By California Motorcycle Accident Attorney and Biker Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., July 2010

According to the Boston Globe, Perry was riding his 2009 Ducati when he was struck from behind by a 62-year old retiree, who was cited after the accident. Although he didn't appear to be seriously injured, he was transported to Morton Hospital and Medical Center in Taunton, Mass. at about 2 p.m. (EDT) on July 15.

Middleboro Police Officer Bradley Savage called the collision "a very minor motor vehicle accident," thanks in part to the fact that Perry was wearing a helmet.

After recently touring in South America and Europe, Perry, vocalist Steven Tyler and the rest of the band are preparing for their summer U.S. tour, "Cocked, Locked, Ready to Rock Tour," that begins on July 23rd in Oakland, California, and includes 17 other dates.

In a recent press release, Tyler said, "I thought it was time to get my MOJO back, by rockin South America and Europe with a little HOME RUN at Boston's Fenway Park thrown in and then off to the rest of America to do what we do best! We're gonna rock you into the middle of next week!"

Perry added, "This is a perfect time for us to tour North America as we are just completing a very successful tour of South America. We are looking forward to our European tour next month and then bringing our show back to our home soil. We are running on all cylinders and are "Cocked Locked and ready to Rock"!"

If you didn't know better, you'd swear that the fates are conspiring to keep one of the most successful American bands of all time from touring. Stage mishaps, alcohol and substance abuse, illness, injuries and feuding between Tyler and Perry have caused show cancellations and delays on recent tours.

Guitarist Brad Whitford missed part of last summer's tour after bumping his head getting out of a Ferrari; Perry had knee-replacement surgery in 2008; Tyler fell off a stage in South Dakota, breaking his shoulder; and bassist Tom Hamilton was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2006 and underwent radiation and chemotherapy. The band's representative, Liz Rosenberg, told the Boston Globe yesterday, "Joe is home and he's fine. All's well and we're all grateful.''

Hopefully, this accident will prove to be only a minor inconvenience.

California Motorcycle Accident Attorney Website

Actually, the title of this article should be that the Biker Law Blog is in the process of being converted. You see I am in the process of switching the Biker Law Blog to a different software platform.

The Biker Law Blog has literally become a beast of a website. The website, articles, media, and database on the website amount to almost 1 gigabyte (1,000 billion bytes) of data.

On top of that, I am getting about 1 million hits per month on the Biker Law Blog. The total data transferred each month is about 10 gigabytes of data, or 10 - 1000 billion bits of data per month. Further, we keep growing.

The Biker Law Blog has turned into a recognized motorcycle industry publication, and not just a law blog. For those of you who read the blog you know what I am talking about.

The software that the Biker Law Blog has been rock solid ever since I started the blog about 4 years ago. However, it has many limitations with respect to customization, and the ease of creating articles.

Many would say, it the software the blog is running on is not broken, why mess with it?

The answer to this question has caused me much grief. You see the guy who I paid to do the original customization of the Biker Law Blog is basically not around anymore. I have tried on numerous occasions to contact him, with no response.

Super Guru Ed B., the second customizer of the blog has gone on to greener pastures, and has told me that he has disassociated himself from the software that runs the blog due to an ethical conflict with the software’s creator.

Basically this has left me with a couple of choices. Do I stay with software that has worked for me, but that requires professional’s to upgrade and customize, or do I take a chance and go with a different platform that may not be so reliable (only time will tell), but that would make my job much simpler?

I have opted for the simple approach.

I am hoping that with automated daily backups using the new software, if something happens, I can simply restore the site.

The new software should be easier to customize, easier to do postings with, and will hopefully streamline the Biker Law Blog into a more manageable site.

As we speak, I have a test site up on a hidden domain.

I am trying to find a way to automatically get the posts, comments, and registered users from the existing Biker Law Blog software, into the new software on the test site. Since there is no current script to get this done, it may not be possible. Unfortunately, the current software that I use has no way to export the data, so it can be imported into another type of software. The designer’s rationale is that if they spend so much time creating the software, they do not want to help people leave it.

This is one of the big reasons I am leaving the software.

If I cannot automatically transfer the data to the new platform, I will literally have to manually transfer each post, comment and registered user to the new platform, one by one. This will take weeks since there are hundreds of posts, and thousands of comments.

Once the data is transferred to the new platform, we will then do the customization of the Blog to make it look sharp, be easier to use, and to make it simpler for users to register.

Registered users will no longer have to deal with the rampant spam that we have been hit with recently. I am sick of having to ban spammers on a daily basis manually.

Because of the changes that I am making to the new Biker Law Blog, and the time that it will take to transfer to the new platform, my postings will decrease temporarily until I get the new Blog done. Hell with a busy law practice, it is hard enough to write a blog as it is. Once the changeover is done, I can concentrate on blogging, and not software issues.

If you are a registered user of the Biker Law Blog, you will be receiving email updates to let you know what is going on.

Please be patient during this time of change.

By California Motorcycle Accident Attorney and Biker Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © June, 2010

Well on Friday, June 18, 2010, 2 days before my 47th birthday, I decided to take my Harley Davidson Electra Glide out for a little ride after work, to the world famous and infamous San Andreas Fault.

If you do not know what the San Andreas Fault is, it is basically an earthquake fault that runs the length of California. They say that in a few million years, Los Angeles will pass San Francisco on this fault. The experts also predict “the big one;” a catastrophic earthquake that is overdue on this fault, that could destroy Los Angeles. Anyway...

Being a native Southern California boy, I know places to ride where I can literally be alone in or near a geographic area where millions of people live.

That is what I decided to do after work on June 18, 2010.

I am sure that many of you in all over the United States can also find great places to secret yourself for a little solo motorcycling without any other traffic interfering with your ride, however, if you are in Los Angeles County, you better know where you are going, otherwise you are not going to find solitude, that is for sure.

Now I do not mean to brag, but I will anyway. I literally have some of the best motorcycle riding roads in the world right in my back yard. I can go from desert, to sea, to alpine mountains with a flick of my throttle wrist.

My motorcycle ride on Friday took me from the foothills, to the desert floor, to the base of the north side of the Angeles Forest. It was one hell of a nice Friday after work little ride.

No women, no friends, just me, myself, and I, and my Harley Davidson Electra Glide.

As you can see by the videos here, I wore my Gopro helmet cam for the ride.

Since I did not even get to Pearblossum Highway until 7:30pm or so, it was already just after sunset when I started filming. However, I still got some good video.

Since Youtube.com only allows up to ten minute videos, I had to drastically edit the videos down to 3 clips, but you can still get the effect of the ride I am sure.

Video 1 and 2 are shot with my helmet camera, except for a surprise just past the middle of video 2, and video 3 was shot by me with a standard HD camcorder at the actual San Andreas Fault.

You will notice on this ride going from the Mohave desert floor to the foothills of the Angeles Forest, Joshua Trees and cactus, turning into chaparral and scrub brush.

It was dark by the time I finished the ride.

You will notice when I am leaving the San Andreas Fault in video 2 of 3, that I got on my motorcycle quite quickly. Well up in the area where I was riding there are animals such as Rattlesnakes, Brown Bears, Mountain Lions, Coyotes, etc. As it was getting dark, and I was parked next to the San Andreas Fault sign, I heard a big animal stirring up the brush behind me. Hell I have camped in these parts and had nothing with me on this ride except for a 3.5 inch folding pocket knife.

I could sense that I needed to get the hell out of there. I am not stupid enough to wait around until a mountain lion pounces on my ass. It is amazing how sometimes you can sense danger. Only a stupid man waits around to see what is going to happen when he senses danger, has no weapons so to say, and you just know a big animal is in the brush behind you as it is getting dark. Get the picture?

I got my ass out of there, and pulled over about a couple of hundred yards down the road so I could put my gloves on and zip up my hoodie.

All in all it was a great after work Friday ride. I only wish I got there earlier so the video would have had more sunlight.

By California Motorcycle Accident Lawyer and Biker Attorney, Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © 2010

Some of you may have simply heard of red light photo tickets.

Along with the notice, you probably also received notice of a hefty fine of between $400 and $500 dollars for the infraction.

Welcome to the automated world of governmental entities ripping you off to pay off their budget deficits, under the guise of public safety.

These Red Light Photo tickets have been controversial in California for a few reasons, including but not limited to; (a) most attorney’s have always known that this type of evidence of violative of our hearsay rules of evidence here in California; (b) studies have found that red light cameras actually create more accidents; and (c) with the budget crisis here in California, State and local governments have tacked on so many surcharges onto these types of infractions, that the fine is between $420 and $480 which is absolutely outrageous under the circumstances.

Basically government is using these fines to offset their deficits, rather than making the fine fit the infraction. This is a dirty underhanded method of taxing the public by ticket so to say. This issue is more about governmental entities filling their coffers than public safety.

Anyway, getting back on topic, guess what, the Appellate Court Division of the Orange County Superior Court has ruled in the case of People v. Khaled, 30-2009-304893 (Orange Super. Ct., Ap. Div., filed May 25, 2010) that a Court Commissioner was wrong to admit photos and a declaration seeming to show that Tarek Khaled ran a red light in Santa Ana on August 2, 2008. Without those pieces of evidence, Khaled should not have been convicted of violating the Vehicle Code, the Court said.

In its opinion, the Court added; the case “involves an issue far too often presented in this Court, namely the admissibility of evidence and the statutory compliance with the procedures employed by several municipalities in the County in what have come to be known as “photo enforcement” citations.”

The Court threw out the automated photo evidence because it is hearsay and violates that California Evidence Code.

If this opinion stays on the books or is upheld by the State Appeals Court, Red Light Tickets will not be enforceable in the State of California.

The attorney who fought these tickets stated that he became very frustrated that the Courts were not applying the California Evidence Code to these types of tickets.

Of course the City Attorney Joseph W. Fletcher believes that the ruling is wrong, intends to ask the 4th District Court of Appeal to take up the decision and to order it depublised.

My opinion is such; Photo Tickets are inadmissible hearsay if the California Evidence Code is applied thereto. Pursuant to California Rules of Evidence with respect to photo evidence, it has long been established that to admit photo’s into evidence, that the person taking the photo must testify that the photograph is a reasonable representation of what it is alleged to portray, otherwise it is hearsay.

With red light tickets, there is no one to testify that the actual photographs reasonably depict that which is being shown; they lack foundation and are hearsay.

The California Evidence Code has long established the principal that photographs must be supported by adequate foundational testimony.

Now with the advent of digital photography and programs that allow photographs to be easily altered with the click of a mouse, it is even more important that an adequate foundation be established for photographs that are admitted into evidence, and that the person testifying to the same be available for cross examination.

It has simply been too easy for the government to set up red light cameras and introduce their photographs without following the rules of evidence.

In my opinion, maybe it is time to initiate a voter ballot initiative to take this issue out of the legislative hands, and ban red light cameras in California because they cause more harm than benefit, and the potential for abuse does not justify their use in society.

I would go even further; I would limit the amount of fines that can be imposed for infractions. It does not make sense that general damages have been limited in medical malpractice cases to $250k since the 1970’s yet the government has without justification raised the cost of infractions a few hundred percent since the 1970’s.

It is time we make the government work for us and not against us.

By California Motorcycle Accident Attorney and Biker Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © 2010

Many of my friends have aftermarket exhaust systems on their motorcycles which sound great and are not too obnoxious. Some have exhausts which are so obnoxious, that they would cause strain on long rides.

Through the years I have tried many different types of mufflers on many different types of motorcycles.

For about 5 years, I have run Screaming Eagle slip on mufflers on my Harley Davidson Electra Glide, with a stage 1 setup on my carb. and air filter. It is basically a Screaming Eagle stage 1 setup. Other than that, I am running a stock Harley Davidson 88 c.i. Twincam engine.

My right muffler developed bluing where the head pipe met the slip on muffler, very soon after I put the Screaming Eagle mufflers on the motorcycle.

I recently decided to try out some new slip on mufflers. My criterion was that I wanted my mufflers to have some bark, but not be too obnoxious.

As I have said many times before, I am a Biker Lawyer and Attorney, not a mechanic.

In the past, I have had my slip-on’s put on by the dealer. However, now there are many dealers who will not install slip-on’s due to E.P.A. regulations.

I almost pulled the trigger on some slip-on’s at the Laughlin River Run, but they were gouging the prices a bit, plus I did not want to wait any longer than I had already waited to get repairs done to my motorcycle.

After doing research on the internet, including watching some YouTube videos of guys installing slip-on’s, I decided that I could do the install myself this time which would save both time and money.

Some guys are running mufflers with no baffles. This is not only obnoxious and loud as hell, it is illegal. Further, unless you have some serious engine modifications, and/or carb. jetting, or fuel injector mapping modifications, running with no baffles will make your engine run too lean, and can burn your engine out.

Read the rest of the review below the video.

On top of that running open pipes without mods. will actually decrease your power output.

Baffles are encasing’s in the mufflers which decrease or muffle the sound of your exhaust/motorcycle. The smaller the baffle diameter, the less sound that is supposed to come out of the muffler.

Conversely, the smaller the baffle diameter in the muffler, the less exhaust flow you will have through the muffler, and the less power you will get out of your motorcycle engine.

Although in the past, I would just buy a set of mufflers for my other motorcycles, and just go with whatever I bought, this time, I decided to do a significant amount of research on the internet to determine which set of mufflers I would put on my Electra Glide.

One thing I have learned with Harley Davidson’s as opposed to other types of cruiser motorcycles is that you have a huge selection of options. Further, the sky is the limit as to how much money you can spend as well.

There are slip on mufflers out there such as the Vance & Hine wide ovals that run around $700.00, or you can get a set of LaRosa Design mufflers on EBay for $99.00.

It is reported that each of the above mufflers sound great.

After doing a bunch of research, I decided the best bet would be to get some muffles on eBay, because I could save money on used mufflers, and if I did not like the mufflers I could simply sell them again without taking a loss.

I also did not want to spend $400-600 dollars on new mufflers that could be a hit or miss with respect to being too loud, or that had an exhaust note that I did not like.

Many guys on the internet forums recommended Rush Mufflers as being a good sounding muffler, and not too expensive. I also read good things about LaRosa Design Mufflers, which were also supposed to have a great sound at a low price.

I decided to buy a set of Rush Mufflers with 2 inch baffles, and a set of LaRosa Design Mufflers with 1 7/8 baffles to test out.

This review is of the Rush Mufflers with the 2 inch baffles.

I scored a set of chrome Rush slip on Mufflers for 95-10 Touring motorcycles, slash up, part number 15302 on EBay for $142.51. The mufflers were almost in new condition.

I saw many guys bidding away on almost the exact mufflers in other auctions. Hell some guys were paying about $300.00 for the same used mufflers in other auctions. I just got lucky in my auction. The secret was to go with someone who was not too savvy with their auction design on eBay so that it was not too flashy!

The list price for these mufflers from the Rush website is $398.95, so you know I scored on EBay. Click here to go to the Rush website to see the mufflers I purchased.

Another excellent feature of these mufflers is that the Rush mufflers feature removable baffles, and you can buy different size baffles from them at their website here. I am running the 2 inch baffles. If I want to quiet it down a bit I can buy smaller diameter baffles.

The baffles can be removed and replaced with one bolt on the bottom.

When I received the mufflers you could tell they were used by looking inside of the pipes and seeing the grit, but the Chrome on the outside was in surprisingly good condition, they were basically new. The mufflers were heavy duty, and actually heavier than the Screaming Eagles. They appear to be longer than the Screaming Eagle mufflers as well, and protrude further out of the back than my Screaming Eagles did.

Now I could see why the guys on the forums were recommending them, these are top quality mufflers for a better price. But did they sound good?

The slash-up design fits the taper and shape of the back of the Harley Davidson hard saddlebags, I like the look. My Screaming Eagles were slash downs.

The install was kind of a bitch to say the least.

The easy part was removing the hard saddlebags on each side to get to the mufflers, which I did.

I decided that the install would be easier if I removed the heat shields on each side, so that is what I did, I removed the right and left heat shields which butt up next to the mufflers for easier access.

I then unbolted the muffler on the right hand side from the clamp at the head pipe, and the two bolts below the saddlebag bar, no problem.

I then tried removing the Screaming Eagle muffler on the right hand side; it would not budge. I tried twisting and pulling, it would not budge; it was stuck on real good. This is the muffler that blued so I was worried that the damm thing was welded on to the head pipe.

I decided to take a break and do the left side pipe. This one came off easy.

After trying everything to get the muffler off and failing, I in the end, went to Home Depot, and purchased a strap wrench to get the right muffler off. It worked like a charm, but I still had to use some heavy elbow grease. It finally came off.

The strap wrench is basically a rubber strap that wraps around the muffler and attaches to a special handle which allows you to get rotational torque around the muffler without damaging or scratching the chrome.

The install of the left muffler was no problem at all, it slipped right on; the right muffler did not seem to fit. It would not slip on!

Hell, I had my wife hold the front of the motorcycle, as I tried to force the muffler onto the head pipe. I sprayed WD-40 and Silicon lubricant onto the damm thing, but it was a no go. The muffler simply would not fit onto the head pipe. I pushed and twisted so hard, I was worried that I would damage the head pipe or the connection between the head pipe and the cylinder.

I went on the forums to see if I could find a solution. As usual there were many good solutions from buying a tool to expand the muffler pipe, to using other creative methods.

I decided that the best solution would be to take the muffler to an automotive muffler shop the next day, and have them expand the muffler pipe where it slips onto the head pipe.

I found a place close by. They charged me $10 bucks to expand the muffler pipe. This solution was cheaper and faster than buying a tool to do it, and it took no time whatsoever other than driving down there.

When in doubt, use professionals who know what they are doing.

I decided to run by the Harley dealership to buy a new muffler clamp for the right side as well. These are supposed to be single use items. They only had one left. I reused my old clamp on the left hand side and have no problems with it.

When I got home the muffler slipped on very easily, probably too easily. I was worried that the muffler guy may have expanded the muffler pipe too much.

My worries were unfounded. Once I tightened up the clamps and bolts on the slip-on’s, and checked very carefully, everything was great, with no apparent leaks.

After I started my Electra Glide, I first felt that the mufflers kind of sounded like my Screaming Eagles or just a tad deeper and louder.

When I did my ubiquitous test ride down my block with no helmet on, it sounded a bit louder and deeper. However, when I got back in the garage, my wife said they were much louder and deeper. I could not tell.

However, I then went on two day riding binge and discovered that these pipes are much louder and deeper than the Screaming Eagles, no doubt about that. I am quite satisfied.

Hell with ear plugs in; my ears were ringing pretty well after the two day jaunt. I do have tinnitus or ringing in my ears that gets worse at times with loud sounds.

I have decided to keep the Rush slip-on’s, and to sell the LaRosa mufflers that I purchased brand new without installing them. Why play around if I am satisfied.

As of right now I have a pair of stock mufflers, a pair of Screaming Eagles, and the LaRosa’s.

I give the Rush slip-on mufflers a big thumbs up and would recommend them above all.

By California Motorcycle Accident and Biker Attorney Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © 2010

When I look at the Internet I see a bunch of pasty face lawyers and attorneys in suits claiming that they are motorcycle injury attorneys. Some are well known so-called motorcycle attorneys who advertise in a bunch of motorcycle publications, and even set up booths at events.

I know one up and coming so-called motorcycle attorney outfit that is nothing more than a marketing franchise scheme aimed at bikers and motorcyclist like you.

Hell, they advertise on TV, and they are all over the Internet representing themselves as biker lawyers.

When I contacted them to find out what they were about, they sent me marketing literature. Basically if you join their outfit and pay a fee, you too will be a real biker lawyer. They have a nationwide marketing campaign going right now which is targeted at bikers and motorcyclist. What a joke!

Let me ask you a question. Would you really want to hire a motorcycle injury attorney from an outfit that is nothing more than a marketing scheme directed at you?

Some months ago a few of us so-called "biker lawyers" were in an article in the Los Angeles Times discussing what is what like to be a biker lawyer.

One of my competitors admitted in the article, that he did not ride “because he wanted to grow old to see his grandchildren.” There was another attorney mentioned in the article, who I have never heard of before the article, who had recently starting working for the same firm of the guy who admitted that he did not ride, stating that he recently actually started riding, and that he recently started doing motorcycle accident cases; isn't that grand.

Hell at least I give them a little credit for having an employee attorney who actually started riding a Harley Davidson Sportster right before the article came out.

Hell this firm advertises nationwide in many prominent biker rags. If you were to read their advertisements you would think that these guys are the baddest biker lawyers in town. I challenge them to ride with me sometime here in California. It would be nice to actually meet another attorney who rides motorcycles.

Geez would you want an attorney who is great at advertising, but who does not ride because "they want to grow old to see their grandchildren" representing you in your motorcycle accident case? Do you think that this guy actually respects you and your right to ride?

The reporter from the Times gave me a sentence or two credit in the article, notwithstanding the fact that she interviewed me for about an hour.

I thought it was amusing that the majority of the article was spent giving lip service to attorneys who don’t actually ride motorcycles, except for the one junior associate I mentioned above, who had just started riding motorcycles.

I challenge any of the so-called local California Biker Lawyers and Motorcycle Accident Attorneys who advertise anywhere in California to join me on a ride. The reason why I am issuing this challenge is because I believe that maybe only a few of them actually ride motorcycles if any do at all.

I do know of some lawyers nationwide who do actually ride motorcycles. One of them from Southern California who rides, does not do motorcycle injury accident cases.

There was an actual Superior Court Judge based in San Bernardino who actually rides motorcycles. He is, or was a Judge, I am not sure of his status now, but he does not advertise as a biker lawyer who handles motorcycle accident cases.

There is an attorney; his name is Jeff who lives in Korea, who rides. I met him through this Blog, the Biker Law Blog.

I know that there are lawyers out their sprinkled around the good old USA that ride motorcycle, but believe you me; they are the exception and not the rule.

In my personal opinion, I think that a law firm, or someone who advertises that they are “the best” motorcycle accident attorney,” or that they are “attorneys who ride,” or that they are “motorcycle accident experts,” etcetera, etcetera, should put their proof where there mouths are, or stop the false and misleading advertising.

I put my proof on the road on a daily basis. I do not make untrue claims about being a lawyer who rides; I am a lawyer who rides.

My firm has helped many bikers and motorcyclist in their time of need after a motorcycle accident. My client’s know I am a biker and motorcyclist just like them. When they talk to me, they are talking to a fellow biker and motorcyclist, not some attorney who advertises to them like they are a niche market.

Do not fall prey to slick advertising campaigns, or firms that are flat out misleading you into thinking that they are real bikers and motorcyclist only to get your business, when they are not bikers and motorcyclist who actually ride.

It is one thing to be a generic personal injury attorney who handles motorcycle accident cases, and another thing to flat out lie about being a biker and motorcycle rider only to get business, and to get real bikers and motorcyclist like you to sign up with them.

As I have stated many times, a generic personal injury attorney is at a severe disadvantage handling motorcycle accident cases, because they do not know the intricacies of riding a motorcycle, the very real dangers that bikers and motorcyclist face on the road when they ride, or how to deal with the prejudice that bikers and motorcyclist sometimes face, because they themselves have never had to personally deal with them.

You would not want to go to a general doctor for an orthopedic operation would you? So why would you go to a generic personal injury attorney instead of a real biker and motorcycle accident attorney to handle your motorcycle accident case?

So there it is. If you are a motorcycle accident victim, you need to do your due diligence when picking an attorney and lawyer to handle your motorcycle accident case.

If you see a slick advertisement from someone claiming to be a biker who rides, or who claims that they are the best motorcycle accident attorney, or that they are attorneys who ride, or someone who poses next to a motorcycle in a picture or advertisement, ask them a few questions about riding, particularly, when was the last time they rode!

You should know after a few questions whether they are bullshitting you our not.

My name is Norman Gregory Fernandez, and I am a real California Biker Lawyer, who handles motorcycle accident cases. Yes, I actually ride.

Then again, if you are anywhere in California, you can just call me. I will take care of you if you have a good case. Call me 7 days a week, 24 hours a day at 800-816-1529 x. 1.

If I agree to take your case, and you decide to retain me, I will send my people out to sign you up, so that you do not have to come into our offices.

We will handle your motorcycle property damage claim part of your case for free, unlike other attorneys who may charge you an administrative fee, or even a percentage of the amount of property damage.

I know attorneys who charge a fixed administrative fee to handle property damage. I will never take a dime of money to help you get your motorcycle repaired or totaled, if you retain me for your injury case.

We not only do not do that, but we think that it is wrong for a lawyer and attorney to take any part of the property damage claim in a motorcycle injury case.

If you are one of our clients, we will not only do the property damage part of your case for free; we will also do the following;

We will arrange to get you medical care, even if you do not have medical insurance, as part of your overall case.

We will help you to get a rental car if you are stuck without transportation.

We will help you to get a handicap placard for your vehicle so you can park in handicapped spaces while you are recovering.

We will help you to get a cash advance on your case with a 3rd party company if you are unable to work.

We will fight to get you everything that you are entitled to in your case such as loss of income and future income, medical expenses and future medical expenses, pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, emotional distress, loss of use of your motorcycle, and any other out of pocket expenses related to your accident.

We will also fight to get your spouse a recovery for the loss of consortium related to your motorcycle injury accident.

Hell, we even make ourselves available to our clients after hours and on the weekends when necessary.

We are not bankers and do not keep bankers hours. We work when necessary, not by arbitrary hours like some other attorneys!

We will go that extra mile for you in your case.

There is a reason why many bikers, motorcyclist, motorcycle club members, and others come to me for representation on their California cases; and it sure is not because of my slick advertisements.

By California Motorcycle Accident Attorney and Biker Lawyer Norman Gregory Fernandez, Esq., © 2010

Background

I am a long distance motorcycle rider. This summer I am not only planning on riding to the Sturgis motorcycle rally which is a 2700 mile round trip plus ride, I am also planning on doing other rides, not to mention the 2000 miles I have already put on in the last couple of months. I wanted a state of the art stereo on my motorcycle with built in MP3 for my music collection, a built in High Definition receiver, and the ability to have built in Satellite reception for when I am in the middle of no where. I want to listen to CNN in the middle of the Western Desert!

In 2005 I switched to a Harley Davidson Electra Glide motorcycle from a traditional cruiser motorcycle. Before 2005, I had never ridden with a stereo system built into a motorcycle before, hell a windscreen was luxury to me back then. Since 2005, I have become spoiled. I will probably always ride baggers from here on out. Once you get used to luxury it is hard to turn back.

My Harley Davidson Electra Glide came with the Harley Davidson Advanced Sound system installed in the bat wing fairing, which in of itself has done its job quite well over the last 5 years, but the technology is outdated, even on the new units.

On my unit, there was a built in CD player, minimal AM/FM presets, built in weather band, and a sensor which increased volume as I would increase speed on the motorcycle. There was also an auxiliary input which allowed me to plug in an external MP3 player so I could listen to my music collection. The system worked with my OEM hand controls so that I could virtually control the entire stereo via my OEM handlebar mounted hand controls on the Electra Glide. The unit is great, but it is old technology. If all you want is a standard CD, a few AM/FM presets, and weather band, this unit is perfect for you. I am a tech geek, I wanted more!

Over the years I have plugged in an I-Pod, a smaller MP3 player, and I have also used my Garmin GPS to serve music to the Harley Davidson Advanced Sound System via a cable plugged from the device to the auxiliary input of the Harley Davidson Advanced Sound System. It worked, but to be frank, there was no real control of the tunes being played unless I dangerously tried to skip tracks while I was riding because the external device was controlling what was being played rather than the head unit. There were issues with the volume of my MP3 device having to be cranked up to full volume to sound good through the auxiliary input, and each device sounded different through the stock stereo.

Furthermore, the cable plugged in from my GPS, or a device in my pocket looked like crap, it flutters in the wind, and the quality of having an external connection is not as good as it could be. Not only that, but everytime I got off the motorcycle, I would have to unplug my external MP3 player, turn off the external MP3 Players, etc. If the battery wore out on my external MP3 Player, I was shit out of luck. Lately using the GPS solved many of the problems, but I had no real control of the tunes being served to the Harley Davidson Advanced Sound System. When I got back on the motorcycle, I would have to plug everything back in, and start the MP3 player before I started riding, a real hassle; I am sure you get the picture, because many of you are doing this right now!

For short trips, rather than plugging in my external MP3 player, I used one of my home burned CD’s in the OEM system, which I have probably listened to over a 100 times now. It gets old if you know what I mean.

Let’s face it, with MP3, standard CD’s are obsolete, even CD units which read MP3’s, and other digital formats are obsolete because you can only fit so much on a disk, and most of these units have a limit as to how many tracks can be on a disk even if you buy the more expensive DVD format units.

Modern technology allows you to literally have every song ever made on one thumb drive, or standard USB disk drive now. There is no reason to ever have to switch CD’s anymore. Most of you including me don’t have every song ever made on disk, but my collection is almost 4GB and growing weekly.

There was an MP3 option for the Harley Davidson Advanced Sound System, but it is an external unit that mounts to the handlebars and it is ridiculously expensive for what they give you. Plus you are severely limited to memory on Harley Davidsons MP3 option. On top of that, the new Harley Davidson Advanced Sound Systems need to be programmed at the dealer. If the unit goes dead, it can only be revived by a dealer reprogramming it. How much would that cost everytime? No thanks, I love Harley Davidson, but the reason I am upgrading is to go state of the art. Their solution is not state of the art.

The Biketronics Article and Review Continues below the two videos.

One good thing about the Harley Davidson Unit is that it was as reliable as a beast. It is basically waterproof. I have ridden through rain storms, and washed my motorcycle many times, and the stereo kept working no problem.

Well recently, I decided to upgrade my stereo to an aftermarket non OEM stereo so that I could have modern electronics on my motorcycle the way I wanted it, and not the way Harley Davidson wanted it.

Research

My first dilemma was to find a stereo system (head unit) that would work with the existing hand controls on my Harley Davidson Electra Glide, and that would mount in the faring without having to modify the OEM wiring. I wanted a plug and play solution.