Twenty Twenty Vision

Hi achternaam,

By the time this months' Newsletter hits your inbox, I should be about to climb aboard a moto-bicycle for the first time since the end of November. I gotta fess up to having mixed feelings about the whole thing.

I expect it's natural to run through all the fors and againsts of getting back on a bike after an injury-enforced lay-off.  There's no doubt I've either been a good rider or really lucky during the 40 years I've been piloting said cickles.

This is the first plaster and hardware I've had to deal with as a result. I played basketball into my fifties and had a couple of pretty solid sprained ankles but always 'got away with it'. As a lapsed ED nurse I've seen many an ankle fracture from the most inane causes. A slip in the shower, missing a step or tripping over the mutt. In this way I can create a bit of a ruse that riding bikes is not as dangerous as the hype-driven media is leading us to believe. Look at the stats - I don't drink or take drugs while riding (anymore), I have 4 decades of experience. The biggest thoughts going through my brain are ... "is this a quit while ahead moment?" Bugger that, I'm not ready. The next thought to intrude is, "stop being a sook". Life is full of 'What Ifs'. One wise person once suggested that we should look back and regret doing something rather than not doing it. I guess that's the crux of it. It's easy for them-as don't get it to shake their index finger in our general direction, suggesting we grow up and stop doing dangerous things. Grow up? As if!

Life's a terminal disorder. Where's my back protector, knee guards, race collar, airbags, race boots, forcefield?

Warm Thoughts

Henry Lawson was referring to the climate in Oz when he said: "when Australia gets something, it always gets too much".

Bugger me, if no sooner had the poor buggers that got burnt out got the rivulets of molten engines scraped into a pile than they were washed away in a flash flood. 

To all those of you out there who are doing it tough, I'm sure I can speak for all the Strapz community and send you warm (and dry) thoughts. We hope that the bikes survived and you can at least go for a head-clearing ride.

One of my favourite roads, it's now a gnarled burnt mess.

Ahhh...Chooo

Another trickle-down effect about to hit this Tinted Mallard is the interruption to supply of goods from China. The majority of our inputs for Andy Strapz products are as Aussie as we can get but there a few minor items that may hold us back if the Corona Virus (a bogan hangover) kicks on too long. Gear that we buy in, like Quadlock, will be stuck on the docks for some weeks and we've already had a heads up to secure high demand items when they do land. I'll get my crystal ball out and look at it through my beer goggles to see if I can make some predictions to keep ahead of the game.

A world flu pandemic is not an 'if' but a 'when' scenario. The fact that it's now into poor and disorganised countries like Iran is of great concern. The lid won't go back on that box, a bit like a crashed hard pannier! Whether it turns out to be a media lead flu 'pan-panic', only time will tell.

One thing for sure, a ride in the Aussie countryside looks a pretty safe bet about now.

The Need

Footpath Parking

The envy of most non-Victorians, parking a bike up on the kerb is under threat.

One of the things that make Melbourne feel 'Euro', cosmopolitan, chilled, is the sight of bikes up on the footpath. Not only does it make the city feel great, it has a positive effect on helping with the reduction of traffic congestion, pollution and commute times.

Here's what the MRA Vic say

The Case for banning motorcycles & scooters from large areas of Melbourne's footpaths does not add up. 

If the Melbourne City Council's (MCC) Transport Councillor Frances Gilley can't do the sums on the number of motorbikes that can be parked in 36 car bays then 1200 motorcycles & scooters parked on footpaths each working day is probably a gross underestimation of too. 

Melbourne's population is set to rise from five to eight million people in 20 years or so. The number of residents & students in, and commuters & visitors to, the CBD and inner suburbs must increase. Many of these people will choose to save time and money by riding rather than driving. Melbourne and other councils have underestimated the need for more off-street and on-street secure motorbike parking and more secure parking at park & ride facilities. Motorbikes are a far more efficient link to public transport in the outer suburbs and regional cities than cars.

If riders who park motorbikes on footpaths while at work had secure, free alternatives, they'd use them but the MCC removed secure off-street parking and did not replace it as promised. This directly increases demand for footpath space. Rather than admit the failures to consult and to establish adequate off-street motorcycle & scooter parking with lockers, Cr Frances Gilley's team attacks legitimate two-wheel commuters who more than pay their way.

On Friday, February 14, 2020, Lord Mayor Sally Capp and Victoria Walks' Dr Ben Rossiter put an emotional argument on TV that motorcycles & scooters on footpaths put pedestrians at risk forcing them to walk in car traffic. If true, it is not only motorbikes doing the forcing but all pavement "clutter". No evidence was presented to support this claim. On the other hand the MRA presented a submission (as IRG in 2017) on motorcycle stop lines. It showed drivers ignored stop lines forcing people to walk in traffic. Photos were included. See attached. Stop lines were not taken seriously. The MCC and VicRoads wasted $47,000 on an ARRB feasibility study to stop the planned M8 trial. The study was condemned by all the motorcycle representatives on the Motorcycles In Melbourne Committee. Cr Frances Gilley ignored the criticism as he ignores criticism of plans for mass footpath parking bans and requests for secure off-street parking.

Damien Codognotto OAM, Spokesman

The Motorcycle Riders Association, Melbourne

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