Motorcylist stands up for bikers

I have been riding motorcycles for over 35 years and find Smithfield's new noise ordinance does nothing "but" target motorcycles. There is a long list of commonly heard sounds to be exempt which are just as loud, if not louder, than most bikes. Motorcycles have been around for a long time, Harley Davidson since 1903, well over 100 years, and seem to me to be a "commonly heard sound" in just about every neighborhood.

One does not sit in a driveway and run a motorcycle for 2 to 3 hours, more like 5 minutes, but it is OK for a chain saw at the same decibel level to be run in a yard for an entire day and a lawn mower (just as loud) every week, sometimes as early as 7 a.m. on a Saturday morning for three hours. Don't forget, snowblowers and a constantly barking dog, a neighbor's house party with a rock and roll band playing for four hours, etc.

Also, those "packs of motorcycles" that are targeted by the deputy police chief are usually a bunch of bikers getting together to raise money for lifesaving causes such as cancer research, or for someone who just lost a home due to fire or some other reason. Don't forget Toys for Tots and Special Olympics, for which a lot of police officers themselves ride their own motorcycles in those "packs."

Remember, that motorcycle rider who so annoys someone in the whole 5 or 10 seconds it takes to ride past your house, could be riding to raise money to help save the life of your own son or daughter, father or mother, cousin, brother or just a friend with a life threatening illness, as that ticket for a $100 fine is handed to him or her.

Mike Smith

Smithfield