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ABATE OF WASHINGTON

DECEMBER 2022 UPDATES

State Coordinator's Report

Greetings!!


Hoping everyone has settled in for the cold! That was a rather quick Autumn/Fall…


First off let’s all remember those who have served this country unselfishly. I know that I am one month late but our Veterans should always be at our forefront and never be forgotten.  


I would like to discuss why ABATE of Washington is considering changing from a 501c4 to a 501c3. This was also discussed in last months newsletter and at BOD. 


Read about this change and other updates here.

 

Andy McAfee

State Coordinator

Spring Opener

We are happy to announce that raffle tickets for our 2023 Spring Opener raffle are available for sale. Thanks to our sponsors Jake's Gun and Pawn, Apple State Harley Davidson, and Mike Myers Motorcycle Attorney, we have some amazing prizes!

 

Please reach out to your Gambling Representative, David Crawford, to check out raffle tickets. His cell for call or text is 206-427-0091.

 

Below are the rules regarding distribution and selling of the raffle ticket, please review them carefully and Happy Selling.


Spring Opener Raffle Ticket Rules:

  • You must be an ABATE member in good standing to sell tickets.
  • The ABATE member that checks out the tickets from our Gambling Representative is responsible for returning the whole ticket or the ticket stub & $10.
  • The buyer and the seller must print their full legal first & last name as legible as possible. No nicknames, road names or initials please.
  • Please be mindful that when selling the Raffle Tickets, we need to make sure everyone has a fair chance when it comes time for the drawing. Therefore, the ticket stub cannot be altered in any way. This means no lamination, stickers, tape, rips, folding or creasing etc.
  • We ask that all SOLD tickets stubs & $10 be returned to the ABATE Gambling Representative by the June 11th, ECOM Meeting. The unsold tickets the member can keep & continue to try & keep selling. This is to help minimize the amount of cash & ticket stub counting we have to do the day of the event.
  • By 12 noon on Saturday of the Spring Opener ALL tickets & sold ticket stub / $10 must be turned back into the ABATE Gambling Representatives for counting. At that time there will be sperate tickets checked out that will be sold at the event between 12 noon & 6pm. The Gambling Representatives & State Officers could stretch out the selling time up until 8:30 pm depending on where the Gambling Committee is at with counting the sold tickets & money.
  • The drawing will be held at 10pm on Saturday, June 24, 2023
  • The member that sells the winning ticket for the 2020 Road King will get a $200 Pre-paid Visa (The member will be asked to complete a W9 for us to report your winnings)
  • The member that sells the winning ticket for the Tommy Gun will get a $200 Pre-paid Visa (The member will be asked to complete a W9 for us to report your winnings)
  • The members that sell any other of the winning tickets will get 1 Spring Opener member ticket for the 2024 Spring Opener event.
  • For any Chapter that sells 50 of the bike tickets OR 50 of the gun tickets (but not a combination of the two together) will get a Gift Certificate good for 1 Free Member Spring Opener ticket for the next year’s event. The Gift Certificates will be given to the Chapter Coordinators to pass out to the winning members of their chapter at the BOD in October.


The Vendor Registration form is attached here!

Ambassador-at -Large (Western Washington)

From your Ambassador At Large (Western Washington).

 

The Spring Opener will be here before we know it. Time has a way of moving forward very quickly. Gun and Motorcycle Raffle tickets are out. These are great raffles as well as an excellent opportunity for promoting ABATE and sharing what ABATE is all about. Our numbers will not increase if we are not actively involved. It’s easy to become complacent. Remember, the bigger our numbers, the louder our voice is in Olympia.

 

Patrick McCarter

Legislative Update

2023 Session Preview


It’s post-election and pre-session, so there is not a lot of hard information to report. We are still sorting out how the committees will stack up in both houses, but it will take a bit of time. At this writing there are still some races that are too close to call, but the overall control of the House and Senate will not shift.  The one thing that we know is that Sen. Randall won her reelection bid, so we do have a champion for our lane sharing/splitting/filtering issue. Language has yet to be crafted.


Click here to read more…

Motorcycle Riders Foundation

2023 Federal Legislative Agenda



At the 2022 Motorcycle Riders Foundation’s (MRF) 38th annual Meeting of the Minds Conference held in Des Moines, Iowa a legislative strategy session was hosted by the MRF’s Legislative Committee. The purpose of the session was to establish and prioritize the MRF’s 2023 Federal Legislative Agenda.


Legislative issues fall into one of three categories, high, medium and monitor. This list remains fluid and can be adapted depending on the issue and political environment.


Click here to learn more… 

NCOM

NCOM BIKER NEWSBYTES

Compiled & Edited by Bill Bish,

National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM)


COUNTRY MUSIC LEGEND AND MOTORCYCLE FAN LORETTA LYNN HAS PASSED

Country Music Star and AMA Hall of Fame inductee Loretta Lynn died in her sleep on October 4, 2022 at her popular ranch and tourist destination in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee, at age 90...


'NOISE' UNDER ATTACK IN CALIFORNIA

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) has signed AB-2496 into law, to now require a certificate of compliance for a violation of noise limit requirements and certain modified...


Click here to read more…

IN THE WIND

RUNS AND EVENTS

Wing Ding '22

December 1st, 2022

CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW THE FLYER

Terry Home Christmas Run

December 11th, 2022

CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW FLYER

Spring Opener

June 22-25

CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW FLYER

Polar Bear Run

January 1st, 2023

CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW FLYER

CHAPTER REPORTS

FOOTHILLS

Tis’ the season to be jolly! Greetings from Foothills, this month, we have our Terry Home Christmas Run on Sunday, December 11th @ 11 am, leaving the Buckley Eagles. After STEAM & BOD in October, Bubba & I were asked to represent ABATE of Washington at the ABATE of Oregon’s annual planning meeting & October BOD; they had asked us to speak & share with them about what we do regarding recruiting & re-building/structuring... READ MORE

GRAYS HARBOR

Haunted Hoquiam Trick or Treat



This has got to be my favorite event of the year! So many creative costumes, so many families out with their kids having fun. I took 78 pictures that day, and this newsletter could easily go on for 20 pages just showing my favorite kid of the day. And it wasn't only the kids showing off their costumes, many parents dressed up too, and even some of the dogs were in costume... READ MORE

PACIFIC COUNTY

Our November Chapter Meeting was a Historic Event. I was pleased to present our former Coordinator and Founding Member of the Pacific County Chapter, Lenny Pletsch, with a Lifetime Membership. The BOD voted unanimously to present Lenny with this honor for his years of service to ABATE of WA. Lenny was the Coordinator of the Pacific County Chapter for 24 years. He started the Safety and

Education Committee and was Chapter LAO from 1995-2017... READ MORE

SKY VALLEY

Happy Holidays from Sky Valley chapter in Snohomish!


It’s that time of year when the leaves, and the temperatures, are falling. As we look forward to special

times with our families and friends, we also think about members of our community that aren’t as

fortunate as we are. Our chapter always tries to help some of these folks out... READ MORE

SPOKANE

Greetings from Spokane


Our new Coordinator Diana Picone is doing a great job, and I’m sure you will be hearing and seeing her very active with ABATE... READ MORE

SPANAWAY

Wow, what a difference a few weeks makes! Charlie, Mac, Phil & myself rode to Ellensburg for STEAM & BOD on October 15th. Yes we rode to Ellensburg in October! Steam & BOD was informative as always and we had great social time Saturday evening. BOD on Sunday morning was well ran and we got a lot of things accomplished in a short amount of time... READ MORE

STAR LAKE

Greetings to all from Star Lake Chapter,


We had our monthly chapter meeting November 6th, 2022, 10am-11am at Purdy’s Public House in Sumner. The chapter discussed upcoming year events and rides. The chapter will be deciding on what charity benefit event to support next year since Hope Sparks has elected not to participate. The chapter is planning a night out next month and an early spring ride next year... READ MORE

Need to reach a specific Chapter?

Get their contact information here:

SEE ALL CHAPTERS HERE

MEYERS & COMPANY

Myers _ Co Logo.png

Who We Are


We’ve been helping people for almost 30 years. We’re smart, efficient, and sophisticated. We measure success by the results achieved for our clients. Most of our cases involve a motorcycle, bicycle, and auto collisions. We work on a contingent fee basis. We only get paid if there’s a recovery. Not only do we do all the work, we also advance all the costs necessary to prepare the case for trial. Clients don’t have to pay any money upfront.


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See Our Reviews

Have you heard of umbrella coverage? Basically, it adds coverage to all of your policies. Or does it...?

By default, umbrella coverage increases liability limits. But it doesn’t increase everything. And that’s a big deal. Maybe the most important coverage you can have increased is uninsured motorists in (UM) and u red motorists (UIM). I’ve said it before. And I think it’s probably more true now than ever. At least 90 percent of drivers are uninsured or underinsured. (We just settled a case against a driver who had $5.3M in coverage—and even he didn’t have enough insurance.) So it’s vital that you let your insurance agent/broker know that you want your umbrella policy to cover not only liability but also UM/UIM.

 Click here to read more about umbrella coverage


The Ins & Outs of "Releases" in Washington

We’re asked to sign releases all the time. Sometimes we’re not even asked to sign—they’re just embedded in our transactions. (Like when we buy lift

tickets to go skiing.) 

The Deterrent Effect of Releases

People fall into two categories. Either they assume that releases are iron-clad or they forget that they signed releases. The people who assume they’re iron-clad don’t pursue claims. That (false) belief is the biggest benefit to the businesses that make customers sign them.

Read More

Resources for Bikers

Filling in the Blanks


Most people have a pretty clear memory of how they got hurt. Frequently their memories are punctuated with very specific details. “That son of a bitch looked me right in the eye before turning left.” “The front door mat was a bright pastel color.” “The impact made a sound just like an M-80 going off.” But when you go through something traumatic, like a motorcycle wreck, the brain isn’t focused on making memories—it’s focused on survival. The same mechanisms that keep the brain sharp enough to escape immediate danger may also make it harder to accurately recall the event.

READ ABOUT THE CHEMISTRY OF MEMORY

He Passed Me Going 90 MPH


In just about every motorcycle case we have there

are allegations that our client was speeding. There are a couple of important things to know about the issue of motorcycle speed. The first relates to the reliability of witness observations. The second deals with the way courts deal with favored drivers exceeding the speed limit.


Witnesses are almost always wrong about

motorcycle speed. It may be based on the relatively small size of motorcycles compared to other vehicles. Or it may be based on witness bias.

LEARN MORE ABOUT WITNESS BIAS

Public Health and Relations Crisis


The concept of public health has really expanded. It used to focus on disease. Now it includes things like gun deaths. New York’s Governor recently declared

a gun violence disaster emergency. This new strategy treats gun violence as a public health crisis. We have a public health crisis of our own in Washington. It doesn’t have anything to do with guns. Or COVID-19. It has to do with motorcycles.

LEARN TO PLAY OFFENSE

What the Jury Doesn't Hear


The evidence rules have a big impact on what the jury gets to hear (and what it doesn’t get to hear). Evidence can seem a lot like an iceberg: 10 percent visible, 90 percent below the surface.


A lot of the evidence rules are counter-intuitive. Here’s what the jury doesn’t get to hear in a personal injury case:

KNOW ABOUT THE RULES

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