Sunday night, July 20, at 9:00 pm I will be interviewed on HogRadio. HogRadio is a one-hour weekly radio show emphasizing customs, V-Twins and Harley-Davidsons. Hosted by Walt Fletcher and produced by Steve Johann, HogRadio is heard every Sunday night at 9 pm on TriRockRadio.

Previous guests include Craig Vetter, Genevieve Schmitt, Jay Ridley, and Dave Nichols. You can download previous shows at HogRadio.

I hope that you will check it out.

For a couple weeks now I have been planning a ride to the Oregon coast to coincide with my son’s trip to summer camp. I have spent hours with my AAA road map and a highlighter tracing interesting looking roads up and down the coast for me to explore while my son is engaged in camp activities. The adventure starts Sunday morning.

My friend Jon very graciously loaned me his Nelson-Rigg RiggPak set-up and a handful of RokStraps to tie everything down. I have made list after list of things to pack. I have added things to the list, only to take them back off after further consideration of weight, space and utility.

Finally, Saturday morning, I am ready to roll the bike out of the garage for a pre-ride check. I do this weekly and before any major ride. As I circled the bike looking for anything amiss I see that my front wheel is covered in oil. Not good. Upon closer inspection it is apparent that a fork seal has developed a leak and covered my front wheel and brake disc with fork oil.

Just like that, my plans have changed.

Keith Chaplin’s front page story in the June 29 issue of  the Skagit Valley Herald describes the Washington State Patrol’s “Target Zero” initiative. The objective of this initiative is to “eliminate motorcycle fatalities by 2030.”

First, it is refreshing to see the WSP taking action to reduce the number of motorcycle fatalities in our state. Certainly there is a lot that needs to be done to improve motorcycle safety in Washington. The fact that roughly half of all motorcycle fatalities involve no vehicle other than the motorcycle is telling.

It is clear that the WSP has made this program a high priority and put it on the fast track. Their very aggressive timetable of 22 YEARS is an indication of the seriousness with which they are pursuing their goal. (Yes, folks, that was sarcasm.)

Second, what kind of goal is zero fatalities anyway? I’m sorry, given the infinite number of ways for a motorcyclist to be killed on Washington roads, many of which are unforeseeable and therefore not preventable, how is this even remotely achievable? These are just “feel-good” words about unattainable goals.

I get very skeptical whenever I see government agencies and politicians use words like “zero.” (”Zero tolerance” anyone?) Usually the word “zero” is a good indicator of the amount of logic and sense applied. WSP’s Target Zero is another example of just that.