After one year, it's clear that the punitive new rule is not working Jim Kenzie Special to the Star Oct 04, 2008
Anniversaries are often a time for taking stock. They are usually happy occasions. Candles are lit. Cakes are baked. Presents are handed out.
On such occasions, one can be forgiven for perhaps taking too rosy a view of the past.
Perhaps that's what's behind the shiny, happy faces of those celebrating the first anniversary of Section 172 of the Ontario Highway Traffic Act, which gives the police the power to seize vehicles going 50 km/h over the speed limit. This law, passed one year ago last Tuesday, also allows police to impose fines of up to $10,000 before the accused even gets a day in court.
They are still averaging 23 scofflaws a day. Now that is down from 40 a day when the crackdown began, but we don't know how many cops they have on patrol now versus then.
Regardless, with the amount of publicity this has received, you'd have thought that if the law had any deterrent effect whatsoever, nobody would dare take a chance.
Not so's you'd notice.
The reason people aren't paying much attention, of course, is that 150 km/h on a 400-series highway is, under the right circumstances, perfectly safe. It must be, because thousands of people - not just 23 - drive at this speed every day without incident. Only if they are unlucky enough to catch the eye of a police officer do they become heinous criminals.
Traffic engineers recommend that for optimal (i.e., safest) traffic flow, a speed limit should be set around the 85th percentile - the speed at or below which 85 per cent of traffic is moving. On any 400-series highway, that's somewhere between 120 and 130 km/h, depending on time of day, traffic, road and weather conditions, etc.
A hundred kilometres per hour? Get serious. It has been proven that no amount of enforcement will ever get people to drive at less than a road's design speed. As I always say, if we weren't in a hurry we'd all take Hwy. 2 east and west, or Hwy. 11 north. And we'd be in greater peril the entire time. As I keep saying, our fastest roads are our safest roads. You can look it up.
OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino and his predecessors have spent billions of our tax dollars trying to maintain this fiction of a 100 km/h speed limit, the lowest in the otherwise civilized world, to absolutely no effect.
Do we drive any more slowly than we did 30 years ago? No.
Are our highways safer than they were 30 years ago? Unquestionably, yes.
Does the speed we drive at or the limit the police try to impose have any effect on our safety? Not a bit.
As pointed out here a few weeks ago, the Ministry of Transportation's own statistics indicate that excessive speed is a factor in only 13 per cent of fatal collisions. Yet about 70 per cent of all traffic tickets written by the OPP and their local counterparts are for speeding.
We are not dying on the 400-series highways where the vast majority of section 172 enforcement is taking place. Kids are getting drunk and driving into lakes. Young women are making U-turns on regional roads and getting T-boned by transport trucks.
Is section 172 going to save any of them? Not a chance.
And where are our police officers? Out on the 400, turning respectable citizens into criminals.
Oh, and the real street racers? They love it, because the cops aren't even looking for them. Fantino has been quoted saying he is "satisfied" with the 41 per cent conviction rate under the new law. I'm glad he's not running a brain surgery school.
From what I'm hearing, many prosecutors are simply not taking these charges to court because they fear a challenge on one of at least two constitutional questions the law raises, the most obvious being its complete disregard for the most basic tenet of British common law: you get your day in court before being convicted and punished.
Speed is not at all like drunk driving, for which an immediate suspension is justified. The way this law is written and enforced, the police officer assumes the role of judge, jury and executioner.
Fantino also claims that the public is behind him on this law. Surely not the 8,459 people who have been charged under it, according to the latest statistics. Nor the masses, whom Fantino is sworn to serve and protect. They're voting with their right feet, every single day.
I wonder when Fantino last drove on a 400-series highway. In an unmarked car. I wonder if he saw anybody going 100 km/h - without their four-ways on, that is.
Not likely. Since this is supposed to be a democracy, you'd think that evidence alone would be enough. Ha, ha again.
Also taking issue with the law are the dozens of people who email me every week. Like the young woman who, by all accounts, is the most law-abiding, police-respecting person in the GTA. She waved at another driver at a stoplight and was charged with "street racing." Her parents' car impounded, huge fine, insurance rates inflated for all time.
Because she waved at someone?
Then there's the chap who had to hustle a little to squeeze into a gap in traffic and may have squealed a tire in doing so - it was a hot day. Same punishment.
There's a reason we have due process. Or did have.
Doing 90 in a 40 km/h school zone? Throw the book at 'em.
Doing 150 in a 130 km/h zone, which, like it or not, is what the 400-series highways are? It may be a lot of things, but street racing or stunt driving it is not.
Fantino claims the law is working, by which I assume he means it's saving lives. If he had some numbers to support this claim, you'd think he'd let us know. The OPP did trot out some spurious stats for the Civic Holiday weekend, but once they were challenged they never resurfaced, because they were totally bogus. And the police knew it.
The fact is that this law is costing lives because it takes scarce police resources away from real traffic issues and allocates them where there can be no hope of a positive result. (I define "positive result" as proof of reduced crashes and deaths, not meaningless numbers about charges or conviction rates.)
Enforcing section 172, or any speed limit, in fact, has absolutely nothing to do with what's causing us to die on our highways. Worldwide, the only things that correlate with traffic deaths are impaired driving, failure to use seat belts and highway design. Nothing else. End of story.
We've done reasonable work in the last 30 years on seat-belt use, but more must be accomplished. Likewise, impaired driving is down, but nowhere near enough.
If Fantino wants to do something positive for traffic safety, the lowest-hanging fruit would be to apply his considerable political skill to fight for real improvements to our highway system.
More roundabouts, for example - they produce 40 to 60 per cent fewer collisions, overnight. And no more disappearing right lanes. The most impressive thing about traffic in Germany or England isn't its speed or the safety (both of which are considerably higher than here, despite generally smaller, less crash-resistant cars) but lane discipline. Why is it better? Because their driving lane never disappears.
Oh, and would somebody please tell Jim Bradley, the transportation minister, to lay off this nonsense that the law is supported by "the people who are in a position of having to go to a funeral when it's someone in their family [who dies]." At least until he has lost a sister to a traffic collision, as I did.
Maudlin appeals may work in politics. But to improve traffic safety, we need to deal in facts. And the facts are not on his side.
Wheels' chief auto correspondent Jim Kenzie can be reached at jim@jimkenzie.com Toronto Star
Once again, I'm participating in the annual Ride for Sight, which is the longest running motorcycle charity in Canada. In 2008, our team raised over $35,000, which added to over $300,000 raise in Ontario alone.
By sponsoring me in the Ride, you will be contributing to finding a cure for blindness! One hundred percent of funds raised by riders go directly to The Foundation Fighting Blindness, which continues to fund significant research breakthroughs.
Well, it's coming up on that time of year again. Colder temps and less favourable riding conditions. Here are a few things to keep in mind.
Riding below 10C without proper gear can be unpleasant at best; at worst it can lead to hypothermia, which is extremely dangerous and once temperatures hit the freezing mark there are even further dangers. Not only do you need to worry about body heat, but must also consider the fact that when the road and your tires are cold, there is a significant drop in available grip.
The only way to survive cold weather riding is to plan for it and ensure that you have the right gear; some of which include the following:
1) Electric heated vest and gloves. 2) Fleece sweater 3) Fleece-lined jeans (or heavy rain pants with at least one additional layer like long-johns underneath). 4) Windproof & waterproof textile jacket & pants 5) Waterproof boots over wool socks 6) FLEECE NECK LINER
Adding handguards to your bike will help keep the worst of the wind and weather off your hands. They're great in the cold but in rain they really don't do anything to keep you dry.
#6 is important because your brain gets it blood from the carotid artery which is near the surface of the skin, right on the front of your neck where it can be in the direct wind blast. The last thing you want is to be chilling your brain, so ensure that your neck is completely covered one way or another.
Unless you REALLY enjoy the idea of crashing and dumping your bike, you should avoid riding on snow or ice. It's amazing how fast a bike can get away from you on those slippery surfaces. Even if there's no apparent snow or ice on the ground, take careful note of stuff like frost on streetcar tracks. Avoid areas in the shade when you can, and be extra careful on bridges. You should also avoid conditions that may ideal for black ice.
Oh ya...never forget that your tires will be very cold. As such, you will have far less grip and should avoid spirited cornering.
If you do ride in cold and/or wet weather and end up really chilled where you can't stop shivering, your hands and knees are numb or in pain, your lips are bluish, then you are in fact becoming hypothermic. This can be extremly dangerous as your body begins to shut down; your reflexes are deminushed and your ability for rational thought is greatly reduced. If this begins during your ride, you should take a break and try and warm up. Here are a couple of tips for recovery when you get home:
1) You need to get heat into your body. Start with a hot drink or some soup. Keep your warm clothes on, maybe some of your gear too until you feel warm.
2) The best thing is to take a hot BATH. Fill the tub with water as hot as you can stand it, and get in there. You will notice that it feels very hot at first, but in a short time it won't feel very hot anymore. This is for two reasons: The first is because as you warm up your perception of heat will change. The second is because you just basically tossed 100-200 pounds of chilled meat into that tub, and your cold body will bring down the temperature of the bathwater as the heat is tranferred to you. As soon as the water doesn't feel hot, either top it up or replace it with hotter water.
3) If you don't have access to a tub, a shower can be OK, but BE CAREFUL. The shower will heat the surface of your skin very quickly but it's not that effective at transferring a lot of heat to your body. You have to understand that to protect your core's temperature when you were very cold, your body decreased circulation to your arms and legs. When your skin is warmed, your body starts sending more blood out to your arms and legs, which feels great at first. However, the muscles in your arms and legs are still chilled, and the blood travelling through them gets cooled and that cooled blood goes back to your core and can make your core temp actually DROP shortly after starting this hot shower. This isn't the end of the world, but you should be expecting it. If you're using a shower to warm up, then start with the water not quite so hot and warm it up gradually. If you start shivering even though the water is hot, then you know what's going on. Turn up the heat and stay in there until you are thoroughly warmed up!
Whether you're using a bath, shower, hot soup, blankets, or gettin' it on as your way of warming up, keep doing it until you're actually sweating. That's the only way to know that you're properly warmed up, and your body will thank you for it.
BE AWARE of the symptoms of hypothermia when you're riding in cold and especially in wet weather. The initial signs (before you're in real danger) include:
1) Bouts of shivering 2) Grogginess and muddled thinking 3) Breathing and pulse are normal
#2 is the killer there when you're piloting a motorcycle. You'll feel tired and lethargic, have trouble keeping your eyes open. So the thing to remember is that if you're shivering persistently on your bike, you can't trust your judgement! Stop and get a bowl of chilli or soup, and a hot coffee or tea. If you are riding through the night, think seriously about just stopping and getting a room in a motel somewhere. $60 and a night of inconvenience is a lot less hassle than crashing.
You know that you MUST stop if you're having any of the following symptoms:
1) Violent shivering or shivering stops 2) Inability to think and pay attention 3) Slow, shallow breathing 4) Slow, weak pulse
Again, #2 is a big complicating factor. If you're having trouble keeping your eyes open or staying in your lane, if it seems like you've been riding forever but you've only done 2 km since the last time you checked the odometer, then you're experiencing impairment from the cold. STOP at your earliest opportunity and get warmed up!
Lets consider once agian your tires and road conditions. At lower temps, your tires are rock hard and grip is drastically reduced. Also if temps are within a couple of degrees of freezing, you might want to consider alternative transportation. Frost / Ice / Snow = CRASH. Usually so fast you don't even get a chance to know you are going down before you are on your butt or worse...
After three days of great weather, my rain curse made itself known and Monday night a massive storm rolled in. The sky lit up with lightening and everything shook from the thunder that followed, while strong winds tried to pull the tent pegs from the ground. The worst of the storm only lasted a few hours but the rain continued throughout the night.
In the morning, we woke to a soaked tent and damp sleeping bags. I wasn't looking forward to packing everything up in the rain to say the least. Susie brought all our riding gear up to the registration office and waited for me to pack up all the gear and strap it to the bike. Just before I finished, the rain finally stopped but left us with some very cold, damp riding conditions. I wondered at this point if Chris went through the same thing or if he opted for a motel room somewhere.
Back on the bike, we left the campground around 10am in New Hampshire and headed back towards the Lake Placid area. I wanted to do some more touring through the Adirondack Park again, even if it was on many of the same roads. Our first stop was in Plainfield, Vermont where I had, what turned out to be, the worst breakfast in history! I swear it tried to slowly kill me for the next two days. If you ever happen to roll through there...don't stop!
Once we rolled through Montpelier with their suspension killing potholes again, we jumped on the I-89 and headed towards Lake Champlain and crossing into New York State once again. After some insane crosswinds, our necks began to get fatigued from all the wind buffeting. I decided that it was time to get off the main roads and needed a bit of a break, so I decided that taking the ferry across the lake was a good idea.
This ferry crossing was the first I actually used my tie-down straps. The chop on the water would have been too much for the kickstand to support the bike and it would have surely fallen over. Even though I was sitting on it, it would have been too much to hold on too. If you look carefully, you can make out the red strap around the green plate part along the side of the ferry.
After crossing Lake Champlain, it was a reasonably short ride back to Wilmington, NY area. Considering all our gear was wet, we looked for a local motel and ended up at a great Bed & Breakfast (www.theinnatwhiteface.com). In hind sight it was a good idea. The temps dropped to 3 degrees celcius and considering all our gear was wet, it would have made camping rather miserable. Instead we had a nice warm bed and a terrific view of White Face Mountain from our bedroom window.
Wednesday morning we started our final push home through the Dacks, along some great country roads, across the ferry and finally the least entertaining section across the 401 home. Once again, my tie-down strap came in handy on the Ferry across to Kingston and once all was said and done, we had travelled 1800km over 5 days.
Props must go to my travelling partner Susie. Prior to this trip, she hadn't spent more then 1.5hrs on the back of a bike. Nor had she ever been camping! This trip was full of "first time" experiences for her and she did great.
We started off by meeting Chris at a gas station not far from where I live. He was coming in from Oakville and needed to fill up anyway. From there we headed east and had our first break at a service station just west of Bellville.
From there we continued to Kingston and waited for the ferry crossings to Wolfe Island and then a second to the US border crossing. Once we crossed the border (which was the fastest chat with US Customs and Immigration that I have ever had), we started making our way towards the Adirondack Park. Our butts became numb, our necks sore and we loved it as the miles clicked away on the odometer.
Once we stopped for dinner in Gouvernour, we entered the park and we were treated to some simply awesome riding roads and spectacular views of the forest, rivers and lakes that we passed through. It's no wonder this is such a popular place for camping. The miles climbed and the sun began to set as we made our way through Lake Placid, finally arriving at our KOA campsite just north of there near Wilmington, NY. The next morning we decided that since we were so close to White Face Mountain, that it would be a shame to not ride to the summit. So we packed up our site, had a hardy breakfast in Lake Placid and headed for White Face.
When we arrived at the bottom, we were advised that visibilty was zero and that it was chilly at the top. Whatever...upward we rode and stopped to take some great pictures along the way.
The view was simply breathtaking once the clouds moved off a little but the best view was just below the clouds, where we were able to overlook the mountain ranges, lakes and valleys off in the distance.
Chris originally was just planning on camping and riding around Adirondack Park for four days, but decided that he would join us to see Mt. Washington. So with that, the three of us headed off towards our second campground in New Hampshire. We crossed Lake Champlain via the ferry into Charlotte, Vermont and headed south to Bristol for another break. From there we headed up RT17 through Buel's Gore, which is an extremely twisty and technical section of road. I'll admit that I was nervous in some spots considering how heavy the bike was and how poorly it handled.
Onward we rode through Montpelier, which is the capital of Vermont and I must say that it was here that we encountered by FAR the worst roads on our entire trip! Although, the road climbing White Face was rough...the roads in Montpelier were way worse and our bikes took a serious beating. After a short stop to put on some warmer clothes and rest our pothole-beaten butts, we pushed hard into New Hampshire towards our next campsite, which is not far from Mt. Washington. Once again though, we arrived after sunset and had to setup our site using flashlights to see. This was becoming a pattern that needed to be broken.
Another hardy morning breakfast to start our day before riding to Mt. Washington. This was to be the shortest riding day of the trip. Well at least for Susie and me anyway.
Now for the purpose of the trip: Mt.Washington! I stripped the bike of all the cases and un-needed gear with the exception of rain gear in case we needed it and some warmer clothes that we certainly would. We reached the base and began our ascent up the mountain with Susie on the back and Chris following behind. The road was actually pretty easy to ride since most of it was paved but what makes it nerve-racking is that it's only a lane and a half wide and there are no guardrails. This made passing cars coming down the mountain more interesting since there was very little space to get by and in some spots it would have been impossible for two cars to pass by each other.
Part way up the climb, the asphalt gives way to dirt and gravel, then back to asphalt again, making that rougher section just a little more interesting and soon we face a new challenge as we climb into the clouds with strong gusting winds. Visability is now only 20ft in front of us and we crawl up the hill trying to ensure that we don't over-shoot a tight turn and fall off the mountain or get blown off by a wind gust!
Finally we reach the top and although we feel a sense of satisfaction from the climb, it is quickly replaced with some disappointment from the complete lack of visability through the clouds. We stayed at the summit for a while checking out the gift shop and the cog train that climbs the mountian.
The train is for those who want to travel to the summit but either can't hike up or don't have the intestinal fortitude to drive up themselves. This is obviously a common choice for seniors or for those who have a fear of heights and may panic behind the wheel. The train is steam driven and fueled by a coal burning fire. You can see the coal cart from where the engineers have to shovel the coal by hand into the fire.
Finally the clouds passed and we were treated with a breathtaking view of the Appalachian mountains as far as the eye could see.
Now for the decent. Personally going back down was far less intimidating since I already had an idea what to expect for road conditions and with the clouds gone, I could actually see where I was going. Many people get more nervous going down simply because of the visual effect of looking down the mountain and out over the ranges. You get an idea in this image of how steep sections of the road are.
Our only issue was at one point nearly being run off the side by a small SUV that was taking up too much of the road and not watching for oncoming traffic. I had to swerve towards the edge to avoid being hit head-on and my tires came about 1.5ft from the edge! Talk about a pucker moment. My sphincter didn't relax again until I reached the bottom.
Here is a video of fragments of our Mt. Washington run. Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties, I was unable to capture riding through the clouds of Mt. Washington or the incident of nearly being run off the road. NOTE: Click the "Play" button on the first Object...ignore the second one. I don't know why Google put it there. If you can't see the video, go to the original post at http://www.thelonelyrider.com/2008/08/mt-washington-trip-mountains-galore.html
Without a doubt, our tour of the mountains was a great experience. After successfully negotiating the Mt. Washington Auto Road, we headed back to our campsite for a relaxing remainder of the day...for Susie and me at least.
Chris wanted to head back to Adirondack Park to check out Lake George. So after packing up his tent and gear, we said our fairwells and Chris continued his adventure on his own. As for us...we lazed around the campsite late into the night until the rain rolled in.
After talking to a good friend of mine about her experiences at Mt. Washingon, while on her way to the east coast, I became more and more intrigued by the idea of riding to the summit myself. It's the highest peek in North Eastern United States (6288ft or 1917m) and has the most volatile weather.
I started playing with the idea more and started picking up bits of equipment along the way that I was sure to need. I didn't really commit to the idea until about the beginning of July and had fully intended on making the trip alone. It wasn't until my return from camping in Algonquin Park, I realized that having some company would be nice but if they were to ride with me, they needed to be experienced riders as well as own all their own camping gear.
Well it wasn't long before it was decided that I would take a friend of mine, Susie, as a passenger (this gets interesting later during the prep when packing for two people). I talked to other friends of mine from the riding community to see if others were interested. Some were too new as riders, others couldn't get the time off work and some friends had mechanical issues with their bikes, making them unreliable.
In the end, two days before departure, I was contacted by a fellow named Chris. He was planning on camping in the Adirondack Park for four days. Since we were leaving on the same day and he was also planning on camping for his first night near Lake Placid, we decided to head down together. He stated that he has all his own gear, is used to camping trips with his bike (Yamaha V-Star) and is an experienced rider. Perfect!
Now lets go back to the prep...I needed new cases since a small low-side a few months earlier resulted in one of my BMW cases getting snapped off and broken beyond repair. Not wanting to replace it due it's obvious fragility, I opted to go with a stronger design by Caribou Cases (www.cariboucases.com) which have developed custom racks for my style of bike and use Pelican 1550 cases. Talk about tough!
I had to start thinking about how to not only pack everything that I needed personally but also for Susie as well as tools for the bike. Tent, sleeping bags, ground pads, camp stove & fuel, food, axe, first aid kit, rain gear, and much, much more...
Once mounted, the bike was heavy and sluggish. The cases (including the mounting racks) weigh 35pds empty, I packed each case with about 30pds of gear. Then I added more on the tail rack (another 15-20pds or so), which when added to the weight of my passenger, made my bike top heavy by about an extra 250pds.
With the final touches added and packed Saturday morning, we set off to meet Chris at a local gas station.
Well it was a late start getting on the road. I loaded up my bike for two nights of camping and finally hit the road Saturday around noon. I brought everything I would need (or so I thought) and headed north up HWY404 into Newmarket, eastward along HWY48, north on HWY's 12 & 11 and finally reaching my destination on HWY60.
All in all, the ride was pretty relaxed with the occasional shower along the way...until I neared Bracebridge anyway. Once again my rain curse presented itself and the heavens cracked wide open with a downpour of nearly biblical proportions. Every bridge was crammed with riders seeking shelter from the storm but since I was already in my rain gear, I pressed onward into Bracebridge. I decided it was time to stop when I had extreme difficulties seeing through my visor. Actually, it was raining so hard at one point I was unable to see even my handlebars. I stopped for a late lunch and as soon as I pulled into town the rain stopped too.
Well, at least it's over...or so I thought at the time. Little did I know that another storm cell was about to roll over just as I started on my way again. Fortunately it didn't last long and I was spared another deluge. My rain gear (Frogg Toggs 2piece suit) stood up to the task once again and not a single drop got through. My boots on the other hand, not being waterproof at all, let in water like a floodgate and my feet were soaked.
At least by the time I reached my campsite (15min outside Algonquin Park) the rain had ceased and I was able to pitch my tent with ease and get changed out of my riding gear.
My hosts at the Algonquin Trails Camping Resort (http://www.algonquintrails.on.ca) are extremely friendly and very accommodating (one of whom is also a rider). Not only was there a reasonably well-equipped store, which I needed within 15min of getting there (who forgets to bring bug repellent camping? Sheesh), but they also deliver wood to the campsites each night for a small fee. As it turned out I also needed to buy a new folding camp chair since my 4yr old one broke an hour after I set up.
The second day was spent hiking in the park in the morning with only 170km of actual riding. The rest of the afternoon was spent hanging out at the campsite and staying up late into the evening around a campfire.
As always, the weekend comes to an end but the fun was far from over. After packing up all my gear, I headed down hwy35 towards home. This was by far the most fun stretch of my trip so far. The nice sweeping corners of 35 from Algonquin to Minden were just amazing and so was the view of all the little lakes along the way. While taking a coffee break in Minden, a fellow rider tipped me off to a nice stretch called Deep Bay Road, which was a lot of fun to say the least and brought me right back onto hwy35 so that I could continue southward.
Along the way, I decided that it would be nice to detour to Fenlon Falls and check out the locks. It made for a nice break from riding and allowed some time to admire all the boats making their way up and down the river.
From there, it was time to push onward home. All in all, it was a nice laid back weekend away from the city and allowed some time to admire a starlit sky that can only be seen in the country.
Now I need to prepare for my next trip, which will be to Mt. Washington in New Hampshire.
