New Hampshire M/C Bill- Important!

[pj000101]

Not sure if this is the right forum to post this in but I figured I'd start here. NH House Bill #95 is coming up in a few weeks for a public hearing (link below) and in a nutshell it looks like it would A). Restrict you from modfying your stock exhaust in ANY way and
B). Require all motorcycles to have a working tachometer.

Please, brothers and sisters in the Live Free or Die! state, voice your opinion by attending the hearing in Concord if possible or contact your state representative on the transportation committee (names and phone #s in the link) and tell them how you feel.

http://www.nhmro.org/2009/01/its-here/

[rksaw]

PJ,
Looks like you've been around here for a while, but I wanted to say welcome to the forum, and I hope that there is an outcry and the bill doesn't pass. I'm not much into real loud pipes, but I am into freedom!
Rich

[phenrichs]

SD has a law against modifying stock mufflers. Which means basically if they can prove it your guilty. I have never seen a mc checked yet. I imagine they would only check you out if they got a complaint specifically against you.

[pj000101]

rk- Thanks for the welcome. I've enjoyed the discussions on the forum and learned a lot since I bought my '07 Nomad 2 years ago but have never been one to post. My feeling, as you say, is freedom of choice and my other question would be seeing as the Nomads don't come with a tach I would hope the bill (if it passes) wouldn't require me to install something aftermarket that I might not choose to do in the first place.

I also wish winter would leave so we could get back on 2 wheels again!

[dantama]

If the manufacturers had to start putting tacs on all bikes, that would be fine with me. I wish my Nomad had one, I just don't want to buy one.

[flavor]

With the Laconia rally in NH being so large, and so many people who just plain despise bikes, I see this as a way to keep people away. They must have been watching the Myrtle beach situation.


I've talked to more than one resident in NH that say the rally causes too much aggrevation if they live anywhere near Weirs beach. People actually plan their vacations just to avoid the weeks during the rally.

That being said, this sounds like just another way to harass if the locals feel the need.

As far as the tach goes, totally illogical. What does a tach have to do with operating a motorcycle?

My opinion is bike with a baffle....leave alone.

No baffle.......that's another story.

Against aftermarket pipes doesn't make sense. When your exhaust goes on your car, do you buy factory replacments. No...

It would cost you a fortune. Definite case of discrimination.

[phenrichs]

Didn't they try something similar to this in Daytona too? Seems like they know they can't outlaw bikers so they try to make their machines illegal to deter them from coming.

[cactusjack]

This is horsecrap. What's next? Bikes without seatbelts are going to be illegal? Bikes without a front and rear license plate?

This is why I support groups like ABATE and MRF. They lobby against this kind of BS legislation.

[kenb]

House Bill 95, introduced by Rep. Judith Day (D-North Hampton), could have a profound impact on your motorcycle and your freedom to ride in the Granite State.



If enacted, HB-95 would:
- prohibit any and all motorcycle exhaust system modifications;
- prohibit all after-market equipment that replaces the muffler;
- require all motorcycles to be equipped with a tachometer;
- require all motorcycles to measure 95 dB(A) or less tested at 20 inches from the exhaust system at a 45 degree angle;
- and increase the fine to not more than $500 for a violation


If you believe this bill is ill-conceived and would have a chilling effect on motorcycling in New Hampshire, contact your state representative NOW and tell him or her so.


If you don't know who your state representative is, visit the "Who's My Legislator" area of the New Hampshire General Court website and select your hometown from the dropdown list. Then call, write, e-mail, fax and/or visit your representative to encourage their opposition to HB-95.


Talking points to keep in mind:
- not all motorcycles are equipped from the factory with tachometers
- unless administered by properly trained personnel with properly calibrated equipment, the sound level recorded may not represent the true sound level of the exhaust system
- an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) exhaust system may no longer be available or could be cost prohibitive for a wide range of motorcycles


There are other ways to reduce excessive exhaust sound from motorcycles. Clearly, HB-95 is a bad idea.


Share this information with your motorcycling friends. After all, if nobody speaks up, this legislation could easily become law soon.

[chainsaw]

That's why I belong to the AMA to fight bills like this. What is the purpose of having to have a tach?

[cactusjack]

The purpose for having a tach is probably so they can run the engine at a certain RPM while they test your exhaust noise level. It's like having to bring your own bullets for the firing squad to shoot you with.

[nomad561]

just another example of the degradation of the freedoms of the American taxpayers

[dantama]

Originally Posted by cactusjack

It's like having to bring your own bullets for the firing squad to shoot you with.

That was a good read. :)

BTW, Joan Claybrook who brought us the 55mph speed limit in the 70's already gave a serious try at seatbelts on bikes.

[glwilson]

Quote; Dan Lund: "BTW, Joan Claybrook who brought us the 55mph speed limit in the 70's already gave a serious try at seatbelts on bikes."

Ha!!! That would have made as much sense as requiring scuba-divers to wear a floatation device!

Can't say I ever heard of Joan; but she sounds about as illogical as Elizabeth Dole was when she was in the political-arena. "Liz" was the "head" of the FAA at one point until she about drove that agency into the ground with her illogical reasoning, complete inexperience; and lack of aeronautical knowledge -- at which point she was basically asked to step-down before she completely destroyed an already "weak" agency.

I don't believe she ever held another viable government post since to my knowledge. :)

[watchman]

Most of the noise ordances I have seen states no more than a certain dB, at a certain rpm, a certain distance from the pipes, etc. So instead of having to hook up a tach to do the test they want the bike to already have one.