*** Pocket Bikes Are The Latest Rage, But Are They Legal? ***

SACRAMENTO, CA (AP) -- 06/17/2004
You either love them or hate them. The mini motorcycles called
"pocket bikes" are the latest rage, but cops are cracking down
on people who ride the bikes on public roads.

The so-called pocket bikes are all the rage, but they can also
put drivers into a rage because they're hard to see and can zip
in and out of traffic at speeds of thirty miles an hour or more.

Don Bajurin, of PCP YAMAHA says, "It's scary to me."

Don Bajurin sells full size motorcycles.

He says pocket bikes and their riders
-- often underaged kids
-- aren't ready for the road.

Don Bajurin, of PCP Yamaha says,
"I think it's an accident lookin' to happen."

Pocket bikes evolved from European racers and
were not designed to be ridden on public roads.

Many aren't equipped with safety gear like brake lights.

Many dealers will tell their customers that pocket bikes
are illegal to use on public roadways, but they do it anyway.

Riders and dealers are frustrated because
laws have been enforced unevenly.

Jim Dart, of Bike Builders says, "Talking to the CHP and
talking to the Sac P.D. and even talking to private security,
it's all different."

Responding to complaints, the CHP recently classified them as
motor-driven cycles that require helmets, driver's licenses, and
registrations.

But they also fit the DMV definition of a motor driven scooter
that can be used on the road without a license and registration.

Raymond Sin and his buddies were shocked when
they were ticketed riding in their neighborhood.

Pocket Bike Rider Raymond Sin says, "The people that we
bought it from said we didn't have to. That we had to follow
the basic bicycle law."

Their bikes were confiscated and now they're on the hook for a
$150 towing charge per bike and $30 a day in storage fees.

The CHP says it has the authority to interpret DMV regulations in
a way that keeps pocket bikes off public roads to protect riders
and motorists alike.

Geneb...Wenatchee,Washington-USA
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