By: Dave Abrahams
Cape Town – More than a hundred riders took part in a ride for road safety on Sunday morning, convened by Harley-Davidson Tyger Valley in association with the Hog Tyger Valley chapter, the Western Cape department of transport and the provincial traffic service.
The run was led by advocate Lennit Max, chairman of the standing committee for road safety in the provincial parliament, and himself a Harley rider, but brand ambassador Ash Vos had made sure to get the message out there that this was not a ‘Harley event’, that all brands and riders were welcome, and there was a significant proportion of mainstream riders present who had put aside brand rivalries for the greater good.
Before the ride, advocate Max rammed home the familiar message that motorcycle road safety begins with the individual rider - but with a twist. While it was no less important to ride at an appropriate speed for the conditions, to wear all the protective gear all the time and, if possible, to avoid riding when very tired, ill or chemically challenged, it was also time for every rider to become an ambassador for motorcycling.
There exists a popular misconception that the majority of bikers are gangsters. It’s up to us to take the message to family members, friends and work colleagues that “I ride a bike” – that bikers are moms and dads, lawyers and accountants, friends and neighbours, and that the next rider you endanger by not being aware of motorcycles on the road could be a relative, or the pastor of their church.
Escorted by provincial traffic service vehicles, the route took the riders down the R300 and the N2 into the Cape Town waterfront, where they met up with a second group of riders from the city, and back down the N1 to Tyger Valley dealership, where boerewors rolls, provided by the dealership, were ready and waiting for the participants.