Milward's Millennium Motorcycle Ride

Simon Milward updates sponsors from Montreal in Canada. He recounts events from Indianapolis leading him through Illinois, Wisconsin and North through the Great Lakes.

He has now ridden 100,000km on his handmade motorcycle through 29 countries in a year and ten months, since leaving Europe. Total raised for charity is now $42,500.

I'm deeply sorry for the cock up last week which resulted in your in box being filled with strange Millennium Ride emails. We routed out the cause, stemming from me clicking a wrong button, and it won't happen again.

Right now I'm in Montreal getting my teeth fixed. The $500 worth of emergency treatment, including drilling and filling of a root canal, will I hope be covered by my travel insurance. The dental surgeon is Russian so we had plenty to discuss.

Montreal is lovely with its qaint neighbourhoods and colourful European-type architecture. I'm putting up at a youth hostel and trying to rustle up a fundraising event or two. Later I'll meet with the guys at Quebec Province's Comite Action Politique Motocycliste. Quebec is Canada's only French speaking Province, following the British defeat of the French in 1759. I might take a ride up to Quebec city when the dental treatment is done, depending on the weather and fundraising events.

Fundraising

Fundraising has slowed since ABATE of Indiana's incredible $6,000 donation. In Illinois I attended the ABATE State Board meeting, a reception organised by South Suburban Chapter (the first US group to take an interest in my ride, thanks Marcia), several Chapter meetings, and Dukane Chapter's Toy Run where I won the rat bike trophy. If I still had my original boxes I'd have gotten that with honors!

On up to Harley Davidson in Milwaukee Wisconsin where it was great to have dinner with old friends and colleagues. Harley came in with $1,000 for Health for All. Then I went north a few hours to do my presentation to local ABATE members at the Little River Inn. It was quite a party, cake fight included!

I exited the USA a few hours before expiry of my visa to Canada at Sault Saint Marie, East of the Great Lake Superior. After a few days I arrived in Toronto. Here the North American Automotive Trade Association donated $400 to Medecins Sans Frontieres. This brings the total raised to about $42,500.

The best of Toronto, a modern city sprawled along the north edge of Lake Ontario, was the nearby Niagara Falls complete with rainbow. It was absolutely breathtaking and quite wet! My sole cultural experience in Toronto was to see the ice Hockey Hall of Fame.

What with the war and all, Canada is distinctly more relaxed than the US, with much focus on the plight of innocent Afghan people.

Internationalism & bikers rights

Yes well this bit is mainly for activists.

The last few weeks in Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin, the heartland of the bikers' rights movement in North America, were a real education. If I have any role left in the movement it has crystallised something like this.

September 11th will accelerate the drive towards globalisation.

American bikers are fearing federal anti-tampering measures similar to those previously proposed in the EU. On the chopping block is the US aftermarket parts industry and riders' rights to customise and tune.

Meanwhile the European motorcycle industry did a U-turn on how they want motorcycle emissions throughout the world measured. The blind alley they lead us down is a dead end. There must now be a moratorium on motorcycle emissions, put it all on hold for a few years whilst someone figures a way out of this. Because we the consumers lose in the end, including the millions in developing countries who depend on cheap motorcycles to live.

Relatedly, Japan's super-low noise limits and motorcycle recycling restrictions will certainly be on the globalisation table. So I believe that it's time for the riders rights movement to get serious about globalisaton. For a grass roots movement like ours' this means planting everywhere. We must reach out to our biking brothers and sisters in Asia. Good for ABATE of Indiana who are going to work with the new Motorcycle Association of the Philippines. I hope ABATE of Illinois will work with Japanese riders, where there is a seed that with a little care will germinate and grow. We simply cannot ignore Asia, not now.

I also laid down a challenge to the South Suburban and Chicago Chapters of ABATE of Illinois. In Chicago two wheelers pay the same as four to use so-called turnpike roads. Sorry guys but this one is also global, its time to get rid of it. Get some of those neat Malaysian bike-only toll booth by-pass lanes, or end up with big ugly Singapore-type on-board gadgets. Globalisation has responsibilities all round.

So, stepping down from the soap box, I'm going to see how hard I can rattle the cage of the UN.

I'm looking forward to riding South via New York to sunny warm Florida. I hope US immigration won't give me hassle for trying to re-enter so soon, concerned that I may try to work illegally or for security reasons. The AMA and Harley kindly equipped me with letters vouching for me. Everything changes in war and nothing can be taken for granted.

My updated schedule follows. If any groups want me along to give a virtual world tour presentation just email me.

Bye for now, Simon

Mass & Conn upto 8 Nov.
New York (city area)/NewJersey upto 11- 17 Nov.
Washington DC/Maryland 18-25 Nov
Virginia,Carolinas, Georgia, 26Nov-30 Nov.
Florida 1-10 Dec
South Coast Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, NMex, Ariz (south) 10-23 Dec.
California SFO, Bay Area 5-20 Jan 2002
California SanDiego/LA & South 20Jan-20Feb
California SFO, Bay Area & North 22 Feb-22 Mar
Oregon/Washington April 2002

To be confirmed at New Year, possibly: heading East for another lap of the USA.

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