses to take the class,” Schmidt said. “But now people are saying they’re taking the class really to save money on gas.”

Read the Rest of the Story here…

A Motorcycle Riders Foundation representative attended a July 1 meeting with United States Department of Transportation Secretary Mary Peters, in her office, to discuss among other issues, the 2010 funds.

Earlier this year, Peters sent proposed legislation to Capitol Hill that would allow the 2010 funds to be used by states to promote helmet use (not law). This is in addition to the other two areas where the funds are already allotted now; rider education and motorist awareness programs. Also in attendance at the meeting were representatives from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation and the Motorcycle Industry Council.

The motorcycle community was disappointed, to say the least, by this new demand on 2010 funding. When Congress included the section 2010 grant programs in SAFETEA-LU it was debated and decided that helmet use promotion already occurs under all rider education programs, which is the proper venue to talk about personal protective gear.

Secretary Peters explained that the genesis of the proposed legislation came from a Senate appropriations hearing where she was taken to task by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) on the rising number of motorcyclist fatalities and the reduction of state helmet laws. The third term Senator,
who chairs the Senate appropriations subcommittee on transportation, asked Peters if she would support the use of the 2010 funds for helmet promotion. Peters said she would support using 2010 for that purpose, and in order to preserve some political cover, Peters sent some shell language to the Hill. Upon closer review, Secretary Peters now agrees that the 2010 funds should not be used for helmet promotion but should remain for rider education and motorist awareness campaigns only. She is not backing off promoting helmet use, but rather is in favor of finding or creating another pool of funds for this cause.

Peters then issued an apology for failing to work with the motorcycle community and pledged to work more closely, and personally, with the motorcycle community at large. She then went on to add that this current administration will never even consider a national helmet mandate.

The Secretary then offered to send a letter to all 50 governors asking them to take motorcycle safety more seriously, to increase funding for all motorcycle programs, and to never raid the dedicated motorcycle safety funds as some governors have already done.

The Motorcycle Riders Foundation also asked Peters to explore the creation of a new class of vehicles for the emerging auto-cycles, or 3-wheeled enclosed vehicles, that are currently licensed as motorcycles, and are therefore skirting any safety standards that are required for autos. These
non-motorcycles need their own classification in order to keep any additional fatality data separate from data collected on “true” motorcycles.

We at the Motorcycle Riders Foundation thank Secretary Peters for her apology, and we look forward to working with her as she finishes out her term as Secretary in January of 2009.

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Ride With The LeadersTM by joining the MRF at http://www.mrf.org/join.php or call 1-202-546-0983

Registration is easy and secure for MRF Regional and Meeting of the Minds conferences. Visit our website at http://www.mrf.org/events.php for further details and registration information.

Send in your nominations and donations for the MRF’s Young Activist Scholarship fund today. For complete details, visit http://www.mrf.org/yascholarship.php.

Sign up today for the MRF’s new roadside assistance program by visiting http://www.mrf.org/mrfroadside.php The program is available to MRF members and non-MRF members.

(c)All Information contained in this release is copyrighted. Reproduction permitted with attribution. The Motorcycle Riders Foundation, incorporated in 1987, is a membership-based, national motorcyclists’ rights organization headquartered in Washington, DC. The first motorcyclists’
rights organization to establish a full-time presence in Washington, DC, the Motorcycle Riders Foundation is the only Washington voice devoted exclusively to the street rider. The MRF established MRFPAC in the early 1990s to advocate the election of candidates who would champion the cause
of rider safety and rider freedom.

The MRF proudly claims state motorcyclists’ rights organizations and the very founders of the American riders’ rights movement among its leading members. The MRF is involved in federal and state legislation and regulations, motorcycling safety education, training, and public awareness. The MRF provides members and state motorcyclists’ rights organizations with direction and information, and sponsors annual regional and national educational seminars for motorcyclists rights activists, as well as publishing a bi-monthly newsletter, THE MRF REPORTS.