Officers are big wheels at ride-off

Marisa O’Neil

On his first day back to work, just a month after a car knocked him

off his motorcycle, Costa Mesa Police Officer Jose Torres got right

back on the proverbial horse that threw him.

Torres and seven other Costa Mesa Police motorcycle officers

showed off their riding skills this week at the Orange County Traffic

Officers’ Assn. Police Motorcycle Training and Skills Competition in

Huntington Beach. About 40 agencies from as far away as Oakland took

part in the annual event, which brought together more than 200

officers who share a love of one of police work’s more dangerous

assignments.

“It’s amazing how it’s in the blood,” said Torres, whose shoulder

was broken in the accident. “My wife doesn’t want me to ride anymore.

But here I am.”

Another injured Costa Mesa officer, Dennis Dickens, came with his

1-year-old daughter to watch his friends ride. Dickens is still

recovering from a serious crash in June as he rode home on the San

Diego Freeway.

In that accident, another motorcyclist, who was allegedly

traveling more than 100 miles per hour, struck Dickens’ motorcycle

from behind, knocking him off. The man in that crash is awaiting

trial on drunken driving charges.

Dickens is undergoing physical therapy and is waiting for doctors

to tell him he can ride again.

“I miss this,” Dickens said as he watched the Wednesday

competition. “It’s good to get out here and smell the exhaust.”

The event serves as a fundraiser for the families of motorcycle

officers killed in the line of duty. This year, four motorcycle

officers in the state died, said Huntington Beach Police Officer

Richard Wright.

More than half of Oakland’s 25 motorcycle officers brought their

huge Harley-Davidson Road Kings down to compete and perform a team

drill in honor of fellow officer Will Seuis, Oakland officer Randy

Pope said. Seuis, 39, died in July when a truck struck his motorcycle

as he was riding home from his shift.

Wednesday’s competition included traffic cones set into a series

of courses, testing officers’ skills. Officers had to maneuver their

motorcycles around curves, weave in and out of cones and turn sharp

circles -- without knocking over any of the cones or dropping a foot

to the pavement.

Doing that kind of work in a competitive but controlled

environment helps prepare the officers to avoid accidents in the real

world, said Costa Mesa Police Chief John Hensley. Most motorcycle

officers are injured by careless drivers, not through their own

mistakes, he said.

“Believe it or not, these are the skills that keep you alive when

someone pulls in front of you,” Newport Beach Police Officer Tracy

McKenzie said. “Even if you don’t do well [in the competition], it’s

good to shake the rust off.”

McKenzie and fellow Newport Beach Police officers Brian Haas and

Dave Darling won first place overall in the BMW competition. The

competition was divided into separate categories for larger

motorcycles, like the BMWs and Harley-Davidsons and for the smaller

Kawasaki motorcycles.