Motorcycle enthusiasts, dealers and traffic safety officials are gathered in Ames today for an annual Motorcycle Safety Forum. Toni Kerkove, with the Iowa Department of Transportation, says the event at the Scheman Building on the Iowa State University campus is sold out , with 450 pre-registered participants.
“In my wildest dreams, I didn’t know that we’d reach that amount,” Kerkove said. “We’ll try our best to accommodate everyone that comes.” This is the ninth year for the Iowa Motorcycle Safety Forum.
Kerkove anticipates next year’s event will be moved to a larger venue. Today’s forum runs through 5 p.m. and involves rider training, various motorcycle-related exhibits, vendor booths and several speakers. One of the featured speakers is Brittany Morrow, a young Albuquerque, New Mexico resident who has dedicated her life to educating riders and promoting motorcycle safety apparel.
Morrow was badly injured in a motorcycle crash in 2005. She spent two months in a hospital and received skin grafts on over 50 percent of her body. Kerkove noted many of the speakers and displays at the forum are reminding motorcyclists to make themselves as visible as possible.
“We encourage them to (wear) bright colored clothing, bright colored helmets with reflective material, and use modulating headlamps that allow other motorists to see them more easily…anything that can help them be more visible to the motoring public,” Kerkove said.