Beaufort woman's motorcycle -- stolen in Texas -- found

A motorcycle and trailer stolen from a Beaufort woman on a cross-country charity fundraiser ride have been found, according to a news release from the Amarillo Police Department.

Police found Gail Ankney's trailer July 31 in a fenced-in lot about five miles southwest of where it was stolen. Her motorcycle was recovered three weeks later, on August 22, about six miles southwest of the Motel 6.

Officers searching the fenced-in lot found the trailer hidden under mattresses and pallets, according to the release. Police also found the motorcycle's windshield and other parts that had been removed from the bike.

Police found the motorcycle in the garage of a vacant apartment after a person reported seeing two motorcycles there, the release said. One was identified as Ankney's Harley-Davidson. Police are still searching for the owner of the other bike, a Suzuki. It was not reported as missing or stolen.

Ankney's motorcycle and trailer were stolen from outside her hotel during a stop in Amarillo July 26 during the Women's Freedom Ride, an event she created to raise money for injured veterans and raise awareness for female motorcycle riders.

Ankney said police told her they had recovered her property last week. After getting the good news, however, she ran into trouble trying to get her bike back to Beaufort.

Her insurance company would only pay to have the bike and trailer shipped back if they were both a total loss, Ankney said. Since they weren't, it meant she would have to pay for everything, including impound fees and any repair costs needed to even ship the trailer and motorcycle home.

To offset some of the costs, Ankney said several people asked about donating money. She said two donated $1,000 to pay the impound and repair fees for the trailer, and others donated about $560 of the $650 payment to get both shipped home.

Ankney said the shipping company is expected to deliver her motorcycle and trailer between Saturday and Monday.

"I'm estatic about getting it back, but I'll feel much better when it actually gets here," she said.

Police initially told her it was unlikely her bike would be recovered intact.

Despite the ordeal in Amarillo, Ankney plans to keep taking the Women's Freedom Ride. Back in Beaufort now, she's planning a ride for next year along the east coast, as well as shorter trips to New Orleans for Mardi Gras and Milwaukee.

"Bike thefts can happen anywhere, to anybody," she said. "It didn't stop me then and it's not going to stop me in the future."

The investigation into the theft of the trailer is continuing, the Amarillo release said. The owner of the lot where the trailer was found was not charged.

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Source: BeaufortGazette (AP, 8/28)

Motorcycle Fatalities in San Antonio drop

Friends say Leonard Goff, 52, would be alive had he heeded his longtime girlfriend's advice to wear a helmet when he rode his motorcycle.

Goff, a longtime motorcyclist, died in a crash after losing control while speeding in the 14100 block of Judson Road on April 21. According to a police report, he may have been drinking.

He is the eighth motorcycle rider killed in a crash in San Antonio this year, police said. But they also say fatal crashes are on the decline: In 2012, eight fewer people died in motorcycle crashes than in 2011.

Texas is one of 16 states that has seen a drop in motorcyclist fatalities in recent years, unlike the rest of the country, where fatalities are expected to reach a record 5,027 once 2012 numbers are finalized, according to a study released by the Governors Highway Safety Association.

“We don't really know why they declined; the numbers fluctuate every year,” said Barbara Harsha, GHSA's executive director. “The state is probably paying more attention to motorcycle safety, but the most effective countermeasure is mandatory helmet laws for all riders.”

While Texas legislators in 1997 repealed a law requiring all riders to wear helmets, those younger than 21 still must wear them when riding, according to the Texas Transportation Code. Shortly after repealing the law, fatalities in Texas increased, published reports state, and the Texas Department of Transportation took notice.

The agency says an aggressive education campaign that began in 2008 is what's caused the drop in fatalities in Texas.

“We saw these fatalities starting to come up, and we knew that we had to focus on it,” said Carol Rawson, the director of TxDOT's traffic operations division. “There was a focus on this, like a laser. The benefits are coming about now, and 28 people didn't lose their lives in a motorcycle crash last year.”

She said that after interviewing motorists involved in crashes with motorcycles, the drivers often claimed not to have seen the bike, so officials targeted the campaign to better inform motorists. Called “Share the Road,” the effort includes electronic and road signs, advertising and education for both riders and drivers.

Texas motorcyclists aren't required to wear helmets, so long as they complete a rider training program or hold medical insurance covering motorcycle crash injuries. But they are encouraged in safety classes to wear helmets.

Rudy Vogt, 37, said Goff, who was a good friend, was a safe rider who was driving too fast while taking a curve on an unlit portion of the road.

Goff, described in an obituary as a “jack of all trades” who had many hobbies, “the greatest of which was riding his motorcycle,” is survived by his life partner, Angela Kiebler, and sons Anthony Goff and Joshua Mancini.

“He just didn't see the curve, but this could have been prevented,” Vogt said. “I always wear my helmet. I believe in it because my brother got into an accident, and a helmet saved his life.”


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source: My San Antonio (Moravec, 4/29)

Austin biker takes anti-cancer message to fellow firefighters

Last spring Bob Damron retired from the Austin Fire Department in Texas and took his Harley-Davidson across country talking to fellow firefighters about prostate cancer.

In 2006 he was riding in a golf cart between tees when he received the phone call that would save his life. He had recently undergone a physical and assumed he would receive a clean health check. At 44 years old, he was the oldest firefighter ever to be hired in Austin and at 55 he skied and umpired minor league baseball to stay in shape.

He was more annoyed than alarmed when a health-care worker called and told him to visit his doctor because of a slight difference in his blood work.

“I complained to her about the co-pay,” he said.

Days later he was discussing his prognosis with a urologist. He had prostate cancer.

He shared his story at the Anderson Fire Department’s downtown station Sunday night. He will stop at 343 fire stations across the country on his motorcycle ride through October, giving his testimony six times some days.

“It’s a pay-it-forward system,” he said. “It’s googleable info that these guys deserve to know.”

Damron knew little about his risk for the cancer, he said, because he never knew his father. Having a family member with prostate cancer doubles a man’s chance of getting it. He advised the men to monitor their prostate specific antigen level.

Damron, who is now 60, vowed to keep his frank talk PG rated, but he slipped up a few times, garnering laughs from a few men.

He’s as comfortable talking about a prostate as he is discussing baseball or current events.

“I’m a firefighter,” he said. “I know these guys. They’re family.”

Battalion Chief Tom Dunlap said Damron’s talk is important.

“Firefighters die of heart attacks, but cancer gets a lot of them,” Dunlap said.

In the 22 years he’s been a member of a firehouse he’s known five or six men who have died of cancer.

Cholesterol and blood pressure are common health topics, said firefighter John Olive, but the prostate?

“That’s about as personal as it gets,” he said. He called the talk “eye-opening.”

“It was very humbling in a lot of ways. Being someone we can all relate to, he made the dangers of the cancer he had to fight with very real. It was not an abstract.”

Damron’s prostate was removed and all of cancer was contained there. He’s once again healthy and back to umpiring baseball and skiing.

He rides on a fire-engine red special edition Harley-Davidson designed for firefighters. Below the odometer are the 343 names of firefighters and paramedics who died on Sept. 11.

He will end his trip at the Fire Department of New York about a month after the anniversary of Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

“The softest pillow’s a clean conscience, and I sleep fine at night,” Damron said.

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source: www.independentmail.com (Howard, 8/29)

OKLAHOMA BIKER on FOX 23

Beginning Aug 6th Oklahoma Biker will be hosting a weekly television show on Fox 23 in Tulsa. The show will air late nights on Saturday at 12:30 (or Sun morning whichever you prefer to call it). This television show will feature Oklahoma Bikers and Arkansas Bikers at motorcycle runs, rallies, and events. We will also showcase biker owned and biker friendly businesses located in Northeast Oklahoma and Northwest Arkansas.

If you have a bike night, motorcycle run, a rally or biker event you wish to have featured on Oklahoma Biker Television please call 918.260.7195 or go to www.oklahomabiker.net.

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source: currentland.com (Briggs, 8/5)