August 2016

IN THIS REPORT –

• Your New Committee
• Rides
• Motorcycle Safety Week
• Perth Transport Plan

New CommitteeFor those of you that did not make it to our AGM last Month here is the latest on your new Committee. Firstly I would like to thank all our Committee Members for all the hard work that they have put in over the last year we would not have made such progress last year if not for the commitment, dedication and personal time that your Committee members have given on our behalf, remembering that we are a full voluntary organisation and we all have our regular jobs and family commitments to juggle with our work for the MRA.Now for your new Committee members for the next year –President as you can see because I am writing this report I am still your President for the next year.Your new Vice President is Dale Hill. Dale is a riding instructor/trainer and is very interested in rider safety.Secretary is Lyn Jutte (Lyn has been a tireless member of the MRA Committee for over 10 years)Treasurer is Ainsley Kounis who is a Director of The Bikers Guide Australia and is taking over from Joanne Well who has been both Treasurer and Membership Officer for many years. Thanks Jo.Membership Officer is also Ainsley Kounis and is taking over from Dave Shannon who had to resign mid-year.The Edge Editor remains as Jeff Thomas and what a great job he does for us.Road Safety Officer is now Nicola Hill who is a riding instructor/trainer and is taking over from me in this position but I will still be a member of the new Safety Sub Committee. Nic will also be our Facebook controller.Rides This year we will have a rides team consisting of Paul Upton, Bob Green, Chris Meyer, Jeff Thomas and me.Website Will once again be Peter Butler from Smarter websites. Great job last year Peter.Stock Lyn Jutte.General Committee Members – Joanne Wells, Steve Fish, Roger Jutte, Dee Wall, Jeff Mazey, Dee White, Glen White, Helen Murphy, Bill Murphy, Sandy Payne, Donna Anthes, Ray Fitall, George Batt.Welcome at all new and returning Committee members; I feel this will be a great year not only for the MRA but for the motorcycle riding community as a whole. RidesWell spring has almost sprung and the weather is starting to get better every week, not that I mind riding on the cooler morning it is just better on a clear spring day.Your Rides Team are now going to start organising rides on a slightly more frequent basis of one about every 3 weeks and an overnighter 4 times per year and judging from the guys on your Rides Team we will be getting some great rides off the beaten track to top destinations.Now that we have fully expended the funds from the grant that we received from the Road safety Commission and I have completed all of the regional Ride Right courses I am looking forward to being on more rides this year.If any of you guys have been on a great ride that you would like to share with us then please let us know so that we can add it to our list of destinations and routes.  Motorcycle Safety Week Although it is still a couple of months away we would like to give you an update on some of our ideas for this year. We will be holding our Motorcycle Safety Week from October 22^nd - 30th (yes a nine day week)We will launch the week with a Motorcycle Safety Forum to review the progress of the WA Motorcycle Strategy Action Plan and discuss new initiatives that can be perused. We will also hold a Ride Your Motorbike to Work Day on October 26^th and a Ride Right Course on October 23^rd with motorcycle specific First Aid Courses on October 29^th. We will conclude the week with a Motorcycle Festival in the Perth Hills with the focus on rider safety and will include a motorcycle gymkhana and skills training We will have the usual Motorcycle Safety Messages on the Main Road Dept. Variable Message Signs and Radio, Facebook and website messages. Perth Transport PlanThe W.A. Government recently announced the Perth and once again have completely ignored motorcycle and scooter riders and the benefits that we can add to any future plans to accommodate the additional transport uses of Perth road network and the reduction of congestion on our roads. The thing they seem to have missed is that motorcycles take less room on our roads, cause less damage to our roads, take up much less space in our parking areas and the emissions from motorcycles and scooters is less than that from most cars and will reduce the cost of building bigger and bigger roads, which is not sustainable or desired.What they don’t seem to understand is motorcycles and scooters can be part of the solution along with public transport, cycling and walking.We will be asking for a meeting with the Department of Transport to discuss these issues and more.  That’s about it from me for now, please ride safe.Dave Wright