Heads Up for those who plan to ride the Blue Ridge Pkwy this Spring.

[EZGlider]

Kind of suprized me to find this article on the National Park Service Site regarding the BRP in my area.

Friday, Oct 31, 2008

On Sunday, October 19th, rangers from the Highlands District and Alleghany County Sheriff's Department deputies conducted a motorcycle checkpoint in the park. This was another in a series of educational and enforcement activities designed to reduce motor vehicle accidents on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The checkpoint focused on providing a positive safety message, along with printed materials and "Enjoy the View, Watch the Road" key chains. Just over 100 motorcycles came through the checkpoint, which lasted for two-and-a-half hours. Some violations were detected, including seven license and registration infractions, one weapons violation, one arrest for felony level cocaine possession, and eleven motorcycle helmet safety violations. Outreach in the community was conducted prior to the operation and the majority of riders voiced support for it.  This operation built on the success of a similar USPP checkpoint conducted by District 2 Station in Washington. USPP Lt. Art Jacobsen provide valuable assistance in the planning of the operation. Ranger Bruce Gagnon was the operations section chief.

[MrClean]

About 20% of the riders checked had some sort of legal violation.  I wonder if that would be close to a national average? 

[Alien]

This is not the country I once new! Whatever happened to the constitution and the fourth ammendment? I just can't see how this (stopping all motorcycles(equal protection under the law?)) is legal. If I am driving/riding on a legal road not speeding I expect to be able to travel without being harassed because the mode of transportation I choose to use?

[tireater]

I'm with Alien...A people who give up their freedom for security....DESERVE NEITHER !

[Deye76]

Everyone who has a problem with being stopped should write the Allegheny County Chamber of Commerce and let them know that you, your family, and friends will neither visit, or spend money in that county, but the whole state as well. The education part is pure BS. It's nothing more than a revenue generating scheme. 

[96flhpi]

Gee, can I expect to be pulled over in my cage for a forced "educational activity with a focus on a positive safety message?"

[EZGlider]

I know the local guys and this is NOT typical of their attitudes.  They are usually pretty bike friendly, helpful and polite.  However the US Park Police are the ones behind this "safety exercise" and it is highly prejudiced against us.  As an ex LEO and resident of the area, there is NO statistical justification for singling out bikes here.  Searches of people because of wanting them safe is just plain bs and there is no problem in this area with concealed weapons violations, "gang" activity or drugs unique to bikers.  Just an excuse to "profile" a group LEAST LIKELY to be a problem IMHO.  AND I am ex LEO!

[Faast Ed]

Everyone who has a problem with being stopped should write the Allegheny County Chamber of Commerce and let them know that you, your family, and friends will neither visit, or spend money in that county, but the whole state as well. The education part is pure BS. It's nothing more than a revenue generating scheme. 

That would be rewarding them for their efforts.
They WANT bikes to not visit.

[Deye76]

I just sent a e-mail to the Chamber of Commerce, and plan on contacting the AMA. This sort of singling out specific groups and what appears to be illegal searches needs to be stopped. Tell the Chamber you plan on hurting them where it counts......the cash register.

[Fxstchewy]

Do you have a link? Thanks.

[quikbike]

I know the local guys and this is NOT typical of their attitudes.  They are usually pretty bike friendly, helpful and polite.  However the US Park Police are the ones behind this "safety exercise" and it is highly prejudiced against us.  As an ex LEO and resident of the area, there is NO statistical justification for singling out bikes here.  Searches of people because of wanting them safe is just plain bs and there is no problem in this area with concealed weapons violations, "gang" activity or drugs unique to bikers.  Just an excuse to "profile" a group LEAST LIKELY to be a problem IMHO.  AND I am ex LEO!

I agree totally with EZGlider....just BS

[EZGlider]

Everyone who has a problem with being stopped should write the Allegheny County Chamber of Commerce and let them know that you, your family, and friends will neither visit, or spend money in that county, but the whole state as well. The education part is pure BS. It's nothing more than a revenue generating scheme. 

That would be rewarding them for their efforts.
They WANT bikes to not visit.

Actually, Alleghany (note, not the same as allegheny which is Pittsburg, PA. AREA) county NC is very biker friendly.  Lots of riders who live here including a county council member with an EG.  Local DMV inspector rides an Ultra and had me sit on it and try the seat when I licensed in NC.  Local LEOs, both Sparta and County have been friendly and courteous and have absolutely nothing against bikers.  Very biker friendly county with very few violations written for harassment.  It is, IMHO, a US Park Police program they were drawb into.  USPP are NOT Park Rangers, rather they are the guys with the Uniforms designed like the SS, LOL.  When I served in DC, they were known as ............well, the local REAL city Police didn't have the greatest relations with them, to say the least.

Here is a link, just scroll down......................http://www.nationalparksgallery.com/parks/Blue-Ridge-Parkway

[shovelbill]

i believe that 'they' are 'picking' on bikers because there wont be a big enough voice to fight. mom and pop America will swollow these tactics hook, line and sinker since its only about big bad ol' bikers so far. after all, didnt you see 'sons of anarchy'?
what Constitution was that? oh, that. that dont apply to big bad noisy tattooed bikers...................wake the fu@k up! park police, border patrol, state police, sheriff dept, dec police, etc, ad nauseam. why dont we just call it a "police state"? Here, i'll go of topic for a bit but its just the same. i found this on the net but i believe its VERY pertinent to this discussion.

A Message from the Good people of America to the Peace Officers of America

Dear Peace Officer:

I have done nothing wrong. I do not intend to.

However, the government that you serve
has passed too many "laws"
that are "repugnant to the Constitution"
(Marbury v Madison, 1803, 5 US 137)
and are therefore "null and void of law".

I am sure to accidentally
break one of these "repugnant laws,"
some day.

The end result is that same government
is systematically destroying the Unalienable Rights
which our Constitution says shall not be infringed;
specifically, my Right to Keep and Bear Arms.

I can no longer stand idly by,
while decent people are systematically enslaved
by an out-of-control government.
I cannot allow a corrupt judiciary
to use its power to destroy my rights and my country.

That government and that judiciary
has begun to Use you
to arrest and kill people just like me
â€" people who believe that the Declaration of Independence,
the Constitution and the Bill of Rights
mean what they say.


You don't know me, but you see me every day.
I may be a businessman, a truck driver, an executive.
I could be a housewife or a salesman.

But I am armed, as Americans have been for over 250 years,
and I am determined to keep the freedoms
which only an armed people may retain.

I don't wear a uniform.
I don't drive a marked car. I don't wear camouflage.
I could be your own secretary, or your barber.
I might be the guy who delivers your
bottled water, or the parcel delivery lady.


I am tens of millions. I am America.
But I know you. I know your uniform,
your car, and your work schedule.

I know where you work, and where you live.

And that is good for you,
because not only am I No threat to you,
so long as you do the job for which you are hired,
I am also prepared to assist you
when you are threatened by real criminals.

There is an important difference between Moral laws,
and Bureaucratic laws, aka  Administrative laws.

The Good people of America
There aren't many of me left, you may think,
but believe me, there are many, many more than you can imagine.
When the chips are down,
we are the ones who are truly on your side.

On your side, that is,
so long as you honor your Oath.

We are on your side
if you are one of the majority of peace officers
who are not corrupt
and who have not sold out to the socialists
and communists
â€" freedom betrayers who will do anything,
say anything to destroy the America
our fathers and grandfathers bequeathed us.

No, I am No threat to you,
but your bosses in government don't see it that way.
They think that I, and my arms, are a threat to them,
and they are planning to send you for me,
just as they've sent armed, dangerous officers
on select little missions for years,
taking out targeted individuals.

On their orders,
you may succeed in murdering me for my beliefs.
Or you may not.

Whether or not you succeed in murdering me,
there will be others who
will rise up in my memory,
as I now rise up in honor of the innocent lives
taken by the jack-booted thugs
and black-masked officers
who think it is fun to murder Americans
â€" who have somehow become
convinced that it is their job to murder Americans!

I am prepared to die,
honoring my sacred Oath as an American,
to defend and protect the Constitution
of these united States of America.

Are you prepared to Obey the Oath you took?
Or will you Violate your Oath to the State and US Constitutions?

You see, our government is out of control.
It has rotted, from the top down.
You know it. You've seen it.

But you, like many others,
have been too concerned with your job, your family,
and your pension, to say or do anything about it.
Deep down, you know I am right.

But you think you must follow orders.
Or must you?

Please remember,
the many who claimed they were only "following orders"
at the Nuremberg Trials
and what happened to them
when Justice finally raised Her Sword
and exacted punishment for their lack of thinking.

And that is before the Almighty delivers His Eternal Justice.

Are you going to murder me
for having the courage to stand up
for the country and the principles in which you believe?

Are you going to go along
with unconscionably illegal, Unconstitutional orders,
just as "good" German soldiers followed their orders?

Are you going to be a peace officer or a jack-booted thug?

There is little difference between a street outlaw who murders and robs;
and a uniformed thug who murders and robs under color of law.
The result is the same.

Property confiscated, lives ruined, families ripped apart,
murder committed, and a free nation destroyed.

Look at history. Look around the world.
As we move toward a lawless society,
our country moves closer and closer to anarchy
and then some form of fascism.
Are you going to enforce Unconstitutional laws?

Are you going to be the private army of socio/fascist dictators
who masquerade as  representatives of We the people?

Or are you going to do your part to recapture America?

Are you going to keep your eyes and ears open?
Will you quietly let me know
when the jack-booted thugs
in the SWAT teams have targeted me?

Will you let your fellow officers know
that they are being sold down the river
by their corrupt masters?

Don't come to kill me.

If you don't succeed, and in the long run, you won't.

It doesn't have to be that way.
You can do something about it.
It's easy.
Read the Declaration of Independence,
the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

Although you took an Oath to defend them,
you don't learn much about them in your training,
do you?

Today, these documents are considered dangerous by the government,
just as King George
found them dangerous over 200 years ago.
Why do you suppose your leaders
lead you to oppose the very rights you swore to protect?

Why do they want a disarmed public?

You know the reason.

It has nothing to do with controlling crime.
It has everything to do with Using you
to disarm, fine, control,
and ultimately murder your American fellows â€"
just like the brownshirts and the SS did to German citizens.

Don't fall for it.

The Good people of America
ask your Help.


Signed,
An American Patriot

[tireater]

A racist Mex/Amer cop, a lying tweaker combined to keep me from going to a toy run last year...Insted I sat in jail with $50k bail...
The D.A. insisted I plead to playing a stereo too loud...Even though she knew I did nothing wrong...I didn't even have a stereo....
The system is broken, drug dealers and addicts are everywhere...So the cops have time to run honest citizens through 'the system'...
Our popo are ineffectual at best...At worst lying criminals themselves...It's so bad...they gave it a word...Testilying...
They did manage to arrest the Harlem Globe Trotters here...And give them $50k each...The last time i called 911...NO ONE CAME !!!

[Sonny S.]

A MOTORCYCLE check point ? 

Isn't that like having an  SUV, PICK UP, or even car only check point ?
Sorta of profiling isn't it ?

This chit's getting old people. I thought the prejudice against biker was over when the yuppie's made owning a Harley a status symbol.
Looks like we're getting back to the......good ole' days ?

[Deye76]

Do you have a link? Thanks.

To contact the Allegheny County Chamber, the e-mail is

info@sparta-nc.com

[egstandard]

If I'm carrying coke on me, which I do not, the only way they can find that is with an illegal search. Unless they had a drug sniffing dog.

[shovelbill]

yes EG, but WHY would they have a drug dog at a 'safty' inspection?
very similar post to the one i started a while ago about NYC, same circus, different clowns.

[96flhpi]

EG - the point is the WHOLE THING IS ILLEGAL, search or not, at least according to the Constitution we used to go by.  If no laws are broken, or suspicion thereof (that's a lawyerly type word, no?), or no imminent danger, law enforcement has no right to detain me, even if it is to provide me "safety information."  I'm sure a lot of the LEO's that have to enforce these policies feel lousy about having to do it.

[someday69]

Tireeater...is right....I'll send a letter,....I never got to ride the blueridge,,,and I was so close for so many yrs....my own fault....even though I'd most likely be "safe" from the safety information scam,,,I know it's just another sign of our lost liberty......But who knows,,,,with enough people willing to fight for there rights...We may find freedom...someday..

[1JITSU1]

WAIT I feel bad for the kids

[Faast Ed]

Here's an idea:   

Have you papers in order and leave your dope at home (or hide it really really well).
If you ain't doin' anything wrong, all you lose is a few minutes of your time and you get to rest the iron butt while doing so.  LOL

I'm not siding with the LEO's, but I know not to fight a losing battle.  All the emails in the world won't change a thing!  Accept that and prepare accordingly.
Who knows, there might be safety checks in other areas too.

[egstandard]

Fast Ed. Please go back and read shovelbill's post. You can't sit idly by.

[Faast Ed]

Oh I understand better than you think.  I just can't see "beating the system" being even a remote possibility.
"The system" is just too large of an opponent.

[ModelABob]

I guess that old SS uniform I collected in Germany while in the army just might come in handy some day.
Just for kicks I would love to get a bunch of dudes together, dress up in Nazi uniforms with flags and everything.
Then go to one of these "safety" check points as a group.  With banners proclaiming that we totally support our LEO's
and all the good work they are doing for "our" country.......Sieg Heil a$$wipes.

Happy New Year & AMF/Ride Safe