I'll be talking lane splitting / sharing the road on TV this weekend
- Thread starter Surj
- Start date
Ol' Gravy Leg
That's my Jam!
Did you read any of the discussion? Or did you just post because you wanted to proclaim "I'm a good person because I don't judge people by their skin"?
NONE ON THIS THREAD HAS AN ISSUE WITH THE TATTS! But, we are not so naïve to think that others do not reflexively judge on appearance.
Want proof? Look at all the sheep who watch CNN or Fox news. It is precisely these people who'd support new legislation to protect murdercyclist from themselves.
Awareness has been a long time coming. But, overexposure can threaten our freedom.
I'm sorry I brought it up the appearance issue. Had I known it had been taped already, I wouldn't have. What's done is done. So, let's stop beating the horse. Monkeyneck has handled it aplomb.
I'm looking forward to seeing the interview (and moving the conversation forward).
SNsMoto
Don't be that guy.
Agreed. Monkeyneck has done amazing work for us and I follow his facebook posts all the time.
I also just wanted to chime in on the tattoo appearance in GENERAL. For what it's worth, the tattoos were also the first thing I noticed when I saw the picture and immediately also shared the same thought that they should have been covered without even reading a single post in this thread. This is just how things are.
Perception and first impressions are everything. This has nothing to do with us as individuals and whether or not we are individually accepting of tattoos, this is about the greater good of the public awareness and acceptance of the motorcycle community that I think a few of us brought this up.
Thanks for doing us a huge service OP and we appreciate you staying true to your character.
jdhu
Well-known member
Sorry also to keep discussing an issue that is already moot, but this post sums up my feelings exactly. First thing I noticed in the pic was the tats, and I mentally cringed. As Gravy says, none of us in this thread has any issue with the tats, but WE ARE NOT THE AUDIENCE.
This video segment is essentially a PSA, and call it unfortunate, but people judge messages (in part) based on the messenger. When I saw the pic, well, OP kind of looked like a "Harley fag." And you know what people tend to think of them (even many of us, who are fellow motorcyclists).
Again, thank you OP. I think we are all appreciative, and the tats aren't an issue for us. Some of us just think that maybe the message would have appealed to more drivers, had you covered.
SNsMoto
Don't be that guy.
Sorry, this will be my last reply on the topic.
Again, it will be hit or miss with the target audience. It isn't about specific individuals, but about the mass of population we are trying to reach and unfortunately, the mass of population we are trying to reach are usually more open minded to the clean cut dressed individuals. Had OP worn something to cover the tattoos, I can guarantee you not a single person on here would have said anything about appearance. First impressions!
There's a reason why people on the news wear business attire and makeup for the camera. It's the professional look that portrays knowledge and experience.
I am no way taking away from all the hard work and effort the OP has put in, but when you want to represent a community on TV, sometimes you have to put personal preference aside to accomplish the intended goal of said hard work.
jdhu
Well-known member
My last post too, seems like we have gone over all perspectives.
The goal here is to educate as many people as possible (which requires them to be receptive) of the merits of lane sharing. I think most will agree that a clean cut person in business-ish attire would probably be the least "offensive" to the most people. Call it a silly game (maybe it is) that we have to play in society, but well, our goal is to reach and convince as many people as possible.
Anyway, there is a certain charm to OP being himself, and apparently, he comes across well in the video. But as SNS says, first impressions are important. Oh well, time to go out and lane share, thanks OP.
clutchslip
Not as fast as I look.
Sorry, but I missed your other thread originally mentioning your TV appearance.
Here is the gist of the problem for me. You see it as your project, and you wanted to represent your project, not the motorcycle community. That is not altruistic. And I believe others, right on this forum, have been involved in public awareness of lane sharing for some time longer than yourself. You even admit that you know how things work, but choose not to "play along".
Had you asked for representation, like in Feanor's thread, I would have suggested the same person, silversvs, that I suggested there. Even though I have charmed snakes in public places, I would certainly not select myself, since there are better choices. My motorcycle world may be represented very well by my GSX1000 riding endodontist. Although, I don't expect many here to relate to him.
My statements, and others like them, should not be an affront to you, because they are just reflections of learned experiences from other people who also care about lane sharing. I have stated elsewhere that I appreciate your efforts and hope that your participation in lane sharing awareness furthers the greater cause.
I am glad things went well. Now, I hope that riders realize how lucky they are to be able to split and stop splitting like it's an IOMTT.
Surj
Uneasy Rider
Jesus Christ. I already said I'm representing my project, but that it also represents the bigger moto community, at least twice in this very thread. I'm a part of that community and as such, I represent the segment of the community comprising tattooed guys who ride BMWs and work in ecommerce. :laughing I also said, in this very thread, "There are many people, Budman and others, doing tons of amazing stuff behind the scenes and I'd love for them to get interviewed instead of me so I could get in some riding between working on the site and "real work." Those folks are the ones that deserve the credit and attention anyway. One million thumbs up to them." The context of my not playing along comment was obviously a response to the lecturing tone I'm getting from you, a reiteration of "I know that folks are not supposed to be respected and listened if they have tattoos, but guess what? I'm doing just fine." I'm not sure what you're trying to intimate here - am I some kind of imposter because I just started this project in January? I've stated the mission over and over, here and elsewhere - to help spread awareness of the CHP guidelines.
Honestly it didn't occur to me to ask for representation because I've done the work essentially by myself and I'm happy to make an appearance that gets more awareness for the guidelines and the site. I'm not a lobbyist, I don't work for the AMA or ABATE or you - why should I ask someone else to show up? If I understand it correctly, Feanor was asking for suggestions because he has an "in" to get some folks on the air. A couple people called out my name there and I said I'd be happy to do it. I also said mentioned there are some additional resources I could call in as well, one of them an expert witness who testified in front one of the committee hearings on AB236. I also said "I'm fully behind SilverSVS or Budman doing it. I'd also recommend Mark Pope from the CHP - he's been the spokesperson on this stuff in much of the media coverage."
Thanks for your support, but honestly, your statements are an affront to me. I'm offended that you chose to preach at me as if I don't understand how things work, when I've clearly detailed my position and experience counter to that. I'm offended that because in your opinion I don't represent what motorcyclists should look like to the rest of the world, and therefore I shouldn't raise my voice when I have an opportunity. I'm offended that I have to muck up this thread about positive coverage in the media defending myself. I'm further offended that you're apparently questioning my motives.
I've been very frank in my responses, which doesn't seem to have helped. One more time: I've never encountered this kind of shit in my professional life, so I'm surprised and saddened to encounter it here, of all places. I've been extremely hesitant to say much about the cost and time until now, in response to this feedback - but here's the thing. I've spent over $1000 on sticker production, hosting, a bit of advertising, etc. I just spent another couple hundred dollars on another run of stickers. The vast majority of those were given away. Some folks have bought stickers but I'm not ever going to even come close to making my money back. That was never the point, and I never cared about that until today. But some of the stuff in this thread has me seriously bummed out.
I shared this here because I thought my fellow riders would want to check it out. Some of the feedback here makes me wonder if my time and resources wouldn't be better spent elsewhere.
Anyway, here's the video.
youtu.be/1DP--L-edRg
HUGE thanks to Rod for taking time of out his Sunday to get me this file! :thumbup
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Surj
Uneasy Rider
Thanks Twojay! Hope you're doing well down your way. :thumbup
Surj
Uneasy Rider
Thanks Dairo! :thumbup
JPaul
Active member
Fan-tas-tic interview. Clear. Concise. You should be proud of that. - JP
Ol' Gravy Leg
That's my Jam!
Ninjarider87
Relentless Janitor
we appreciate your work. fuck the haters... you can never please everyone.
Surj
Uneasy Rider
Thank you! :thumbup
Thank you. :thumbup I never really thought it was that cool. I always have to say, "Gish. Yeah, like fish, but with a G." :laughing
Thank you! :thumbup
Thanks Budman! :thumbup But as I've said before, you, Silver, and the other folks deserve the credit on this stuff. I'm just helping out where I can.
My contact at ABC apparently bailed, so they've been hard to reach. Definitely following up next week.
Thank you! :thumbup