Servo stations – helmet ban
I’m sure, like me, many of you have been apprehended at a service station and told to remove your helmet when you go to pay for your fuel. This ruling has mystified me and I’m wondering WHY?
I’ve had several instances of this ruling, my experiences have been as follows:
- I’ve been reminded countless times to remove my helmet before paying, usually I refuse.
- Ordered over the tannoy, as I’ve reached for the petrol pump and the pump has been disabled until I acquiesced to the demand.
- The shop doors have been locked, as I attempted to pay. Eventually, the night window was opened and I managed to pay.
- After 15 years at the local servo, the staff member, who has also been serving for those 15 years and knows me, told me to remove my helmet. When I refused, he told me ‘it’s the law’ and that he’d been instructed by the boss to order motorcyclists to remove their helmets.
- Told that it was ‘a security issue’ and when challenged, the staff informed me ‘it was for her safety’.
Each time, I have parked my bike on the forecourt, with my registration plate clearly visible to their cameras and have been brandishing a $20 note, fully intent on paying for my fuel.
What exactly is the problem that the service stations are afraid of? Why do they need to see my face, when I pay for my petrol? If I filled a car up with fuel and then went to pay wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap, they wouldn’t bat an eyelid and they certainly wouldn’t ask me to take my hat and sunglasses off before I paid.
I can only assume that they think motorcyclists are a sub-human species who need to be kept in check before they inevitably commit an assault against the service station staff.
This is the kind of behaviour which I was frequently subjected to when I was living in the UK. Over there, I only had to walk into a pub with a leather jacket and helmet and then, told to leave, as motorcyclists were not welcome. These miserable people were unable to differentiate between chain wielding Hells Angels and normal blokes who rode motorbikes. Yes, I know, I wouldn’t wear my helmet into a bank either, that’s hardly a valid reason for service stations to impose a similar ruling.
I am heartily sick of this treatment and will continue to challenge service station staff concerning their ‘no helmets’ rule until I get told a sane and logical reason as to why this ruling is in effect.
Mopeds Plus, Targa Hindmarsh Run, Sunday 9th February
Participants: Alan Wallis 1995 Kawasaki 250cc M/C Warren Duncan 2002 Honda 250cc M/C Ian Voysey 1947 Malvern Star 98cc Autobyk Mick Hayes 2005 Suzuki 400cc M/C Roger O”Loughlin 1988 Suzuki 650cc M/C Paul David 1953 BSA 350cc M/C Tony Earnshaw … Read More »
Midweek ride to Swan Reach & Mannum, Wednesday 5th February.
There were 16 bikes at the start, Richard Knott led the way and our first stop was Lovell’s Bakery at Birdwood. From there, the ride was whittled down to 10 as we hit the long straight road to Swan Reach, … Read More »
Ride to Murray Mouth, Hindmarsh Island, Sunday 2nd February
In spite of my careful planning to start earlier due to the likelihood of hot weather, a couple of spanners were in the works. Firstly it was very mild weather, and we can’t complain about that. Then there was the … Read More »
Mopeds Plus Coast Run, 1st December 2019
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Ride to Strathalbyn & Milang, 1st December 2019
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Mill to Mill photos
I’ve accumulated lots of photos, sourced from various Facebook pages and from our members. I’ve split them into two galleries, you can wait for the slide show or manually click through them. They have also been posted under the Photos menu across the top of this page.