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[/url]07/25/2008

CATHERINE BELL ADDRESSES MOTORCYCLE SAFETY

AT PENTAGON EVENT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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07/25/2008

 

CATHERINE BELL ADDRESSES MOTORCYCLE SAFETY

AT PENTAGON EVENT

 

 

li.opener { list-style: none; margin: 0 0 1em 0;} li{ margin: 0 0 0.5em 0; }The Motorcycle Safety Foundation hosted actress and rider Catherine Bell at the National Capital Region Joint Service Motorcycle Safety Event this past May at the Pentagon, where she spoke to representatives of all five branches of the combined Armed Forces.

 

The conference focused on the theme that “Motorcycle safety/training is the number one non-combat safety concern across the Services.”

 

We are pleased to reprint Ms. Bell’s comments below.It’s an honor and a pleasure to be here with you all today, and I’d like to thank the Joint Service Safety Council and the Department of the Army for the invitation to participate.

I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to support an initiative that is near and dear to two areas that have played such pivotal roles in my life … the United States Armed Forces and motorcycles. And motorcycle safety in particular.

What some of you may know is that as an actress, I just can’t seem to get enough of military life. For 10 years I played U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Col. Sarah MacKenzie on the television series JAG as a practicing attorney in the U.S. Navy’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps. And this past year marked the first season for Lifetime’s new series, Army Wives, in which I play Denise Sherwood, the wife of a U.S. Army major.

She’s had a pretty rough time of it with her teenage son. Both of these experiences and the feedback I’ve received from viewers who identify so strongly with the characters have given me an appreciation for the challenges that members of our Armed Forces face. And particularly the hardships endured by their families, like those of our soldiers currently deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The good news for me is that in season two of Army Wives, my character starts riding a motorcycle, a Suzuki SV650, to be specific. We have started shooting and … of course I’ll be doing all my own riding, and there’s a lot of it in the script.

What you might not know is that I’ve pretty much been a tomboy all my life. I’ve always loved speed and been something of a risk-taker. And that translates to fast cars, personal watercraft, and of course, motorcycles. But, as much as I’m addicted to the thrill of riding, there’s a balance as to how much I’m willing to risk when I ride a motorcycle or when I’m out on a race track. I like to qualify sport bike riding as being “serious fun.”

Because if you don’t take it seriously, you can get hurt in a flash, either by your own negligence or by not paying attention to car drivers and others on the road. There are conscious choices that I make on a daily basis. For some very good reasons. My husband and daughter being two of them. And another is my work. I have to take care of myself so I can do the work I love.

It was Sigmund Freud who said, “Anatomy is destiny.” Now, maybe he wasn’t talking specifically about motorcycles, but certainly in my line of work, and definitely given the responsibilities our soldiers carry out, keeping our anatomy in prime condition is an absolute prerequisite to being able to perform our respective duties effectively.

This means I have to make smart decisions. For myself, for my family, and for my work. And we must find ways to help our soldiers make smart decisions when they’re back home, and especially when they’re away from the control and confinement of on-base life.

With May being Motorcycle Awareness Month, it’s the perfect time to reinforce how important it is to encourage our troops to use the same smart decision-making skills they use in the field when they return home, and to celebrate in ways that don’t endanger the very life-saving efforts they’ve worked so hard to achieve.

It’s certainly understandable that they’d want to cut loose. Who wouldn’t? They spend days, weeks, and months on end being rigidly disciplined, training themselves to peak performance, paying attention to the minutest of details, and working ceaseless with their units to form cohesive teams. Of course, they need a release, more than most.

What soldier doesn’t like to think of Tom Cruise on his Kawasaki romancing Kelly McGillis in Top Gun? But our challenge – and we’re making progress – is to find ways to reinforce a mindset that balances risk with reward. And not using their motorcycle as the vehicle of choice to totally let loose, so that once they’re home safely, they’ll stay in one piece, their anatomy still primed for destiny, so to speak.

That’s why all soldiers owe it to themselves to have fun, but to minimize the risk inherent with riding. And to play ‘big brother’ when necessary; setting the right example, and reminding fellow soldiers and riding buddies about basic motorcycle safety “musts:”

• Get trained and licensed
  
• Wear protective gear
  
• Don't drink and ride
  
• Ride with common sense within your own limits
  
• Continually upgrade skills with refresher courses
  

Above all, we’ve got to instill the mindset that riding a motorcycle to take out pent-up frustrations after months of working under such controlled and stressful circumstances is a formula for disaster. To think from a more balanced perspective, riding with forethought and consideration – while still enjoying the inherent thrill of being a motorcyclist.

The members of our combined Armed Forces – and it’s exciting to see all five branches represented here today – have already risked a tremendous amount on the line. It would be a shame, not to mention devastating to families, to waste all that talent, training and skills for a few moments of over-the-top craziness.

The Motorcycle Safety Foundation is taking some very positive steps, with the new Military SportBike RiderCourseSM and a booklet called Sport Bike Survival Guide by Nick Ienatsch with a forward by AMA Superbike Champion Ben Spies. This booklet will remind you of the great things you heard about and learned to do in the Course. I can’t think of a better combination than Nick, Ben and the MSF to learn from.

What’s the bottom line? What’s the message to our soldiers, especially our returning soldiers? Be as smart at home as you are on the job. Respect your private time and personal life as much as you do your working life. Find that balance between risk-taking and responsible riding. And by all means, get proper training if you’re celebrating your return home with a new bike and follow all of the motorcycle safety recommendations.

We’re all thankful to our troops for protecting our country and allowing us the freedoms we enjoy. In return, we want them to stay safe and sound, and to continue to preserve their “anatomy as destiny” for many years to come.

Thank you again for allowing me to be part of this important event. Have fun out there, and of course, be safe!

Catherine Bell can be seen on the Lifetime network in the hit television show Army Wives Sundays at 10 PM ET/PT. Vistit www.mylifetime.com/on-tv/shows/army-wives for more info.

Photo by Fred W. Baker III, Department of Defense

Since 1973, the Motorcycle Safety Foundation has set internationally recognized standards that promote the safety of motorcyclists with rider education courses, operator licensing tests, and public information programs. The MSF works with the federal government, state agencies, the military, and others to offer training for all skill levels so riders can enjoy a lifetime of safe, responsible motorcycling. The MSF is a not-for-profit organization sponsored by BMW, BRP, Ducati, Harley-Davidson, Honda, Kawasaki, KTM, Piaggio, Suzuki, Triumph, Victory, and Yamaha. For RiderCourse locations, call 800.446.9227 or visit

www.msf-usa.org.

 

:clap2:

Rod