If you’ve spent any time on our roadways recently – especially the northern and southern stretches of Indian River Boulevard, U.S. 1 north and south of Vero Beach, and the newly opened drag strip we call 66th Avenue – you’ve probably seen racing-style motorcycles whizzing past you, maybe even weaving in and out of traffic, at reckless rates of speed.
“Crotch rockets.”
“We still call them that,” said Sgt. Mark Wysocky, spokesman for Florida Highway Patrol Troop L, which serves Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm Beach and Broward counties.
And for good reason.
“We’ve had them literally flying off bridges and over-passes down in Broward,” Wyocky said. “Eight of our last 10 sports-bike fatalities involved high rates of speed, and in four of the eight, they flew off bridges and fell 30 to 60 feet to their deaths, some of them landing in traffic and getting struck by other vehicles.”
We haven’t had anything quite that spectacular around here. But theses made-for-mayhem motorcycles seem to be growing in numbers on our roads and highways.
Just last month, a 27-year-old Vero Beach man was killed riding a sports bike, traveling south on Indian River Boulevard at speeds estimated at twice the 45-mph limit.
He apparently failed to negotiate the turn just east of U.S. 1 and his motorcycle struck the median, ejecting him onto the grass alongside the northbound sidewalk.
These high-performance motorcycles aren’t only race-caliber fast, designed specifically for rapid acceleration, power braking and precise cornering on paved roads rather than the comfort and gas efficiency of street bikes.
They’re loud, too. Too loud. Too fast. And too dangerous when ridden at racing speeds on residential roads, particularly with other rolling traffic.
“That’s what sports bikes are made for – racing,” Wysocky said. “I’ve gotten them on radar at 154 mph, and some go faster than that. There are even bike-night gatherings where these guys will meet at a Hooter’s, then go out and race.
“Sports bikes are a real problem down here,” he added. “We see them on the interstate, weaving in and out of traffic, traveling well above the speed limit and posing a danger to both themselves and other drivers who are startled by the speed and noise as these sports bikes come out of nowhere, race by them and dart in front of them.
“It’s also dangerous because, when you’re changing lanes, you don’t anticipate a motorcycle coming up from behind at 100 mph. But that happens, too.”
Speeding and weaving sports bikes have wreaked havoc on South Florida’s roadways for years, Wysocky said, adding that, although there are no FHP statistics identifying those particular motorcycles, the problem “seems to be moving north and spreading all around the state.”
Sports bikes are already here, ridden at ridiculous speeds by amateur daredevils who confuse Indian River Boulevard with Daytona International Speedway, darting in and out of traffic and, when feeling especially invincible, popping wheelies as they go.
I hear them when I’m playing tennis at The Boulevard. I see them when I’m driving to Sebastian or Fort Pierce on U.S. 1.
They appear out of nowhere and swerve in front of my truck. And I wonder: Is anybody doing anything to stop them – or at least slow them down?
“When we receive any traffic complaint,” Indian River County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Eric Flowers said in an email, “our traffic unit uses a variety of tactics to try to quell the problem, including saturated patrols and speed radar trailers.”
Tried and true tactics, to be sure. Unfortunately, they don’t appear to be enough.
“Unless you’ve got units in the vicinity or can track them by helicopter, there’s not a lot you can do about it,” Wysocky said.
Does that mean sports bikes, which are all about speed, don’t belong on our roadways?
Not everyone rides them recklessly, endangering themselves and others, so I’m not ready to say that. Not yet, anyway.
Clearly, though, something needs to be done. Unless somebody figures out how to slow these “crotch rockets,” they’ll soon have a more apt moniker.
“Donor-cycles.”