French motorcyclists: 'To defend our freedom, we must respect others'

The excessive noise of some bikes can lead to bans for motorcycles. The French motorcyclists’ organization FFMC (member of FEMA) launched a campaign to point out that the only way to get respect is to respect others.

If the weather is nice, it’s the perfect opportunity to get the bikes out, take beautiful rides, and meet in cool places in the region. This often leads to the concentration of many motorcyclists in one place, which can lead to complaints by residents about the excessive noise of some bikes.

‘Certain individual behaviour has a negative impact on the entire biker community’

The noise level produced by concentrations of motorcycles is less and less supported by residents and petitions are being organized. Under pressure, politicians might want to ban motorized two-wheelers from certain places or roads.

Just call it motophobia and hop, that’s the end of the story? Let’s be honest: the excessive noise and behaviour of some bikes and bikers can be unbearable. A lack of consideration for others on the part of a small part of the biker population, and it is the entire biker world that shoots itself in the foot. A peril not to be overlooked, at the risk of expanding prohibitions and other limitations on travel.

Of course, the issue of noise cannot be boiled down to the simple question of the behaviour of some. There are also:

bad approval standards,
manufacturers who cheat a little with these standards,
unlicensed exhausts,
the repetitive aspect of noise for the residents of ‘biker roads’,
tampered exhausts,
exhausts with the dB killer removed,
less tolerance for noise, et cetera.

‘If we want to defend our freedom, we must respect others’

In short, the problem is complex, and we want to move forward with all the players in the two-wheeled world, to encourage responsible practice, without blaming each other. The simple question of standards is complex, but if we want to defend our freedom, we must respect others.

FFMC does not want to be a lecturer; it leaves everyone in charge of their choices. But it cannot condone certain individual behaviours which have a negative impact on the entire biker community and which ultimately only leads to limiting our freedom to move.

If for you ‘it’s the explosion’, the passer-by takes everything in the eardrums. To be respected, let’s respect others.

Are all the symphonies really to everyone’s taste? To be respected, let’s respect others.

Even if for you it makes a nice sound, this is not necessarily the opinion of all! To be respected, let’s respect others.

Let’s preserve our sympathy capital. To be respected, let’s respect others.

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