On motorcycles riding US 211

A little over two years ago, Mary and I were staying at Skyland in the Shenandoah National Park, and we had taken a morning walk in a cool Spring mist up to breakfast at the restaurant. We were seated near two guys sitting at a four-top and it was clear they were waiting for a third, as they were worried about him being late. They also discussed the likelihood of rain later in the morning.

Not long after, their friend joined them. He talked about the motorcycle ride up US 211 to the Park, saying that the road was wet, so he took some extra time to get there. The other two had stayed in the Park overnight, so they hadn't encountered the morning conditions.

Their breakfast conversation continued, and Mary and I couldn't help but overhear their discussion of the safety classes that they had taken since they began riding. The newest of them had been riding his Harley for just about five years. All of the talk was sprinkled over with technical references to safe riding and care on roads like the 211 route up from Sperryville and Skyline Drive itself - in the end, they postponed their ride due to the weather conditions.

This overheard conversation was one of the first things that came to mind when I read about the high-speed chase and motorcycle crash with injuries that occurred outside of the Park the other day (link here: http://www.whsv.com/news/headlines/48770112.html) - there were several other memories as well:

• There is a flashing sign on the Sperryville side of US 211 just inside the Park boundary, that alerts riders of a high crash area for the next three miles
• Being passed on the single lane downhill of US 33 headed into Elkton by three riders driving in excess of 80mph
• Taking my family members up to the Park one day and encountering no less than 7 emergency vehicles near the top of the Thoroughfare Gap, where they were attending to 2 down riders - on the uphill side, no less
• Following the AT on certain trails in the Park, only to find there is no solace from the sound of motorcycles touring the area (http://hawksbillcabin.blogspot.com/2008/09/ivy-creek-easy-day-hike.html and http://hawksbillcabin.blogspot.com/2009/04/marys-rock-not-so-easy-day-hike.html)

It seems the riders fall into at least two groups: careful and safe riders on an outing, enjoying time outdoors; and joyriders going after the thrill of the machine's performance.

The first group, while they are the source of a lot of traffic noise in the Park, are safe operators and are pretty considerate of other motorists. They also make frequent stops to check their gear and machines. They take extra time to make sure everyone gets to the next destination safely. At area businesses - the wineries, restaurants, and shops in Luray, Sperryville and New Market - their big parties are a welcome site, making the days revenue goal in a down economic time.

The other riders are most frequently seen as single riders, although sometimes there are small groups. From what I've seen, they appear to be novice riders that tend to overestimate their own skill, and they are probably are the majority of the motorcycle accidents along the Park entries and exits (they rarely ride Skyline Drive from what I have seen, 35 mph and entry fees keeping them away), and their riding approach endangers everyone else on the road. Their groups tend to spread out due to the varying skill levels, and you can often see two or three of them pulled off on the side of the road waiting for stragglers.

I can see where it is a thrill to take those machines out, but I think back to that conversation we overheard at the restaurant that morning, where the riders were deciding whether to take their own high-performance machines out and decided on safety first. And now we have this latest incident, where a trooper was injured and the motorcyclist took off and ran from the scene. I guess the rider had been seen earlier in the day speeding along at 120mph, and when the trooper came after him, he ran. Not only that, when the bike went down, he overestimated his skills again, and ran off on foot before he was inevitably caught.

I'm coming around to the thought that maybe our local law enforcement team should spend a few months this summer enforcing the speed limits on US 211 and 33 within the Park boundary - setting a "no tolerance" rule on the speed limit, as they currently have with seat belt enforcement.