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The State of Utah usually brings to mind Mormons and mountains, but the most recent legislative session has added a third “m” to that list: motorcycles. Since May 14, 2019 motorcyclists in Utah have been given the ability to legally practice “lane filtering,” thanks to a new bill signed into law by Gov. Gary Herbert back in March.

At a basic level, “lane filtering” occurs when a rider moves between two lanes of slow-moving or stopped traffic to get to the front of the intersection. The Utah Highway Patrol is being proactive about the new law, launching an awareness campaign to inform motorists a month and a half ahead of the change. The Utah Department of Safety released this video explaining the reasoning behind the law—allowing motorcycles to get out from in between traffic so they can avoid rear-end collisions—and how it should be applied. But despite these efforts, there has been considerable confusion about the new rules of the road. (This viral video sums up a lot of the questions surrounding how exactly riders should lane filter safely.)

Whether you’re living in the Beehive State, getting up to Tahoe sometime soon or want to keep up on the latest laws that affect riders, read this quick rundown on Utah’s lane filtering law to get some clarity.

Is Lane Splitting Legal in the US?

Utah is now only one of two U.S. states that allow motorcycles to bypass slower lanes of traffic. California, the state with the most riders on the road, allows motorcyclists to “lane split” by going between cars while moving at freeway speeds as traffic slows down on the roadway. Utah’s law differs from California’s approach, stating that motorcycles can only “filter” to the front of the intersection when cars are stopped. The confusion over the lane filtering law is understandable.

(Side note: Like Utah’s regulation, the California lane splitting law elicited confusion from the public. In one instance, the California Highway Patrol issued guidelines on safe lane splitting but had to remove them a few weeks later after someone complained that it didn’t have the authority to post the guidelines in the first place. If you’re interested, you can see the CHP’s response here.)

The new Utah law also lays out additional rules that motorcyclists must adhere to when lane filtering. According to the Utah Highway Patrol, motorists:

1. 1. Can move to the front of a traffic light on roads where the speed limit is 45 mph or less and there are two or more adjacent traffic lanes in the same direction of travel
   2. Can only move to the front when vehicles are stopped
   3. Can’t filter lanes at more than 15 mph

The law also states that maneuvering around lanes has to be done safely, which leaves some ambiguity about what exactly constitutes “safe” lane splitting. In the video mentioned earlier in this article (here’s the link again, just in case), the Utah Department of Public Safety attempts to show what safe lane filtering looks like. UHP Sgt. Nick Streets is optimistic, telling KSL, “I hope they use due diligence and care not to try to do it where they’re really going to be threading the needle to where they have a lane that’s wide enough to accommodate if their bike has saddlebags or longer handlebars. If you take off a car’s mirror, that’s on you. You’re going to have to stop, talk to the police and file an accident report.”

Is lane splitting safe?

According to state statistics, more than 1,200 motorcyclists in Utah were rear-ended between 2011 to 2017. By the beginning of September 2018, there were

already more motorcycle deaths in Utah than in all of 2017. The majority of these occurred during the “100 Deadliest Days of Summer,” the period between Memorial Day and Labor Day.  Rear-end accidents often involve serious injury and, in some cases, even death.

The American Motorcycle Association has long held that lane splitting makes roads safer for riders and relieves traffic congestion, a view based largely on the successful use of the practice in California and a research study conducted by the University of California, Berkeley. Led by the university’s Safe Transportation Research and Education Center, the UC Berkley study found that lane filtering can be a safe practice if traffic is moving slower than 50 mph and riders aren’t moving more than 15 mph faster than the other vehicles on the road.

What do you think, should more states allow lane splitting? And as a rider, how would you define “safe” lane splitting?

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Drivers distracted by their cellphones. Wildlife. Loose gravel. A quick search online will pull up countless surveys, all asking riders some form of the same question: “What’s your biggest safety concern when you’re on your motorcycle?”

When Bosch conducted its own survey, the answer was clear: hitting a slippery patch. So the German brand decided to do something about it. Enter “jet thrusters,” which have been making headlines ever since Bosch rolled them out last year on the motorcycle tradeshow circuit.

The rundown on “lowsider” crashes

If you’ve never experienced a lowsider crash while taking a turn, you’ve definitely seen a video of one online. It goes something like this: you accelerate or brake too much, or run into slippery road conditions, and it causes your bike to lean to one side when you’re cornering. The result? Either your front or back wheel slides out from under you, and you skid across the pavement.

Compared with a “high side” crash—the kind where you’re thrown from your bike—“low sides” are generally less dangerous. Still, the result of a low-grip lowsider isn’t pretty: gravel rash, impact injuries and potential damage to your bike. (Note that you’ll be a lot better off in this scenario if you’re wearing protective clothing.)

A lowsider is one of the most common types of motorcycle accidents, and even experienced riders can’t always avoid a low side accident. But what if your bike had a way to gauge wheel slip and right itself before an actual crash occurs? That’s the idea behind Bosch’s jet thruster and other sliding mitigation technologies popping up in motorcycle R&D labs around the nation.

How Bosch’s jet thrusters work

When Bosch debuted its jet thrusters, industry reviews were positive, but a bit tentative. That’s not surprising. Given the “new age” aspect of having jets attached to your motorcycle and the description of the technology as an “invisible hand” that prevents lowsider accidents, it’s natural to be a bit skeptical.

And at first glance, the concept does beg the question: Will rockets on your bike actually make riding safer?

But when you take a closer look at how Bosch’s jet thrusters actually work, they’re not as outlandish as they sound. More than that, they actually make a lot of sense. As Bosch explains it, the technology uses a sensor built into the motorcycle to detect sideways wheel slip. If that slip hits a certain level, it triggers the release of gas—a lot like the kind you find in a car’s passenger airbags. That gas moves into the tank adapter, where it’s vented out through a nozzle in the direction needed to keep the motorcycle upright. (That’s a fancy way of saying that the gas jets out from the “high” side of your bike.)

Bosch’s jet thrusters are getting a lot of attention, but unfortunately for riders, the technology is still in development. No production launch is planned as of yet. And based on the system’s single-use design and complexity, it’s likely that the first bikes to get the “invisible hand” treatment will be high-end models.

Too many accidents, too much technology or both?

Technologies like Bosch’s jet thrusters are part of a bigger push to minimize—if not eliminate—motorcycle crashes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows motorcycle accidents up 5.1% between 2015 and 2016, with riders accounting for 14% of all traffic fatalities.

Images courtesy of Bosch

Safety is an undeniable consideration for every rider, and I think we’d all agree that the fewer accidents, the better. And with Bosch’s jet thrusters still in the testing phase, it’s safe to say that we’ve got some time before slipping mitigation technology is a feature of all new motorcycle models. But the shift toward more tech-heavy bikes is fueling a debate in rider communities that’s much bigger than a single sensor or system:

Does technology really enhance our riding, or does it take the joy out of it? And on a much more literal note, what happens if the jet thrusters go off at the wrong time?

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Can Harley Stop Its Sales Skid?

The numbers are in, and they won’t come as a shock to anyone who follows the motorcycle industry: Harley-Davidson just posted yet another quarter of falling sales. The drop was sharper than expected in the U.S. market, fanning the flame for skeptics who say the brand’s days as a major motorcycle manufacturer are numbered.

 What does this latest financial report mean for the most iconic motorcycle brand in America? Here’s the bad news, the good news and the “Hail Mary” that could help accelerate Harley’s sputtering sales.

The bad news

Riders already know that the U.S. motorcycle industry has been suffering since the recession. Motorcycle sales peaked at more than 1.1 million in 2005. But new sales have plummeted by 50% since 2008, with fewer bikes owned in every age bracket under 40. With more Baby Boomers retiring their motorcycles, there aren’t enough Millennial riders to offset the gap.

In a recent study, Millennials said they do consider purchasing motorcycles—for “ease of transportation.” This is a much different reason than cited by the older rider demographic, which chooses to own bikes as a “hobby” or because “motorcycles are cool.” (In case you’re wondering, the average Harley rider is now 50 years old with a household income of $90K.) With practicality becoming an increasingly important purchasing decision, Harley has some work to do. Otherwise, as one market researcher predicts, it could become the latest brand “killed” by Millennials.

Declining sales. Millennial disinterest. Tariffs galore. What does that mean for the U.S. motorcycle market? More than a decade since the recession, the industry is still struggling to recover—and Harley has been far from immune to the turbulence.

In Harley’s just-released earnings report, its U.S. sales dropped 8% in the second quarter, which is significantly more steep than the expected 6% decrease. This marks the company’s 10^th consecutive quarter of declining sales. But more concerning is its international motorcycle sales, which have dropped 8.9% since this time last year. In Europe, which makes up 47% of Harley’s international sales, motorcycle purchases have decreased 14%. Even China’s interest in motorcycles isn’t enough to offset that unexpected downturn.

And that’s just the half of it.

Once lauded by the president as an “American Icon,” Harley has also found itself caught in the political quagmire. After the federal tax cut last year, the brand spent $700 million on stock buybacks and closed its Kansas City plant—wiping out 260 jobs and angering both sides of the political aisle. With the Trump trade war heating up, Harley shifted some production overseas and began the process of opening up a plant in Thailand. Depending on who you ask, Harley’s (mis)use of the tax cut and its turn away from U.S. manufacturing have left a sour taste in the public’s mouth.

The good news

Harley’s Made in the U.S. motorcycles face a stiff 31% tariff when entering the European Union. However, the EU recently provided a silver lining to the brand’s woes: Harleys coming from Thailand will only face a 6% tariff. The brand is betting that Europeans will recognize that its operations in Thailand are simply a result of the tariffs and not cutting corners on quality.

But even this positive comes with a dose of reality. Because the EU delayed its decision, Harley had to push back its shipment of bikes from Thailand to Europe until mid-2020. It shifted down its shipment forecast accordingly, putting the number of Harleys shipped globally in 2019 at about the same level as 2010—the thick of the recession.

Are EVs the “Hail Mary?”

Harley is betting big on technology to accelerate its sales. The brand opened up a Silicon Valley office last year to support its vision for a full line of electric motorcycles and scooters. This comes hot on the heels of its much-anticipated LiveWire launch, which is slated for next month.

The battery-powered LiveWire, which generated major buzz at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this year, can go from zero to 60mph in three seconds, topping out at 110mph. Its charge time is one-hour flat for a city range of 146 miles; that’s 95 miles for a combination of city/highway riding. To sweeten the deal for consumers, Harley has partnered with Electrify America to give LiveWire riders 500kWh of free charging time over two years—the equivalent of about 32 fill-ups. Riders will be able to locate these charging stations, roughly 70 miles apart, using a new Harley-Davidson app.

Will electric motorcycles be Harley’s saving grace? Could a new line of EVs satisfy Millennial hunger for a more practical ride? It’s too soon to tell. But one thing is undeniable: the mix of tariffs, declining Millennial interest and politics has already dealt a heavy blow to a motorcycle brand once seen as invincible.

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If you ask 100 motorcycle riders how riding makes them feel, I’d be willing to bet that a majority of them describe a “pick me up” or peace of mind they can’t get anywhere else.

Reddit has an entire thread devoted to how riding makes people feel. Brian Steuber, a former U.S. Army staff sergeant, describes the rush this way: “My medical prescription is 800-plus pounds of American-made metal and chrome. No drug can compare; no feeling is better. That’s why I ride.” And then there’s Dan Aykroyd, who once said, “You do not need a therapist if you own a motorcycle, any kind of motorcycle!”

Maybe it’s the surge of adrenaline or that sheer feeling of freedom. It could be the thrill of hitting the road with your riding buddies—or, if you prefer going it lone wolf, the moments of solitude away from the rest of the world. But no matter how riding makes you feel, the impact of a good ride is unmistakable.

Riders instinctively know that the best cure for a tough day is two wheels and an open road. Still, research about the mental benefits of riding a motorcycle has been surprisingly spotty at best. That is, until earlier this year, when Harley-Davidson America funded a study to explore how riding affects our brains.

After decades of relative radio silence, science is now confirming what riders have known all along: getting on a motorcycle is good for your mood.

A quick rundown of the UCLA-Harley motorcycle study

In the recent University of California, Los Angeles study funded by Harley, researchers recorded the brain activity and hormone levels of more than 50 riders. The scientists tracked brain activity before motorcycles hit the road, mid-ride and afterward—plus while they were driving a car and relaxing. The ride was 22 miles, in normal weather conditions, and all participants rode their own motorcycles.

Here’s what the researchers found: A motorcycle ride decreased the participants’ stress biomarkers by almost 30%. Riding for 20 minutes boosted their heart rates by more than 10% and adrenaline by 27%—similar to the effect of getting light exercise. (Check out this article we wrote on the health benefits of riding a motorcycle, from a stronger core to better stability.)

Meanwhile, the EEG detecting the riders’ brain activity found that the ride did more good than just getting their cortisol under control—though that’s pretty significant to begin with. Changes in brain activity showed that the riders were more alert and less likely to be distracted, similar to what happens when you drink a cup of coffee.

It might feel like a bummer that Harley is planning to use the study to sell more motorcycles.

But if that news gets you down, at least there’s a science-backed remedy for easing your worried mind: going out for a ride.