Area Motorcycle clubs receive safety proclamation

By LYNETTE SOWELL

Cove Leader-Press 

With the month of May comes Motorcycle Safety and Awareness Month and along with that, came a gathering on Friday afternoon during which Mayor Frank Seffrood presented a framed proclamation to members of area motorcycle groups. 

Nearly two dozen members of clubs like Boozefighters Chapter 78, the Forgotten Soldiers Motorcycle Club, and Bikers Against Child Abuse (BACA) stopped by Frames & Things in Cove Terrace Shopping Center to receive the proclamation. 

Frames & Things owner and Boozefighters member Robert Weidinger II shared one statistic about motorcyclists and accidents. 

“I don’t know if you all realize it or not, if you get hit by a car and you’re on a motorcycle, it’s a 45 percent chance that it’s going to end up being a hit-and-run,” Weidinger said. “We’re trying to bring some awareness, hoping more people will pay attention when they see us. If we wear the ‘Do you see me now’ shirts, in the brighter colors—I know we like to wear black. 

We were able to get this proclamation, and it’s a way to get the word out to the public, that someone will see this and hopefully save a life.” 

Seffrood told the groups that one of the ways of getting through life is to look out for each other and being vigilant.

“When I go down the highway and a motorcycle passes me, I slow up,” Seffrood said. If something goes wrong, he said he’ll have more time to prepare. “Hopefully, people will adopt that…this is an appeal to have people be more vigilant of your existence on the road.” 

On April 30, hundreds of motorcyclists participated in the annual “Do You See Me Now?” motorcycle run, which ran from Temple to Lampasas. The event featured motorcyclists in their bright-green T-shirts who made the trek to raise awareness and visibility for motorcyclists on the roads. 

According to a press release from the Texas Department of Transportation, motorcyclists are nearly five times more likely to be injured and 29 times more likely to be killed in a crash than car or truck occupants.

More than half, or 54 percent, of fatal motorcycle crashes result from a collision with a car or truck.

The numbers have increased from 2015 to 2016, with Texas motorcycle fatalities increasing from 464 to 493 and crashes resulting in seriously injured motorcyclists increasing from 1,902 to 2,006. The summer months have the highest incidences of motorcycle crashes.