| 30 April, 2013 - USA: Unusual Biker Gang Bar Fight - Strange 1%er | #1%er #bikergang #police - That 1%-er biker gangs go for a tumble in a bar is what is expected from them ... more or less. Outlaw motorcycle gangs will pull out their fists (and other weapons) at the drop of a hat. It's then up to the boys (and girls) in blue to stop the bar brawl.
But what happens when the biker gang participating in a bar fight ARE the men (and girls) in blue?
The gang is called the Iron Brotherhood Motorcycle Club and despite having mainly law enforcement members, for the rest it's a typical m/c gang, down to the patches and nicknames. You even get rewarded for being in a bar fight...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 25 April, 2013 - France: Cop Dies After Riding Motorcycle Without Helmet | #Police #Accident #Motorcycle - Cops should know better, after all they are the ones who give us tickets when we do not obey the law, not matter what the excuse is. In this case, the person didn't get a ticket, worse, he died, and the person was a cop.
A police officer from the anti-crime unit (BAC) died in a traffic accident while riding a motorcycle without a helmet. The motorcycle has just been confiscated during a routine traffic stop, and the 35 year old cop decided to ride the motorcycle back to the police station. The bike was confiscated after having been stopped due to the two bikers (rider and pillion) were on it without helmets. While the two bikers were being transported to the police station in a police car, the third cop took the bike and drove it to the station...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 28 March, 2013 - India: Cardboard Police To Calm Drivers Down | #Police #Fake - Although it's not an original idea, it still works. The authorities in the Indian city of Bangalore have placed a life-sized cardboard cutout of a police officer at a busy intersection.
According to the reports, Indian drivers, both cars and motorcycles, are notoriously bad behaved, unless they know there's a cop watching them. So the authorities inspired by North American and European efforts installed 3 cardboard cops...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 13 March, 2013 - USA: Cops In Richmond Prefer Honda Motorcycles Over Harley | It's a strange read when you see that in Richmond Country, Georgia, USA, the motorcycle police prefer Honda motorcycles over their Harley-Davidson ones, even if Harley has been a traditional supplier of LEO bikes since their existence.
But according to the Richmond cops (and other places in the USA), although the Hondas are much more expensive, they are safer, lighter and easier to use. Also, an important factor is when in pursuit, the Harley takes its time, while the Honda reaches faster speeds much quicker. Also having a water-cooled Honda engine is a blessing when temperatures go over the 100°F. But according to the cops, the Harley looks better...............
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 11 March, 2013 - 41 Firefighting Motorcycles From Around The World (+ Videos) | #Firefighters #Firemen - Firefighters, as we all know, are heroes. They put their lives in danger to protect us and our possessions, often with disastrous consequences for the firefighters. But getting to a fire in crowded cities is not easy, even if fire trucks have priority. When there's a traffic jam, even they are stuck.
So one way of getting there fast is by motorcycle. Many countries have adopted motorcycles for their first responders. Often these motorcycles are equipped to start putting out a fire until the fire tenders arrive, not an easy task for these brave firefighters. They need to circumnavigate crowded cities on heavy motorcycles, facing first the danger of riding a heavy motorcycle in a city, then putting out a fire. Respect.
Here are 41 photos of different kind of firefighting motorcycles from around the world...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 28 February, 2013 - North Korea: What’s Wrong With This Motorcycle Cop? | I saw this photo of a North Korean motorcycle cop and skipped it. Then I returned to it, since something struck me as funny. Did you notice? He's got a helmet, but he's not wearing it, instead he's wearing a furry cap to keep his head warm; I guess his helmet is not warm enough.
Maybe they should get furry motorcycle helmets?
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| 4 February, 2013 - France: A Look At The New Schuberth Helmets For The Police | There's been quite a lot of heated articles and debates concerning the helmets used by the French police. Even so much so that a part of them went on "strike", since their helmets were totally inadequate.
However, the French National Police and the Gendarmerie (which is a different authority), have contracted German motorcycle helmet manufacturer Schuberth to deliver 7,000 police version C3 helmets (not the C3 PRO which was introduced later). This means that over the next 4 years all the old helmets are being phased out, and replaced by the newer, but heavily modified, Schubert C3...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 30 January, 2013 - BMW Training For US Army | It looks like the US Army has picked up some professional and knowledgeable help for training & educating their soldiers. BMW's factory rider Nate Kern has gone to Fort Bragg, North Carolina to give a seminar about motorcycle riding, safety and techniques.
It's part of an ongoing education program to make sure that the US armed forces personnel remain safe on the road back home. The 2 day seminar allowed bikers and those that want to be a biker, to familiarize themselves with riding a powerful motorcycle.
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| 28 January, 2013 - The Indians Are At It Again, The Indians Are At It Again! | It's that time of the year again, when the Indian army and police show off their stuff during their Republic Day parade. Crazy motorcycle stunts seem to be the "in-thing" to do.
Impressive stuff & stunts, and all that on fabulous Royal Enfield motorcycles...
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| 18 January, 2013 - Australia: Ambulances Prefer BMW Motorcycles Over Piaggio MP3 | Although on paper the Piaggio MP3 scooter should be an ideal motorcycle for use by emergency crews, like medical first responders, it apparently is not. At least not in Victoria, Australia. You would have thought that having three wheels would make the vehicle more stable, therefore better suited for medical emergencies.
But after a mishap with the MP3 brakes failing, resulting in a crash, and furthermore learning that the MP3 can't really take curbs, nor can it go off-road (like bike trails), plus the scoot runs out of battery charge too rapidly, and finally it needs to go at a snail pace to clear speed bumps, the Ambulance Association is turning to BMW motorcycles...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 14 January, 2013 - Postal Services Motorcycles and Scooters - Then and Now - Around The World | From all the service companies out there, the post office comes to our homes and businesses almost daily, and in order to do this as efficiently as possible, they often ride motorcycles or scooters. Motorcycles are easy to use for the mailman (and mailwomen) as they don't need to get off to deliver the mail.
Postal services have been using motorcycles and scooters from the beginning when the bikes were created, so it's not a new thing. But what is recent, is that many of these PTW used by the post office are becoming electric. You can see more and more electric scooters and electric powered bicycles...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 7 January, 2013 - France: Motorcycle Cops On "Strike" Because Of Helmets | ATGATT is not only the fact that you need to wear all your safety equipment all of the time, but also that the equipment is in good shape. And that's something that is not the case for the motorcycle gendarmes in Morbihan (in Brittany, France).
The motorcycle cops had received new helmets in 2007, and today these helmets have become unusable, the paint is flaking, the shell has deteriorated, and the helmets do no longer sit properly on their heads. Also the visors have become foggy and scratched.
The cops have been trying to get replacement helmets, but the authorities are not listening and just paying lip-service...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 19 November, 2012 - French Radars Made Unusable By .... French Cops | And this is the way it should be. France's biggest TV station, TV1, showed last week that the French cops are fed up with quotas and the whole drive towards increased revenue by cops. They are fed up with radars being used to generate money, moved to strategic locations, not for safety but from more money.
So several of them have started to strike back. In the video shown on TV, a camera crew follow a couple of cops going to radars and using garbage bags and duct tape, masking off the radars, rendering them useless.
They are brave cops, since if they get caught, not only will they lose their jobs, but risk 5 years in prison...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 13 November, 2012 - France: 1 Region Warns About Speed Radars On Facebook - Courtesy Police | This is so strange that it's got to be true. In one region in France, the Var region, the Gendarmerie (the national police) have a Facebook page. So far, not so unusual, though you do not find many regional police forces with one. But what's really interesting is that they've started announcing their speed radar traps on their Facebook page.
What they've said in their last posting, that "they'll pay a particular attention to the RN7 road, where there have been several incidents over the last 15 days"...........
...........Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 6 November, 2012 - France: Police Order Yamaha TDM 900 Motorcycles | Even though BMW got the French Law Enforcement and Authorities market back from Yamaha, they didn't take away all the market from Yamaha. Yamaha after a 12 year partnership with the French police have re-signed an agreement to continue to deliver the Yamaha 900 TDM motorcycle to the national cops.
The Yamaha will be delivered in a special police version, complete with sirens and strobe lights. No numbers have been issued in terms of sales numbers, horsepower, top speed etc, but the customized TDM motorcycles are part of the "less-than-1000cc" category for the French administration. In other words, you'll mostly see them in big cities.
Have a look at the video below, where you can see two Yamaha TDM 900-Police motorcycles escort a fire truck through a busy streets (and a unmarked police motorcycles).
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| 29 October, 2012 - Video: Why Hi-Viz Clothing Do Not Always Work | Here's a video of a nasty crash between a car and a very courageous motorcycle police man in The Netherlands. The motorcycle cop rides up to the right lane of a motorway to move cars to the left so that an upcoming ambulance can merge into traffic without a problem.
Despite having very bright colored jacket and a strobe light, the car never saw the poor cop and ran right into him. Other cars (and truck) did see him and moved to the left lane, except one. The driver was not paying attention, so no matter what motorcycle jacket he would have had on, it would not have saved him.
The cop was badly injured but did live. But it's a miracle. And he was "lucky" that he was escorting an ambulance who was able to give first aid.
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| 16 October, 2012 - USA: Yet Another Police Motorcycle Escort Crashes - Too Many? | It's becoming a regular occurrence, way too much IMHO. Police motorcycles in VIP escort duty crashing, often at low speeds. This time it was for the First Lady, Michelle Obama, when two police motorcycles crashed into each other Delaware County. One had stopped, the other didn't see him.
I realize that since the USA is a big and widespread country, police motorcycle escorts are not specially trained officers, but officers taken from their regular duty and put to work escorting VIPs. This means the cops aren't trained for this task, which is a lot different from pulling over speeders. Here in France, escort duty is performed by a specialized police unit, called the Garde Republicaine.
So maybe the powers should start considering a special unit like this. Already they fly in protective cars and secret service agents, so why not a special motorcycle unit? Or maybe they need to local motorcycle cops not to get lost....
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| 28 September, 2012 - France: Police Allowed To Get BMW Motorcycles Again, Finally | Several years ago, BMW lost the contract of supplying the Gendarmes, National Police and Customs officers with Bavarian-made (Berlin actually) motorcycles. Instead, the authorities decided to buy their officers Yamaha FJR1300 motorcycles.
Now, BMW France announced that they will be supplying the Law Enforcement Officers from the different units with BMW R1200RT "Special Administration", or better "Police" version. BMW's contract is for 3 years.
So now the big question is why are they going back to BMW. Did the Yamaha not fulfill it's role, was it too expensive (doubtful), or what was the reason BMW got the contract back???
No numbers were announced, only that the contract is for 3 years.
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| 10 September, 2012 - USA: Yet Another POTUS Police Motorcycle Escort Dies | This happens way too much in the USA. Yesterday, a police officer escorting the POTUS on his motorcycle crashed and died while doing his duty. Although this time, from the press reports, the police officer was crashed into by a pick-up truck, so there's not much you can do about that, it's still something that happens a lot in the US (see the Via: below for the source article). Far more than motorcycle escorts in Europe.
You've got to ask yourself why? Is it training? Procedures? Technique? Or simply that the law doesn't allow full control of traffic, something that cops in Europe have.....
Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 6 September, 2012 - China: They Call This A Police Motorcycle Patrol? It Is A Parade! | I know they have a lot of people in China, with more bodies than what they know what to do with, but calling this a "police patrol" is even too much for China.
In my humble experience a police patrol on motorcycle is a maximum of 2 guys... this is a parade.
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| 20 June, 2012 - Switzerland: Chief of Police Speeds And Loses Driving License | "The shoe is on the other foot". "Justice for all". "Cosmic Karma". "There is justice after all". Terms that spring to my mind when I heard this story, plus a grin on my face.
Last year Stephan Reinhardt, chief of police in the Argovienne canton of Switzerland was caught speeding in his car (no, he doesn't ride a motorcycle). He was doing 86 kph in a 60 kph zone.
Reinhardt had to surrender his driving license and is no longer allowed to drive.....
Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 6 June, 2012 - Indonesia: Cornered Car Thief Steals Police Motorcycle | There's going to be a lot of egg, or more probably rice-sate, on the faces of the local LEO.
They corner a car thief, but then the guy steals a police motorcycle, and now they've lost a) the thief, and b) their own motorcycle.
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| 26 April, 2012 - Italy: Milan Police Dump Their 108 Electric Scooters | #Electric #Police - Back in 2003, the municipal police of the city of Milan, Italy bought 108 electric scooters made by Oxygen, the Italian electric motorcycle maker. The 108 electric scoots were meant for the local police to patrol the streets of Milan; safely, quietly and with no pollution.
But instead of patrolling the streets, the 108 scooters are stored in some storage area, and not used. Abandoned! The reason? The batteries do not work, and make it impossible to ride.
So instead of doing something about it, the city has binned the scooters, worth some .......
..... Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 11 April, 2012 - Greece: Want A Police Escort? Rent A Motorcycle Cop Cheap | You probably all know by now that Greece is in deep financial shit. Their debt is out of this world, and the likes of Goldman and politicians have been milking the country dry for years. Salaries have been slashed, particularly for government employees, pensions cut, investments stopped and taxes (for those few who pay them) raised. Not a colorful situation.
In order to cope with rising cost, and lower salaries, the Greek police force is now hiring out their cops to private individuals or companies. So if you are going to the latest "in" spot in town, and want to arrive in style, you can now arrive with a couple of police motorcycle escorts. Flashing lights, sirens; that will get people's attention. For sure it'll get you in the door without having to queue up.
Rates are reasonable....
Click on the headline to continue reading this story.......
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| 26 March, 2012 - Dangerous Escorting VIPs Using Motorcycles | It's looking more and more that police who escort VIPs using their motorcycles are in danger.
What used to be a glamour job, high profile, can now get you injured or killed. Or is it just that the media are more interesting in these kind of accidents?
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| 14 March, 2012 - Belgium: Massive Motorcycle Police Accident | This is one of those very rare occasions that something like this happens in Europe. The motorcycle police is very well and extensively trained, but not much could be done here.
A car driver plowed into the motorcycle police escort of a Qatari dignitary, hurting 5 of the police officers. The car driver was attempting suicide.
For more info and photos on the accident click on the headline....
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| 13 January, 2012 - India: Getting Ready For Army Motorcycle Stunts 2012 | Every year the Army of India do these impressive stunts on their motorcycles. Maybe one day I'll actually go there and make some photos.
It sure is a way of economizing motorcycles, but sharing one motorcycle with many soldiers....
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| 28 December, 2011 - You Took The Wrong Road, Mate | You shouldn't have taken that road with your motorcycle, just the wrong place, the wrong time...
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| 9 December, 2011 - France: Police All Seeing Strobe Light | The French cops got a new high-tech toy to play with, and to fine us with. It's a fully automated strobe light, that has 4 video cameras hidden inside, recording everything we do continuously, and then the onboard computer analyzes it.
It'll be used to track stolen cars & motorcycles, but also to fine you for not wearing seat belts, using your mobile phone, not stopping at a stop sign, picking your nose, etc.
... someone got to pay the €17,000 for this new toy...
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| 29 November, 2011 - Vietnam: Using Fishnets To Stop Motorcycles | Interesting, but very dangerous, way of stopping speeding motorcycle in Vietnam....
...Throw a fishnet over the rear tire!!!
I prefer the solution in the photo..
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| 25 November, 2011 - UK: AA Orders Many More Honda Motorcycles | The British Automobile Association, the AA, is very happy with Honda. After having used Honda Silverwing 600 scooters and Honda 700 Deauville motorcycle sin the big cities, they've now purchased 50 Honda Pan European motorcycles.
The motorcycles are used in the big cities to rescue stranded cars, since repairs cars take too long to reach their destination.
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| 23 November, 2011 - New York: Police Throw Scooters At OWS Protesters | Over the last few weeks, I've lost all respect I had for the boys in blue in New York.
Between failing to handle the OWS protests properly (a bit like what's happening in Egypt now), and the way they deal with motorcycles, it's no wonder they are as unpopular as ever before.
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| 16 November, 2011 - France: Moped Caught Speeding On Motorway - 142 kph | How can one take speed tickets serious here in France (and other countries) when they make a lot of mistakes. Speeding tractors, parked cars, and now a moped doing 141 kph on the motorway in France.
The vintage moped, a Peugeot 102, is on a good day, with a strong tailwind and downhill, capable of doing a fantastic top speed of 50 kph!
On top of that, the moped doesn't even have a license plate, so how could the cops send him a ticket?
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| 16 November, 2011 - Brazil: Police Confiscate and Crush Motorcycles - Drug War | The Brazilian police have declared a war on the crime syndicates in Rio de Janeiro (before the World Soccer Cup and the 2016 Olympics).
They did this by crushing motorcycles with their tanks,and those that escaped the crushing, were confiscated.
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| 19 October, 2011 - Yet Another Motorcycle Cop Crashes During POTUS Escort Duty | Something is very wrong with this picture, and I don't mean the photo below, but if you see it, and look at the ones in the related articles, it's a very worrying trend.... motorcycle cops crashing during escort duty for the President Of The United States.
I wonder why so many crash. Is it bad training, or big demands on the job, faulty equipment, bad communication, or all of the above? Let's face it, it couldn't have been speed, since he was escorting the Presidential bus....
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| 18 October, 2011 - Ad: Digicel - Another One I Do Not Understand | I seem to be hitting a few advertisements recently that just don't make sense to me. This one is not motorcycle related, but got my attention because it has a big police motorcycle in it.
It's for Digicel, the telecommunication company in the Caribbean. With a tag line reading "We're all in. Digicel. Proud sponsor of west Indies cricket." it just doesn't make sense. The ad was made by the Boys and Girls agency in Ireland. Maybe something got lost over the distance.
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| 13 October, 2011 - France: Motorcycle Cop Crashes Into Barrier And Dies! Debate Open | A member of the elite French Republican Guard, on a motorcycle, while doing a recon mission in France, fell of his motorcycle and crashed into an unprotected crash barrier, killing him on the spot.
Dubbed Guillotine Barriers, many bikers have been decapitated by them, and pressure has been put on the government to do something about it. But they have been moving very slowly.
Maybe now, with the unfortunate death of a government representative, will they do something now.
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| 20 September, 2011 - Sebastopol Police Buy Electric Zero Motorcycle | The cops in Sebastopol, California, are the 2nd law enforcement agency in the state to buy an electric Zero Motorcycle.
The electric motorcycle will be used to patrol the parks in their area. It's so quite, the officer/biker can hear people talking while riding in the parks.
Oh oh ... no more necking in the parks after dark...
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| 17 August, 2011 - Thailand: The Sweet Battalion - Honest | You just can't make this kind of stuff up, unless you are a movie script writer in Hollywood....
Thailand has a female-only police force, called the "Sweet Battalion", with some 40 motorcycle riding cops. Gaddafi move over!
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| 15 August, 2011 - Want To Buy A Military Motorcycle? | If you're in the market for military vehicles, including several motorcycles, there's a web site in the UK that specializes in selling/auctioning military vehicles as they come out of the British MOD.
Here's a Harley-Davidson MT350 going for UK£675.
Sorry, no tanks (but I did see a half-track)...
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| 25 July, 2011 - France: Motorcycle Cops No Longer Unsafe | Finally, after many years dressed in the most unsafe motorcycle clothing you can expect, the French motorcycle Gendarmes are going to ride ATGATT, proper ATGATT.
Apart from the already announced Schuberth C3 helmet, they'll now have airbag jackets, proper pants and real motorcycle boots.
All uniforms will have reflective and high-viz stripes on them.
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| 13 July, 2011 - This Would Make Me Very Nervous | Riding your motorcycle packed with people would make you nervous, but doing it in front of an armored military car, loaded for bear, I'd be shitting in my pants.
Nobody sneeze...
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| 11 July, 2011 - Motorcycle Officer Down, Get A Crane! | Seems to happen quite frequently, motorcycle police escorts crashing their rides. Must be embarrassing to lie-down your motorcycle in front of the media, VIPs and your boss.
I wonder if it's a training thing?
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| 1 July, 2011 - UK: New Mobile Radar Van Against Motorcycles | In the UK, the North Yorkshire police have gotten themselves a new high-tech weapon against speeding motorcycles.
It's a van, highly visible, with radar cameras all around, that can take 360°, very high definition photos, up to 1 kilometer away.
From the 36 people who died on their roads last year, 22 were motorcycle riders, and 24% of them died because of speeding.
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| 18 May, 2011 - France: Good Actions By Paris Police, Bad Vibes | The Paris police force went for a "good conduct" drive....
They followed on unmarked motorcycles any motorcycle riders in the French capital that was showing a good behavior. The good biker would then be pulled over and given some symbolic gifts from a B-list celeb.
Either a gift, or CPR from getting a heart attack from being pulled over while minding your own business.
10 points for the idea, 0 points for the execution. At least it's positive, not repression.
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| 10 May, 2011 - This Is The Way Tunis Motorcycle Police Transport Suspects? | Usually in countries where a motorcycle cop arrests someone, they call in a car or van to transport the suspect. But apparently not in Tunisia ... they just put him (or her) on the back of their motorcycle. Only salient point is that each motorcycle cop already has someone riding pillion...
How safe is this?
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| 6 May, 2011 - Dainese Equipping Italian Police With Air Bag Vest For Giro | Dainese is equipping 15 police officers of the Italian police with a new airbag vest, the yet not available D-air Street.
The 15 cops will be using the new protective vests when escorting the famous bicycle race, the Giro.
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| 23 March, 2011 - You Just Can Not Make This Up, Even If You Tried | In California, land of TV series and movies, a motorcycle cop did one that you'd not even expect in a movie....
He crashed his police motorcycle into a convertible... and you can guess what happened...
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| 15 March, 2011 - An Unusual BMW Motorcycle At The Fire Department | A most unusual BMW motorcycle at the fire department.
It's just a BMW R1200GS motorcycle engine, used to power a portable pump used by the firemen to extinguish fires.
1600 liters/minute will help a long way...
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| 25 February, 2011 - Italy: Local Police Adopt Raleri LCD Motorcycle Helmet Visor | Remember the product review of the Raleri LCDrive motorcycle helmet visor we did last year? The LCDrive is a motorcycle helmet visor insert, based on LCD technology that turns dark and light, instantaneously, depending on how much sun light there is. It's really handy, and it looks like I'm not the only one who thinks so.
The local cops in Italy have started using the LCDrive for their motorcycle police. Here's a video showing them adapting their helmets for the visor insert, and going out on a patrol.
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| 24 February, 2011 - Greece: Protestors Set Motorcycle Cop On Fire | You can understand protests against the government, specially that of Greece, and you can understand the violence towards the establishment, and the police is the prime target....
But to throw a petrol bomb on a motorcycle cop who is down on the ground is criminal. Nothing different from what is happening in Libya.
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| 14 December, 2010 - Hong Kong Police Testing Brammo Electric Motorcycle | Brammo have supplied one of their electric motorcycles, the Enertia, to the Hong Kong police for testing.
Not bad, having the cops ride an electric motorcycle in a polluted city. Much better.
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| 6 December, 2010 - 49 Unusual Police Motorcycles Around The World - Part 2 | Here's part 2 of a three part series of unusual police motorcycles (next week part 3).
With unusual, I mean motorcycle that are not BMW LT or RT, or Harley-Davidson. The police motorcycles are from around the globe.
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| 29 November, 2010 - 20 Unusual Police Motorcycles Around The World - Part 1 | Here's a three part series of unusual police motorcycles (next week part 2).
With unusual, I mean motorcycle that are not BMW LT or RT, or Harley-Davidson. The police motorcycles are from around the globe.
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| 28 September, 2010 - China: Motorcycle Riding SWAT Team | Here's a police SWAT team from China "training" on their motorcycles....
What??? Are X-Gamers terrorists now, and they need to be chased??
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| 6 September, 2010 - 22 Extraordinary Police Cars: Known Your Enemy | Police do not necessarily drive standard police cars, fast enough to intercept a moped. To stop really fast motorcycles (and cars of course), several police departments around the world have gotten themselves supercars.
From Italian cars like Ferrari and Lambos, to Vipers and Corvettes plus the standard gaggle of Porsches, here are 22 police cars you do not want to mess around with.
The last police car should be, IMHO, the standard issue for all police forces.
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| 2 July, 2010 - France: Cops Reward Good Drivers With Gasoline | This is one ticket I'd like to receive from the French police.
During the next 4 weekends, when France Inc. goes on holiday, the French cops in the Essone departement (=state) will be on the lookout not only for bad drivers, but also good ones.
50 lucky car or motorcycle riders will receive a ticket to get €50 worth of free gasoline.
Great idea... should work better than repression.
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| 18 June, 2010 - Donation Of Harley-Davidson Motorcycles To....? | This time a bunch of Harley-Davidson motorcycles aren't donated to some third world country in dire need of equipment, but instead have been donated to an American city's police force.
What a strange world we live in...
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| 2 June, 2010 - France: Due To Bureaucracy 30% Of Radars Not Working | Due to its own inertia, the French government shot itself in the foot. They themselves passed a law making it mandatory that a neutral company inspect all mobile radar guns annually, but were so slow getting the contracts organized, that 1/3 of all mobile radar devices are not-to-be-used.
And they still haven't signed a contract, so more and more radars are unserviceable.
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| 4 May, 2010 - USA: May Is Motorcycle Safety Month. But Maybe Not In California | With the NHTSA calling May the Motorcycle Safety Awareness month, the LAPD have decided instead of making sure that motorcycles are safe from cars and SUVs, that they are going to target motorcycle riders for traffic violations.
I think they didn't read the memo correctly...
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| 26 April, 2010 - Shit Happens | Straight out of a slapstick Hollywood movie. In The Netherlands, a motorcycle cop was stopping a truck on the motorway to inspect its contents. When the cop rode his motorcycle behind the truck, coincidence or not, the rear flap opened up, and the trucks cargo spilled onto the police officer.
Initially the cop thought he made the bust of the century, since the load was white and powdery, but after closer inspection it turned out to be shit. Or to be more accurate, a fertilizer made out of mushrooms.
The truck got stopped, and the driver fined. The cop got to clean up himself and his uniform.
I wonder if the cop's name was Harry? |
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| 16 April, 2010 - Germany: Stay Away From Kulmbach April 24th | On April 24/25 in Kulmbach, Germany, some 50,000 motorcycles are gathering for a weekend of fun.
Most of them are European motorcycle police officers! And the event is held in a brewery.... need I say more?
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| 19 March, 2010 - France: Ticket Quotas For Police Confirmed | The French daily newspaper, Le Parisien, has obtained a secret document from the Parisian police department highlighting the fact that the police has quotas for tickets.
Officers that reach their objectives receive a cash bonus.
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| 11 March, 2010 - USA: LEO Caught At 149 Mph Is Not Immoral, Gets Job Back | The state topper that was caught racing his motorcycle at 149 mph, and subsequently fired has had to be rehired.
The state mediator deemed that the cop was not immoral, and should be put back to work!!!
FUBAR
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| 24 February, 2010 - Widowed Family Sues Clinton For Motorcycle Cop Death | The family of the motorcycle police officer that crashed and was killed when escorting Hillary Clinton is suing anyone with pockets.
The one target for the lawsuit should indeed be sued, and that's the Dallas police department, since they didn't provide proper training (he crashed because he couldn't take a curve at normal speed), and they didn't provide adequate protection (a motorcycle helmet with little protection).
But they are also suing the helmet manufacturer and Hillary Clinton. Why not sue the road manufacturer, the tarmac and the weather...?
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| 25 January, 2010 - Japan: Mini Motorcycle Police | Is it me, or are the police getting smaller and smaller?
This is the case in Japan... or they are Mini-Me's....
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| 19 January, 2010 - India: Rolling Art | Isn't this just like a moving sculpture? Pretty??
Or is it just a case of cramming as many soldiers as you can on a motorcycle?
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| 14 December, 2009 - Police Are Humans Too, But Should They Be? | An off-duty cop died after crashing his motorcycle in Los Angeles, USA. He was well over the legal limit, and had just been drinking with his colleagues at the Police Academy Bar.
On its own, that's pretty bad example, but why did the bar staff allow him to ride away drunk? That's criminal, and in many countries, the bar owner would face stiff charges.
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| 19 October, 2009 - Downsizing Police Style | Even the Police need to downsize. No more expensive motorcycles, like BMW, Harley-Davidson, Kawasaki or Yamaha....
And when I say downsize, I mean downsize....
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| 15 October, 2009 - Where Not To Ride Your Motorcycle This Weekend | Do not go riding your motorcycle in Tarragona, Spain this weekend. You have been warned!
That is when the international meeting of motorcycle police is being held, with 100's of motorcycle cops.... do you really want to ride there?
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| 10 September, 2009 - The Netherlands: No Fear For Police Chases | The Dutch cops have got a big problem on their hands. One of their main cars, the Volvo V50, has been declared unsafe at high speeds, and now cops are allowed to drive it up to a maximum speed of 140 kph.
The brakes of the car catch fire when used at high speeds. So not more motorcycle chases...
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| 26 August, 2009 - Iraq: Decorating The Police Motorcycle | I think all police motorcycle should be decorated in fancy stuff.
It makes them easy to recognize, and things fall off during high speed chases..
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| 25 August, 2009 - Goose And Gander? | Two cops in Ohio, USA were caught speeding on their motorcycles (off duty). One at 147 , the other at 149 mph.
One was given a slap on the wrists, the other fired. The moral of the story? If you want to speed without any dire consequences, join the police.
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| 7 August, 2009 - Braving The Morning Rush Hour On A Motorcycle | To face the morning rush hour when riding a motorcycle, you either have to be very brave in some cities, or have the right equipment.
These three lads have both...
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| 28 July, 2009 - Chinese Army Motorcycle Stunt | Passenger: Please stop.. we need to change the side tire on the motorcycle sidecar!
Rider: Stop? Are you out of your cotton pickin' mind. We've got to eat!
Passenger: Okay, I'll change it on the go, please lean to the left...
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| 8 July, 2009 - In the Police Motorcycle Oooops Category | I guess this doesn't do your Police career any good... image the bill to repair all these motorcycles.
I can fell for the cop... think what he was feeling when his motorcycle started slipping away..
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| 29 April, 2009 - Next Week 5000 Extra Ticket Writing Police In The Netherlands | Since centuries, the Dutch Military Police, called the Koninklijke Marechaussee, had many rights as a normal Police Officer, but one right/duty they did NOT have. And that was writing out tickets!
Next week, that changes, and now some 5,000 Military cops can stop you, and write out a ticket. Did you get that number?? 5,000 extra ticket writing cops as off next week!!!!
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| 6 April, 2009 - Sudan Combats Maternal Mortality With Motorcycles | UNICEF have deployed these special motorcycle sidecar ambulances in Southern Sudan.
The female mortality rate at childbirth there is the highest in the world, with one out of 6 women dying at childbirth.
The motorcycle ambulance will bring the women to proper healthcare facilities.
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| 24 March, 2009 - After London AA, Now Ambulance Service Go Honda Motorcycles | The London Ambulance Service is one of the biggest of its kind in the world.
To ensure that their paramedics get to the scene as quickly as possible, The Service has extended its partnership with Honda UK, taking delivery of 12 new ST1300 Pan European motorcycles.
The Service knows from experience, that motorcycles are the only vehicle that can get there in the fastest way possible.
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| 4 March, 2009 - Times Are Tough - Even For The Indian Army | Times are tough, and even the Indian Army needs to save costs.
Now they're riding 8 soldiers to one motorcycle.
Amazing... try taking a curve with that.
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| 10 February, 2009 - Australia: State Of WA Loses Its Motorcycle Police Force | The Police in the state of Western Australia have announced that because the motorcycles from the Police are "unsafe" and "ineffective", they are reducing the force from 90 to 34.
The remaining motorcycles will be used for decorative purposes.
What an incredible stupidity, and waste! They do not deserve to run a Police department.
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| 4 February, 2009 - Malta: Motorcycle Police Breaking The Law The Enforce | The motorcycle Police in Malta have not been equipped with special comms equipment that has an earpiece. They need to use a handheld radio when chasing cars....
... and that is against the law!
They also don't have proper helmets, bad quality gloves and boots, and no protective jacket.
It looks like the authorities from Malta do not like their motorcycle Police officers...
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| 26 January, 2009 - France: 36% Of Motorcycle Police Force Slashed | The French government has announced that since the introduction of digital radars has been so successful, there is less need for motorcycle cops.
So they are laying off 36% of all "Police National" motorcycle cops.
Too bad, since most of them are really cool cops, and served a good purpose!
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| 2 January, 2009 - French Gendarme Now Allowed To Dress Up When Motorcycling | The short sleeved French motorcycle Gendarme is a thing of the past! No longer do they need to ride their motorcycle clothed the way they ride their horses.
Now, they getting real motorcycle jackets with an incorporated airbag! Good on them!
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| 10 December, 2008 - Harley-Davidson Gives Away Motorcycles | Harley-Davidson are giving away free motorcycles.
Three motorcycles have been given to China's Police force.
Is that what they call "FREE SAMPLES"...??
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| 8 December, 2008 - Video: French Motorcycle Police/Gendarme Gruelling Training | I've written already about the grueling training the French motorcycle Police (Gendarme) have to undergo before they are let loose on the streets of France.
Between 5 and 8 months of training. Now you can see how intense their training is. Here's the video of the training, condensed into 4 minutes...
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| 27 November, 2008 - String Them Up! Only Humane Thing To Do | Kids out for some fun, are stealing the helmets of the London Ambulance Service Motorcycle Response Group, grounding the paramedic.
No helmet, no life saving activities. Apart from the cost (£600), the helmet is useless to anyone else.
Only one merciful thing you can do...
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| 13 November, 2008 - UAE: Dubai’s Version Of Charlie’s Angels | The male dominated society of the United Arab Emirates has a team of 6 female bodyguards working for the Dubai Police force.
The 6 ladies ride the big Yamaha motorcycles, and run around with guns, protecting VIPs.
Great, if it weren't that this is happening in the Middle East, were women are cost less than camels (Ok, Dubai is more liberal, but still ...).
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| 20 October, 2008 - Big Boys And Their Big Toys | You really got to get creative when it come to getting even with SUVs. Riding your motorcycle in Iran seems to be like anywhere in the world.
You've got to protect yourself....
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| 15 October, 2008 - Psst. Want To Buy A Real Police Motorcycle? | Irish web site ClassicMotorcycles.ie has a real and original Police motorcycle for sale.
It's the classic Kawasaki Z1000P, as used in the TV series CHiPS, and includes flashing lights, siren and even handcuffs and Police helmet.
Here's your chance to scare the living daylights out of people on the road.
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| 4 September, 2008 - China Motorcycle Police Display | The Chinese motorcycle Police are showing off their riding skills just before the Paralympics opens this week in Beijing, China.
Looking good!
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| 29 August, 2008 - AA-UK Turn To Honda Motorcycles | Honda are delivering 50 Silverwing 600 scooters and Deauville motorcycles to the UK based AA. No, not Alcoholics Anonymous, and but British Automobile Association.
The AA hopes to cut down the waiting time for car drivers than have broken down in the major cities of the UK.
So, it's motorcycles to the rescue of cars.... ironic..
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| 21 July, 2008 - Video: British Army Motorcycle Safety | To prevent British soldiers from killing themselves outside of the battlefields, specially when riding their motorcycles, they've produced a good safety video.
It's well done, with a good tag line. I hope it makes them think...
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| 10 June, 2008 - Belgium: First BMW R1200GS For Police | The Belgium Police unveiled at the latest "Biker Safety Days" their new BMW R1200GS-P.
Since switching to Yamaha for Police motorcycles, it's the first new BMW in the Police force.
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| 6 June, 2008 - Some Serious Army Motorcycle Squad | This looks like quite a serious Army motorcycle squad, equipped with bazookas and all...
Do you think it's effective?? I don't....
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| 5 June, 2008 - US Anti-Terror Motorcycle Squad | US Anti-terror motorcycle squad from the Army. What... riding what appear to be very heavy Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
Don't they have anything lighter...??
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| 7 May, 2008 - UK Police Using A Hayabusa Motorcycle! | Riding a motorcycle in the UK? Better watch out....!!!
Johnny Law has got a new weapon; a Hayabusa!! Now they can catch up with you...
Watch the video..
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| 25 April, 2008 - Sit Dog, Sit! Good Boy! | That's a pretty neat trick... I can't even get my dog close to my motorcycle when the engine is running...
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| 21 April, 2008 - Russian Fire Motorcycle | Found this old photo of a (I presume) Russia fire fighting motorcycle.
I wonder why these types of motorcycle aren't used to fight fires? It sure gets you to a fire very fast..?
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| 11 April, 2008 - German Police Motorcycle Phobic? | This undated photo shows German Police training in the usage of their new firearms.
The only problem is that the target is a motorcycle rider with his helmet! Is that what the German Police think about bikers?
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| 10 April, 2008 - Nice Way To Get Those SUVs | Most of us have had problems with SUVs riding on the road. It's almost impossible to share the road with them.
These two chaps seem to have found the solution...
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| 21 March, 2008 - Iraq: Police Torture Using Motorcycles | Strange habits in Iraq.... Riding over your fellow officer with your motorcycle is a graduation exercise!!
What do they do when they get mean??
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| 10 March, 2008 - Motorcycle Cop Escorting Clinton Was Not Able To Take Curve | The motorcycle Police officer that died while escorting Hilary Clinton in Texas, crashed because he was not able to ride in a single lane, and negotiate a curve!
That implies a lack of proper training, and it's not the cop's fault, but the Police management. Training Police officers for these kind of duties is extremely important!
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| 7 March, 2008 - USA: Fake Motorcycle Cop | A fake motorcycle cop tries to stop a woman in California.
The local Police are now telling people to make sure that the cop stopping you is really a cop?
Will a gun pointing in your face prove that the person is a cop?
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| 1 February, 2008 - France: New Police Camera Against Stolen Vehicles | The French Police have a new weapon against thieves! Called LAPI, it's a highly sophisticated infrared digital camera system.
It'll record a license plate, and within seconds tell the Police Officer if the vehicle was stolen (not only in France, but any European country).
So far, they are recovering between 1 and 4 stolen vehicles per day with 3 cars equipped with the LAPI system.
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| 9 January, 2008 - Belgium Police Looking At Kawasaki Motorcycles | Is BMW going to loose the Belgium Police market as well?
The national Police force are currently evaluating a Kawasaki 1400GTR for use on the roads in Belgium. It's being tested, and is on display at the forthcoming Cars and Motorcycle show that's opening its doors on the 17th of this month in Brussels.
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| 31 December, 2007 - Motorcycle Police: Going Electric | On both sides of the pond, Police forces are starting to test the Vectrix electric scooter for their officers.
No CO2 emissions, cleaner, cheaper, and a lot quieter (so they can sneak up on you), we'll see what the results are after 6 months.
One advantage though, not only do the electric scoots have the speed and range, if they run out of power while chasing you, they can't nip into a gas station and tank up...
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| 27 December, 2007 - Fed Up With SUVs On The Road? | Here's your chance at getting even with those asses on the road.
Even your pillion can participate...
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| 21 December, 2007 - And You Call Yourself A Cop? | As a motorcycle Cop, even dressed as Santa Claus, you should know better....
Riding with pretty pillions, more than legally allowed, and no helmets ??
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| 17 December, 2007 - Camouflaged Motorcycles For Bangalore Police | For some reason, the Police in Bangalore, India need to ride around on Bajaj motorcycles that have a tiger camouflage....
Got to bite my lips from saying something stupid...
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| 14 December, 2007 - Same Old, Same Old | Every time there's a special event in India, it would seem the roll out the army stunt team, and have them jump through hoops, tubes and fire.
Same old, same old...
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| 12 December, 2007 - This Is Why The Police Need GPS On Their Motorcycles | Boy is this ever embarrassing... in the UK, a Police motorcycle escort was supposed to bring the British Queen to her destination 2 kilometers further up the road.
However, they got lost!!!!! Coming out of the station, they took a wrong turn, and finally arrived 23 minutes late.
Time to invest in GPSs.
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| 23 November, 2007 - Jackpot For BMW Spain | BMW Spain delivered 300 new R1200RT-P motorcycles to the Police in Spain.
There's one lucky BMW salesperson floating around in Spain today....
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| 29 August, 2007 - India: Motorcycle Police Extreme Brutality | Motorcycle Police in India get extreme violent with a purse snatcher.
On TV, they drag the man through the streets chained to their motorcycle.
Makes Rodney King look like a walk in the park.
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| 21 August, 2007 - Praying On A Motorcycle? | It looks like this Indian Police stunt team is praying!
Praying that the top guy doesn't fall? Or that they will not all tumble!
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| 10 August, 2007 - Police in Victoria, Australia On Strike | The Police in Victoria, Australia are going on strike. They are planning to stop collecting money of the fines generated by the radars, unless their demands for a pay rise are met.
They've even produced a nice little TV ad promoting their strike!
NO RADARS!! Yeah !
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| 14 June, 2007 - China: Police Officer Keep Part Of Fines | In some parts of China, Police Officers get to keep 10% of issued traffic fines, while the Police station gets to keep 20%. The results are obvious; a massive hunt for traffic offenders.
The "bonus" these Police Officers get at substantial. |
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| 15 May, 2007 - UK: Police Withdraw Their Honda Pan European Motorcycles | The UK Police Force had to withdraw their Honda Pan European ST1300 motorcycles due to an alert given by the UK coroner that the motorcycle was unsafe.
A death resulted by one of their officers after a high-speed wobble.
The ban is just for the Police version of the Pan, not for the standard versions.
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| 29 March, 2007 - Taiwan’s Elite Motorcycle Army | If you're going to serve your country in the army, THIS is the job !
Imagine riding motorcycle all day, out of helicopters, off road, no miles long marches
... yeah baby !
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| 8 March, 2007 - UK: Lighter Motorcycles For Female Cops | Police in the UK, according to English motorcycle magazine MCN, are required to be able to lift their motorcycle off the ground. This prevents a lot of female cops to become a motorcycle cop.
So the authorities are looking in to providing lighter motorcycles to the female Police officers.
But why do they also need to provide them with smaller guns ????
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| 2 February, 2007 - French Motorocycle Cops Fed Up! | | The French motorcycle Gendarmes are fed up with having to fine speeding bikers, so they've stopped doing it ! They don't feel they should be tax collectors. Now, for speeds of under 20 kph over the limit, you'll get a warning. Vive la France ! |
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| 30 January, 2007 - Difficult To Believe ! Is It True ? | | Is it true that (in Galveston, Texas, USA) Police Officers need to buy their own motorcycles if they join the motorcycle patrol unit ? True/False ? Other places ? |
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| 8 December, 2006 - Florida’s Christmas Spirit | In Florida, USA, the Orange County Police force have gotten the Christmas spirit.
Dressed up as elves, they're manning their speed radars, and handing out speeding fines as if they're croissants.
What has the world come to ?
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| 3 October, 2006 - Bologna Police Go For Ducati Motorcycles | Bologna's (Italy) Police force is now equipped with Ducati Multistrada 620's according to Federico Minoli, the CEO of Ducati.
That sure beats boring BMW and Yamaha motorcycles.
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| 14 August, 2006 - UK Police Chief Told Off For Anti-Motorcycle Writing | | The British Motorcyclist Federation (BMF) have logged a complaint against the deputy Chief of Police for North Wales, Clive Wolfendale, for anti-motorcycle writings in his blog. He now wants to ban motorcycles from Wales's national parks. |
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| 2 June, 2006 - Hamburg Police Decide for BMW Motorcycles | | The Harley-Davidson experiment of the German Hamburg Police has come to an end. They've decided to go for BMW R1200RT-P. The first 25 have arrived. BMW sighs a relief! |
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| 11 April, 2006 - France’s Gendarmerie New Supersport Motorcycle | The French Gendarmerie Police have purchased 50 Kawasaki ZZR 1400 high speed motorcycles ! They have formed a special "High Speed Interception Brigade".
The motorcycle is capable of 315 kph (195 mph).
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| 15 December, 2005 - Is BMW Losing The Police Motorcycle Market ? | Is BMW slowly losing its Police motorcycle market ?
They've lost France, Belgium, Portugal, Denmark and now The Netherlands; all in one year, and all to Yamaha !
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| 24 November, 2005 - New Police BMW Motorcycle | BMW launched their Police/Miliary version of their new R1200RT motorcycle in the MILIPOL State Security exhibition in Paris.
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| 5 January, 2004 - Motorcycle Police ? | A funny photo of yet another police motorcycle display team....
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| 4 July, 2003 - Dog Poop Motorcycles | The French have scooters that are equipped with a vacuum cleaner that patrol the sidewalks and "suck" in all dog shit.....
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| 16 June, 2003 - US Secret Service | I decided to do a new blogline when the news is slow... here's a motorcycle from the US Secret Service.
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