To Friends, Customers, Fellow Riders:
I'm not a political person. I don't have all the facts and answers, but i can't sit idle and hope this possible rate increase comes to pass. A few thoughts and emotions have past through my mind. I've been an owner/operator of motorcycles for a year short of 40 years. I , like others, ride from earliest days we can in the spring till the most uncomfortable days in the fall. Traveled a lot of Canada and the US. These are far from recreational machines as it's been publicly stated. Motorcycles are for many of us a way of life, a passion but really they are a motor vehicle that I/we choose to operate. We would ride year round if we could. We share the fuels, fines, taxes and roads that all licensed vehicles do. This is not recreational use.
SGI runs a great business and serves the public pretty well as far as I see. Being in the industry for a few years and helping folks through the accidents they had, SGI has been there for them. I've seen vehicles fixed to perfect condition and with hardly any protest from SGI. But it's a low percentage of motorcycle accidents that are 100% at the riders fault. Is the offender getting off to lightly? Is the trucker that didn't see us paying his share? Is the person texting and running into the back of a Sunday riders dad and his son paying the long term costs? How about the man coming home from work, night shift, on his fuel efficient motorcycle and gets smacked by a deer. Or hits the unmarked sand seal splash on our slightly less than perfect highways, or the hit and runs - who pays for these. Some of our roads rip apart small cars, trash camper trailers, limit vacation travelers not to mention what has happened to us two wheelers.
Are others paying enough? Should ATV's be plated at a small fee? They cross public roads, get damaged and stolen. Is that beauty of a 5th wheeler with it's slide outs and sauna's plated at fair value? There is several in the SGI salvage yards. Are we forgetting industrial and farm plates? Are they priced properly ? Wow I don't want to offend anyone here! But those that understand me and my thought won't want to lynch me up to a tree. As above, the people causing the accident, are they paying into the cause? Probably alot of cash flow out there to top up SGI's expense account besides digging deeper into a biker's pocket. And biker isn't a dirty word. They've contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars in just the past decade to those that don't even have a hand out. To the small parks and towns that host an event. To several fundraisers such as Cancer rides, Ride for Site, Ride for Dad - Prostate program, The Ride For The Breath of Life Run, or CF Run to aid in a care for cystic fibrosis, the Diabetes rallies. The toy runs etc....so many mostly unnoticed causes.
So didn't the 30% license plate increase last year help SGI at all?
Private insurance? Will this leave an open door to competitive insurance companies to offer thousands of folks. People that live in this great Province because it is or was affordable. Maybe this will give people an option. Maybe SGI is thinking of having more options for it's insurance programs? Maybe they've thought of a tiered injury payback policy because riders have 2nd or 3rd party insurances that can help in the event of a major injury claim. If riders don't perhaps it could be a requirement? But we, the riding, touring, going to work, Sunday cruiser type motorcyclists just hope to be treated fair. To be heard. To have options. To be able to let others, our kids and older kids have the chance to ride at a fair rate and to feel welcome in Saskatchewan.
These are just thoughts from me. I'm no one special. I'm not asking for replies or to have stones chucked at me. I have 30 years of passion, dedication and the expense of my sanity, kids and friends put into running a motorcycle shop. It's generated some revenue for our province. I've seen riders act in less than a safe manner, me being one at times. Riding can bring the viking out of a person. I've seen a lot of happy travelers. I've raced bikes. I've fixed them at 1 AM along side my trusty staff just to get a vacationing rider back home to his/her family or job. I had to start typing, talking and taking deep breaths because this announcement of extremely high insurance rates will take all this away. It'll cost SGI and the Provincial Sales Tax a lot in lost tax revenue. It will put more costly nails in the coffins of the businesses related to the bike industry. The ripple effect will be ugly. Thanks for letting me type.
Thank you, Rick Dawson, Owner
Harley-Davidson of Yorkton, Sask.
306-783-1999 ph/306-783-1645 fax
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