As much of our trail system has been closed, we use our plated bikes for getting from one trail to the next.
The AMA's position on conversions will soon end our ability to ride "trail to trail" on a decent bike(XR/WR/KTM EXC....).
I am not sure that I can support my membership with the AMA.
Tell the AMA what you think:
membership@ama-cycle.org
Copied from another forum:
Dear John & Scott,
As you probably know the allowance of "conversions" varies greatly state to
state. Thus, the AMA rules for a dual sport run require that dual sport
motorcycles comply with all state requirements for road use. (It should be
noted that the rules for a dual-sport run are in the AMA "on-road" rule book,
not the "off-road" rule book. From an activities perspective the AMA sees dual
sport bikes as first and foremost on-road motorcycles.) Yes, some states will
let you "get away with more" than the others but those states may be in error.
Some of the bikes being converted are manufactured and marketed as closed-course
only machines. They are marketed as competition only so that they will be
exempt from EPA noise and emissions standards under the Clean Air Act. The WR
will not meet the EPA emissions standards for highway use (in fact it will not
even meet the minimum standards for a "green" sticker in California for
"unrestricted" off-road use). And just because someone has installed an after
market lighting kit on a bike does not mean that it is truly in compliance with
US DOT.
I realize that the specific situation that we are talking about is very
frustrating for the bike owner, so let me explain why it is so important that we
try to do the right thing. The EPA asked some very specific question of us
about the dual-sport conversion issue (YES, they know what has been going on).
One thing that they had considered doing to prevent riders from exploiting this
"grey" area was to limit access to competition models. Thus, only riders with
"professional" credentials would have access to "competition models", such as
the WR. So, the AMA and other concerned motorcyclists have spend the better
part of the last two years convincing the EPA that motorcyclists are responsible
enough to buy competition only models for competition, recreation models for
trail riding and street legal bikes when they intend to go dual-sporting.
As a fellow dual-sporter let me just say that there may have been a time when
there were not a lot of (competent off-road) dual-sports to choose from; but,
that time is no more. There are some great legal (and quiet ) dual-sports
available. As I have often commented about the bone stock dual-sport that I
ride, "if you can't get it done on this thing, then you had better look into
another sport".
If you want to talk about any of this in more detail please call me.
Good luck,
Royce L. Wood
Legislative Affairs Specialist
American Motorcyclist Association
13515 Yarmouth Drive
Pickerington, OH 43147
(614) 856-1900 ext. 1225
The AMA's position on conversions will soon end our ability to ride "trail to trail" on a decent bike(XR/WR/KTM EXC....).
I am not sure that I can support my membership with the AMA.
Tell the AMA what you think:
membership@ama-cycle.org
Copied from another forum:
Dear John & Scott,
As you probably know the allowance of "conversions" varies greatly state to
state. Thus, the AMA rules for a dual sport run require that dual sport
motorcycles comply with all state requirements for road use. (It should be
noted that the rules for a dual-sport run are in the AMA "on-road" rule book,
not the "off-road" rule book. From an activities perspective the AMA sees dual
sport bikes as first and foremost on-road motorcycles.) Yes, some states will
let you "get away with more" than the others but those states may be in error.
Some of the bikes being converted are manufactured and marketed as closed-course
only machines. They are marketed as competition only so that they will be
exempt from EPA noise and emissions standards under the Clean Air Act. The WR
will not meet the EPA emissions standards for highway use (in fact it will not
even meet the minimum standards for a "green" sticker in California for
"unrestricted" off-road use). And just because someone has installed an after
market lighting kit on a bike does not mean that it is truly in compliance with
US DOT.
I realize that the specific situation that we are talking about is very
frustrating for the bike owner, so let me explain why it is so important that we
try to do the right thing. The EPA asked some very specific question of us
about the dual-sport conversion issue (YES, they know what has been going on).
One thing that they had considered doing to prevent riders from exploiting this
"grey" area was to limit access to competition models. Thus, only riders with
"professional" credentials would have access to "competition models", such as
the WR. So, the AMA and other concerned motorcyclists have spend the better
part of the last two years convincing the EPA that motorcyclists are responsible
enough to buy competition only models for competition, recreation models for
trail riding and street legal bikes when they intend to go dual-sporting.
As a fellow dual-sporter let me just say that there may have been a time when
there were not a lot of (competent off-road) dual-sports to choose from; but,
that time is no more. There are some great legal (and quiet ) dual-sports
available. As I have often commented about the bone stock dual-sport that I
ride, "if you can't get it done on this thing, then you had better look into
another sport".
If you want to talk about any of this in more detail please call me.
Good luck,
Royce L. Wood
Legislative Affairs Specialist
American Motorcyclist Association
13515 Yarmouth Drive
Pickerington, OH 43147
(614) 856-1900 ext. 1225
