Threats to motorcycling in America, Part 2:

The AMA's Rob Dingman discusses the challenge of excessive sound

For the past 21 months, AMA President and CEO Rob Dingman has been leading the world's largest motorcyclists' rights organization through a reorganization to rededicate the AMA to its core mission: protecting and promoting the future of motorcycling and the motorcycle lifestyle.

In this interview -- the second of a three-part series by AmericanMotorcyclist.com -- Dingman discusses the most contentious issue in motorcycling today: excessive sound.

AM: Many street riders have a long-held belief that a loud exhaust system alerts car and truck drivers to their presence. Yet cities and towns across America are enacting very strict sound ordinances that target motorcycles unfairly. What is the AMA doing about this?

RD: The single greatest threat to motorcycling in America -- both on- and off-highway, including ATVs -- is excessive exhaust sound. Nearly everyone we talk to in the motorcycling and OHV (off-highway vehicle) community echoes this concern. For many riders, their machines are an extension of their personalities, and this includes the distinctive sound of their engine's exhaust. I completely understand that. But as motorcyclists, we have to realize that we live in a world already filled with unwanted distractions, and chief among them is sound that is so excessive that it becomes a nuisance to the general public. Excessive exhaust sound plants targets squarely on the backs of all riders, even those who ride with reasonably quiet exhaust systems.To read the rest of the article: http://www.amadirectlink.com/news/story.asp?id=609