"Excruciatingly Loud" does not equate to "Really Fast Motorcycle"
While sitting at a highway turnout the other day taking notes and discussing the bikes we were riding with several SR guest testers, the din of a sportbike with an aftermarket exhaust signaled the approach of a fellow rider. As we continued discussing the various merits and foibles of each bike we'd just stepped off of, the noise reverberated off the canyon walls at an increasingly louder and higher rate, so we paused to witness this latest incarnation of Rossi go screaming by. The wail continued to get louder, but the rider still didn't appear around the corner; it sounded as if he was just around the bend with every passing second, yet nothing was materializing.
Just when we thought that perhaps there might be a road below or above us that we didn't know about, the rider and bike came shooting into view. Crouched into a full race tuck, the rider blasted by us in a howling crescendo so excruciatingly loud that I had to cover my ears. I've been to numerous MotoGP and Formula One events, so I know the difference between loud and painful/where-are-my-earplugs loud. Yet this bike was seemingly beyond that volume level, which I guess in its own perverse way was something of an achievement. The catcalls rang out from the guest testers as the rider disappeared around the next bend: "Straight from MotoGP!" "And Rossi looks like he's going to make his move!" "Another dominating performance from the Doctor!"
As we chuckled about the incident and returned to discussing our test, it was hard not to notice that the noise level wasn't dropping off that much, and the echoing off the canyon walls continued for several minutes after the rider had gone past. It was easy to imagine a law enforcement officer sitting somewhere down the road, easily alerted to the rider's approach long beforehand and having plenty of time to get his car situated so that the oncoming prey would be snatched with ridiculous ease...like shooting fish in a barrel. Or think of a resident in that area (most likely wealthy and with some political connections), relaxing in his backyard only to be shocked out of his karmic trance by the banshee wail of an unmuffled sportbike.
Make no mistake-I like a nice-sounding aftermarket exhaust just as much as the next guy. I started off like everyone else, nervous with anticipation while installing a "racing" exhaust system on my first bike. When I finally got everything buttoned up and started the engine, the exhaust note was practically intoxicating (no, the garage door wasn't closed). I was so excited that I went for a long ride just so I could continue listening to it.
It was the same when I was learning to ride in the local canyons. Having a nice aftermarket exhaust just added to the experience that couldn't be accomplished any other way.
But as I gained experience-including experience with playing cat and mouse with local law enforcement in those canyons-I realized that a loud exhaust only served as a citation beacon. Alerting people in the area to your approaching presence isn't in your best interests when you're, um...exploiting certain freedoms in this great country of ours. And signaling that approach with a sound that already gives the impression you're breaking the law is even worse.
It's already reached the point that several cities have enacted laws that are aimed specifically at loud motorcycles. The recent ordinance approved by New York City is a perfect example, even if it was reportedly intended for straight-piped Harleys. Interpretation of the law starts with the ground troops, so if you're suddenly on the receiving end of a particular officer's bad day, you're still stuck with elaborating on the specific language of that law to the court judge. On the European front, now in several countries you can't even import an aftermarket exhaust for sale unless it passes a strict sound test.
During the course of evaluating countless exhaust systems and suffering second degree burns while trudging through several pipe comparisons at this magazine, we've known that you can get great performance without having to embrace permanent hearing loss. Most of the well-known quality brands have designed their mufflers to be as quiet as possible while still offering enough flow to provide excellent power; the exhaust note is just as crisp and clean, it just doesn't make your ears bleed like many of the cheaper, shoddy-build slip-on mufflers we've seen.
Whenever unfair laws get enacted, it's easy to complain. But it's a lot harder to face up to the fact that we simply can't afford to draw negative attention to ourselves. Ending up on the radar screens of those in power is a sure recipe for disaster.