Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1970's

On July 1, 1972, Californians will have to register their dirt bikes. m.o.r.e. from file ca~rto l' By Russ Sanford On Wednesday, December 22nd. Governor Reagan gave Cal ifo rn ia 's m o torc ycl e fraternity what I fe el was a great Christma s prese n t wh en h e signed AB 2 342 into la w . Al though this new law has b een exp lai ned in th is colu m n seve ral times , it do es imp ose new and a d d it io na l r equ ir eme n t s u pon m otorcy cl ists. I want to rep ort on th is new law to en sure th at eve ryone is famili ar with its man y provisions. BACKGROUND IN FO It was obvi o us fro m the ac t ivit ies o f ad vers e pressure gro ups , th at th e legislature w ould e nac t so me fo rm of legisl ation t o provide a means o f pl acing identif icat ion pla tes, similar to licen se plates , o n o ff-road veh icles. To ma ke such an ide nt ificatio n progra m effective . it was also necessary to insti tu te a r e g is t r a t i on a nd rec ord-kee pi n g The 'o pposition' cause d pro gram. seve ral registratio n and ide ntification bills to b e in troduced . Th ese p roposals also imp osed st ric t laws for th e opera tion of O R V 's an d us ed the result a nt regist ra ti on fees fo r ORV law en for c eme nt. The O RV en th usiasts and th e m otorc ycle in d ustry cou n t ered with their ow n bill which also requires registration a nd id entifica t io n, b u t sp ecifi es th at th e resultant fees be used for pro gram ad min istration a nd the devel opmen t a nd operatio n of o ff-road veh icl e parks an d trail systems. There is n o d oubt that h ad we no t been prepar ed wi th o u r o wn b ill as an alternative, o ne of th e more res trictive 'e nforcemen t bills' would have been enac te d . As it turned ou t. th e adverse bills were 'killed' a nd o ur b ill (A B2342) was a p proved. GENERAL SP ECIFICS A ND WH ERE THE MONEY GO ES Th e bill is t o o len gthy t o rep roduce in its entirety . Th e foll owin g is a ca psule versi on o f th e majo r feat ures ; On and a fter July I, 1972 , all I. Unlice ns ed ORV's which a re opera ted on public lan d s must b e certified (re giste re d) w it h the Department Of Motor V ehicles. 2 . T h e DMV will issu e certificat es o f o w nership and main tain rec ord s o f ownership , wh ich should p ro ve t o b e a d eter rent to th eft of O RV's. 3 . The Dl\IV w ill issue saf e iden ti fica tion pl ates o r decals to b e physi call y attached to th e ORV's . Ex actly what k ind isn 't d ec id ed yet. 4 . New OR V 's so ld afte r July I , 1972, will be ce rtified wi th th e D:'IV b y the deal er at the time of sale. 5. Subsequent re sa les of ORV' s will be certi fie d wi th th e DMV b y th e purch aser . • 6 . Cer t ification will b e renew able eve ry two years for a fee of $ 15. 7. The di stribution of the $1 5 fee will be: a. $5 will go t o the D:'IV fo r ad mi n ist ra tio n o f th e pro gram . b . $4 will be returned t o th e ci t y/co u n ty o f r esid en ce as an in-lieu ta x . T h e in -lieu tax prevents the ci ty or c ou n ty from le vying a personal property tax upon the ORV. The ci ty o r cou nty may us e the resultant fu nds fo r management o f their ORV facilities or for controlling th e operation of ORV's in restri cted or prohibited areas. c . The remaining $6 will be placed in an Off-Highway Vehicle Fund which will be administered b y th e State Parks and Recreation Department. These funds will be distributed as follows : (I) 50% of th e Off-Highway Vehicle Fund will be used by th e State Parks and Recreation Dep artment to acquire , develop, a nd operate large ORV rec rea tio nal areas a nd ORV trail sys tems throughout California. (2) Th e remaining 50% of th e Off-Highway V ehicl e Fund will b e allocated o n the basis o f st atewide need to lo cal governm ents (ci t ies a n d counties) t o d evel op lo cal ORV recreati onal areas and ORV trail systems. The ci ties and countie s must pay 25 % o f th e cost o f su ch facilit ies, h owever, the $4 in -lie u tax (p revio us ly mentioned) can be used for this purpose, also. 8. There will be a se p ara te a ccounting o f f un ds b y veh icle type and the ORV facili ti es will be financed on the basis of th at rat io . For examp le, th e fees collected for m o torcycl es and m o t or-driven cycles wi ll b e use d only for m o t o rcy cle a n d m otor-driven cycle areas a nd trails, wh ereas th e fees collec te d for dune buggies. ATV's a nd 4W D vehicles wil l b e us ed fo r sep ara t e areas and trails. 9 . Ne w ORV 's manufactured after Januar y I. 1972 ar e subject to the foll owing n ois e lim it ati o ns' A ft er Jan. 1,1972, but b efo re January I , 19 73 92 dba A ft er Jan. I , 19 73, b ut b efo re J anuar y I, I9 75 88dba . A ft er Jan . I, 1975 , 8 6'dba 10. Every O RV subjec t to th e ne w law sh all b e eq uip ped a t all t imes with an ad eq ua te m u ffle r wh ich is in constan t o perat io n a nd properly maintained to me et the requir em en ts set fort h is su b-paragrap h 9 above. However, the mu ffl er requ irem en t does n o t app ly to o rgan ized sancti oned racing or com pe titive events h eld up on closed courses o r u nder permit. II. T he n ew law adds so me ad ditio nal red-tape not always her et o fore experienced wh en b u ying an d se lli ng ORV's. However , the n ew requir ements are n ot m ore diffic ult th an the presen t requirements fo r 'licensed' veh icles. In fact , th e re quire me n ts are ne arl y iden tical. In th is resp ect , th er e ar e fo rfeitu re and p enalty fee s fo r la te ce rtification wh ich are are ident ical to th o se fo r late regist ratio n of street-l icen sed vehicl es . 12 . The Dep artment o f Mot or Vehi cles w ill issue com p lete ins tructions an d fo rms to d ealer s prior to th e July I , 1972 implemen tation d ate. It is no t -u nlikel y t hat the DMV will also conduct Deal er Seminars th ro ugh out the sta te p rio r t o Jul y I , 1972. 13 . Th e n ew law d oe s n ot a p p ly to a ll off-road veh icles . It u nli cens ed specifically exemp ts : a. Mot or vehicles opera te d solely o n the private p roperty o f their owner or on th e privat e p ro perty o f a no ther, with the ex press consent of th e owner or te nan t o f suc h prop erty or u sed so lely upon co m mercially opera te d facilit ies fo r suc h use. b. Mo t or veh icl es being o perated off th e h ighway s in a n o rga n ized racing or competit ive event up on a closed course a nd wh ich is cond uc te d u nder t he auspices of a reco gnized sanctioning b ody, or b y p ermit issu ed b y the loc al gove rn me nta l a u thori ty h aving jurisd iction. c. Moto r vehicles owned b y t h e state , or any coun ty, city, distric t, or political subdivision of the state , o r the Un ited S tates. d . M o t or veh icl es o wne d or o perated b y . o r operated under co n tract with a utility, wheth er pri vately or publicl y ow ned. wh en used fo r construc tion, rep air. o r survey of utilities. e . Street lic e nse d veh icle s, includi ng d ealer plate s. 14 . At present, it is illega l t o m o ve a n unlicensed vehicle up on a ny st ree t. hi ghwa y , sidewalk , o r related right of wa y, eve n if it is pushed and the vehi cle h as b een dis abled b y re mo ving the spark plugs. T h e new law allo ws ORV's, when properly certi fied and identified, t o: a . Be operat ed or driven ' upon -a h ighway only for the purp ose of crossing the highway. b . Be moved b y n o nm ec ha nical (manual) m eans adjacen t to a stree t or hi ghway only for the purp os e of gain ing access to, or returning from. areas designed for the op era t ion o f ORV's, when no o ther ro u te is availab le. This will allow unlicensed op erat o rs to push their min i-bik es and motorcycl es o n sidewalks and highwa y sh oulder s t o prescrib ed riding a re as. c . Be t owed b y a street lic e nsed vehicl e. ADDITIONAL COMME NTS Th e ORV recr eation ar eas a nd O RV trail sys tems developed under th is ne w law will b e in addition t o c ontinued use o f existing ar eas and m ul tip le-use trail systems. It has never been th e in te nt that ORV use will be relegated o nly t o ' The m otorcycle indust ry has already geared-up to meet these requirements. the es tablished a reas . The e nac tmen t o f this n ew la w is only one of several steps which must be taken t o gain full and rig h tf ul recognit ion of th e recrea tional n eeds of O RVen thusiasts . I . T he first step was the passage of a law in 19 9 wh ich brough t the first recognition an d legal acceptance of ORV's as legitimate users of the public lands. We have to go th ro ugh this first step to legally es tablish th a t su ch a thing as an O R V even exists. It was q uit e similar t o h avin g a birth certificate to prove t hat yo u were born. 2 . The secon d step was the passage of AB 2342 which provides the features mentio ned p revio usly. 3. The next step will be th e passage of a law in 19 72 to place a p roportionate amo un t of g-as sales taxes re moved fr om the gas tax fu nd fo r highway construction and maint en ance and added t o the O ff-High wa y Vehicl e Fu nd as a b onus. This was an addit ional advantage of regis te ring th e O RV's, b eca use to ob tai n th e gas ta x refunds, we m ust firs t kno w th e n umber o f u nlicensed veh icle s which a re invo lved . A n oth er impo rtan t ele me nt which sh ould n ot b e o ver looke d is t ha t o f 'm atch in g federal funds ' fo r purp ose s of o ut door recreation. Under fed eral law , each sta te is e n ti tled to o b ta in fe d era l funds o n a 50% basis until ce rtai n ma x imum limits are reached. For example, Cali fo rn ia has a lim it of 2 0 m illi o n dollars in 19 72 . Provided th a t Cal ifo rn ia sp en ds 4 0 mill io n dolla rs , o r mo re, o n outdoor recreation , th e fe deral governm en t will give Cali fo rnia a grant of 20 m illi on d oll ars. O f th e 2 0 milli o n dollars. 10 millio n is re tained b y the S tate to be used fo r state wi d e, ou tdoo r, recrea tio n p ro je cts. T he remain ing 10 m illion dollars is d istributed t o ci ties and coun ties (based upon p riority of need) for th eir outdoor rec reation p rojects. It is hi ghl y probably th at some of the m at ching fe dera l fund s will fi nd th eir way in to the O ff-Hig hway Vehicle Fun d , b oth a t the state and local government levels. Th e exact amoun t can not b e determ ined a t this ti me, b ut it should consti tu te a substantia l 'boost" to the fu nd . FINA NC IA L A S PE CT S T he p eop le wh o have mos t closely worked with the new la w d uring the past tw o years , have realized from the o u tset th at th er e will b e m an y persons wh o wi ll com p lain bitterly abou t paying . a fee of $ 7.5 0 p er year for a pl ace t o l e g all y o pe ra te th eir ORV . No t withs ta n d ing th at OR V en th us iasts have avo ide d registr ati on and licensin g fees fo r many years, these comp laine rs are mos t lik ely the sa m e p ersons wh o h ave re peat edly sa id , "I 'd give a h u n dred d oll ar s to have a pl ace t o ride with out b eing h assled " . It should b e n oted th at th is p ro p osed law h as been rep eat ed ly reported and d iscussed in th e O R V tra d e papers and personally .p resen ted to o rganized clubs an d grou ps thro ug hou t Cali fo rnia for tw o years. Alt hough give n the op port unity t o cri ticize th e pl a n m a n y times, th ere has ye t to be o ne p erson wh o didn't agree tha t it was a good id ea, once they knew th e fac ts . ' Upon examination. a perso n receives the follo wing values for th eir $ 7.50 ann ual fee : I. $3 .00 from b asic regist ra tion fee . 2 . $3 .50 gas t ax r efund (based upon estimated 5 0 gallons per year at 7¢ p er gallon). 3 . $2 .00 from in -lieu tax. 4 . $3.00 (p ossibly) fr om m at chin g fed eral f u nds . T h is reveals a tangible b en efi t of a minim u m $ 6 .5 0 and a m aximu m of $1 1.5 0 fo r each $ 7.5 0 fee. Bu t , we should n't o verlook th e in tangib le ben efi ts: I. T heft d eterrent through registration. 2. R eady id entif ication of those wh o are endan gering o ur sp ort through purpo sel y negligen t actions. 3 . Movin g o ur ORV's ac ross, a n d adjace n t to , stree ts a nd hi ghways . 4 . A greatl y improved im age o f m otorcy clin g. 5. Pla ces to o perate wi th out h ar assme n t. 6. Accurate co u n t of O RV p opulation. And for th ose wh o still d on't feel that th ey have go tten a bar gain , one final "th ought". With o ut this law, yo u would b e faced w ith a la w whic h too k your $15.00 a nd used it so lely to enforce the laws which would have eli minate d th e con tinued opera tio n of O R V's. Plea se ad d ress all comm en ts and inquiries to Russ San ford , c/o MO RE, P.O. Box 26062 , Sacrame nto , CA 958 26. 'WI1tin' Mustangs; CBS; the last big undiscovered mass entertainment By Ch a rles Cla yton As p ro mi se d last week, 'wh en we the lid off p ol iti cal rip ped particip ation, la nd use and trail riding in 197 2 , h ere a re m ore chapters in the American Experience wh ich will un fo ld fo r m o t orc y cle Iikers in th e current year: Med ia w ill b e taking a closer look at wh at we 've got. Wh ether much o f what th e ra dio, th e video and the press will see, they use, neverthel ess th ey 'll b e eval ua ting motorcy cling in the ir o wn ways. Evel Knievel says " mo to rcycle racing is th e last b ig u ndiscovered mass en te rtainment. " Now th at media h ave ex hausted all th e availab le ph en omen ons , th ey ar e turning to us. In away, I' ve been dreading th is happen in g. T he t o o-sudden glare of bi gtim e public ity ca n b lind th e m en in th e sp otlight. At the sa me time , I relish th e inevitable disco very of th is last b ig mass en te rtain men t because it is mor e exciting th an foo tball, goes deeper th an roc k m us ic , is a rtsier th an th e Ga llo p ing Gourmet an d genera lly b etter th an any th ing else m ed ia has ever grap p led with. Now that the Columbia Broadcas ting S ystem owns Cycle World maga zin e, yo u ca n bet th at ano ther netw o rk will b e cam p ing on o u r co urses. Half-a-dozen b o o ks (th e same " beginner" bilge ) a re bein g wr itten abou t m otorc ycling for th e m aj or p ublishers, so perhaps it is re ally sta rting to happen at last. I h ope m o torc ycl in g is r eady for it. I know that we are read y fo r th e n ext ite m coming in 1972 - a n ew Amer i c a n moto rcyc le manufactu rer, or two, o r three . Cir cle In dustr ies Preside nt Jim Oakes , who p urch as ed t he d orm ant Must an g Mo t or Comp an y last .y ea r , say s h e pl ans to m anu fact ure th e t orquey 350cc four-st roke e ngi ne an d possibl y the com p lete Must an g m otorcy cle th is year. For a b ar gain price o f $ 12 ,0 0 0 Oakes go t a ll but o n e o f the d ies t o m ak e th e e ng ine; the to o l t o m ak e th e bl o ck was broken up b y a slavager b efore Oakes could rescue it. "T he Mustang's b uild so me t hing like a n Oa kes ex p lains, Offe n hauser ," "wi th th e cy linder an d crankcase in one pi ece. " T hat 's t he part he 's lacking . Excep t fo r engine b lo cks, Cir cle has enough parts to assem b le 200 en gines and 9 9 m otor c ycles. Ne w t o o lin g for the block is n ow being built . T he :'1us tang was designed to be eit her OHV or sidevalve, depending o n th e head fi tted, an d in th e hands of Walt Fulton II, it score d so m e impressive grand p rix and TT vic to ries in t he 19 5 0 ·s. Bike builders lo o kin g for a n American engine t o fit in th eir fram es sh ould pl ace their o rders wi th Cir cle Industries ea rly, for th er e 's bound t o be a big d em an d. My o ffer in a recent colu m n to coo rdina te co m m u nica t i o ns b etween reader s int erested in promotion of a n ewall-American motor cycle facto ry b rought in a number o f letters fro m readers with money to invest , and suggestions of pe ople wh ose talen ts should be tapped. But no des igners , metal casters, et c. Surely out there in CycleNewsLand are so me d reamers of things in allo y and st eel? I hate to think th at mechanicall y-gifted Americans ar e all t o o busy making other things t o dream of new U.S. machin es. The mo torc ycle is an idea wh ose tim e h as co me . Must it b e th at all the id eas h ave t o co m e fro m overseas? Wh at ne w design w ould sell fo r under 5 2,0 0 0 in a quantity of, say, 1 ,000 a year a nd leave the manufacturer a p rofi t? What n ew manufacturing tech n iques co uld be em ployed fo r high er qual it y , lower cost ? Write me. if yo u k n ow. ~ w Z W ...J U > U

• Cover