Streets of thunder
Petition drive calls for enforcement of law that prohibits so-called motorcycle straight piping
By HARLAN WEIKLE
| Article published on Wednesday, June 10, 2009 |
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| Indian Rocks Beach business owner Jim Labadie wants motorcycle laws enforced. |
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INDIAN ROCKS BEACH – It’s called straight piping, a modification that removes a motorcycle’s factory muffler, replacing it with a section of hollow pipe with earsplitting results; and it’s illegal in Florida.
One retired sheriff who is now a state senator, and a local business owner have had enough.
Florida State Sen. Steve Oelrich, formerly sheriff of Alachua County from 1992-2006 and a long time friend of Indian Rocks Beach business owner Jim Labadie, have launched a petition drive aimed at urging law enforcement officials to enforce State Statute 316.293 which prohibits modification of a motorcycle’s exhaust system.
Labadie, who with his wife, Laura, own Colonial Court Inn at 318 Gulf Blvd. has collected about 50 signatures; a number he says is more than enough to prompt city officials to action.
Recently, while spending a weekend at the inn, Oelrich confessed to Labadie that it was difficult to get a good night’s sleep due to the constant noise of motorcycles accelerating away from a nearby traffic light at Walsingham Road and Gulf Boulevard.
“We can make something happen about this,” the former sheriff told Labadie. “There is already a law on the books, it just needs to be enforced.”
The two agreed to start the petition. Labadie said he will present their petition at the next IRB City Commission meeting along with a recommendation to city officials that they contact the Pinellas Coutny Sheriff’s Office to request more rigorous enforcement of the modification statute.
The pair also intends to send their petition to Sheriff Jim Coats, along with a letter urging his agency to address the issue.
“The problem is that it’s a complaint-driven offense; by the time an officer arrives on the scene there may be nothing to observe,” said Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Marianne Pasha.
Pasha admitted the agency has just three decibel meters for the entire county, two for south district and one for the north.
“One conceivable solution would be to assign an investigation, but at this time we’re just not equipped to cover every complaint,” she said.
“That’s ridiculous,” Labadie responded. “The statute says clearly it’s the modification that is illegal. All an officer has to do is stop a bike that sounds loud and run a stick up the muffler. If he doesn’t hit anything then the bike has been modified and that’s against the law. He can write a ticket.”
Desmond Michael of Greg’s Custom Cycle Works in Clearwater says a custom legal modification that retains the sound-deadening baffles will cost about $1,000. The process involves removing the factory pipes and installing a modified set of exhaust pipes along with a “Power Commander” device which adjusts the fuel-to-air mixture resulting in better performance.
“More power, more rumble,” he said. “Some guys request that we remove the baffles for more noise.”
Attorney Jerry Theophilopoulos of Larry Crow, Pa., in Tarpon Springs says, “It’s a safety factor, simple as that. Loud pipes save lives. If the legislature wants to do something they should concentrate on enforcing the rules regarding use of cell phones while driving and computers. Seventy percent of the injuries to bikers are caused by distracted drivers.”
“Another thing,” said Theophilopoulos, who specializes in representing injured motorcyclists, “is this, to prove a noise violation is to prove a negative. An officer has to have a decibel meter; he can’t just make an opinion – that won’t hold up in court.”
Asked about the stick test Theophilopoulos said, “An officer can’t do that. He has to have the owner’s permission, it would be the same as searching a driver’s trunk without a warrant.”
The actual statute in part reads, “No person shall modify the exhaust system of a motor vehicle or any other noise-abatement device of a motor vehicle ... in such a manner that the noise emitted by the motor vehicle is above that emitted by the vehicle as originally manufactured.”
The noise level set by law Jan. 1, 1979 is 82 decibels.
“They love to say it’s a safety issue,” Labadie said. “The more noise they make the more likely that motorists will see them and yet it’s those same riders that won’t wear a helmet.”
So, why does Labadie think the law is not currently being enforced?
“Maybe it’s because bikers are voters, too, but I think it’s also a macho thing, they’ve been abusing our rights for a long time, now it’s time to start respecting the law.”
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Article published on Wednesday, June 10, 2009
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