It
would appear that our boys in blue have seen the light.
Clearly their high-performance patrol
cars, state of the art BMW's, and even the new 'eye-in-the-sky'
helicopters have been unable to prevent a few blade owners from,
shall we say, travelling a tad too fast
As a result a new breed of 'squad-blades'
are being produced. Is this the ultimate weapon against the ultimate
sportsbike? the jury is out, but watch this space...
Here's a new one from Nic...
Durham police have unveiled
the force’s new Honda ‘PoliceBlade’ at the annual
Bikewise motorcycle road safety event at the county’s police
headquarters.
The Bikewise event is celebrating its
10th anniversary and is viewed by Durham police as an ideal way
to interact with local riders and motorcycle clubs to promote safer
riding and to help reduce casualties on the roads of Co. Durham.
"Honda has supported Bikewise
from the very start," says Sgt. Bob Brown of Durham Constabulary.
"This is the second Fireblade that they have helped us with
and we also have an SP-1 sports bike. They act as a perfect ice-breaker
and PR tool and we’ll have all three at Bikewise this weekend."
The Durham force has a dedicated motorcycle
unit with nine officers and, in addition to the new PoliceBlade’,
the two-wheeled fleet is made up of Honda ST1100 and ST1300 machines.
The Fireblade, however, is an out-and-out
sportsbike and, in the hands of racer Chris Vermeulen, is currently
just two points off the lead of the World Superbike championship.
"We’re Honda through and
through," confirms Sgt. Brown, "and you can imagine that
all the officers are fighting for the Blade keys at the moment;
but that only shows we’re all bikers at heart. Just because
we’re police officers, we’re not ‘out to get’
motorcyclists – we simply want to encourage safer riding and
to help reduce casualties."
Mervyn Smith, corporate sales manager
for Honda Motorcycles, is a big fan of Durham Constabulary. "It’s
not just because they’re one of our best customers," he
says, "it’s because of their unique approach to motorcycle
safety."
He continues: "They would much
rather talk to local riders about any bad riding habits than prosecute
them and this stunning new ‘PoliceBlade’ is a perfect
way to engage them in that kind of dialogue."
Here's a new one from the Shropshire
Star newspaper.....
The rider of this sleek
machine could be the most hated person in Shropshire.The motorbike
will be patrolling the roads of the county to catch speeding drivers
“anywhere at anytime” with its state-of-the-art camera.
West
Mercia Safety Camera Partnership will use the bike to monitor motorists
away from the usual speed camera sites, and its introduction will
mean that drivers can no longer pick their speed up after passing
a fixed camera without fear of being spotted.
The bike camera is being run by enforcement
officer Dave Roberts, a retired policeman. Mr Roberts, who has been
with the partnership for two years, said: “This is an alternative
to the vans, and it is a beneficial step.
“If you see a van on the side
of the road it may to register with you that it’s actually
a speed camera, but it’s surprising how many more drivers take
notice of me and the bike.” He added: “By using the bike
we can park up in areas that desperately needed monitoring.’
We'll keep an eye on this development,
but if you come across any new pics or write up on these machines
please let us know?
Page Two
- The Terror Continues....
