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A motorcycle safety stand down hosted by the 2nd Marine Logistics Group is scheduled for 1 p.m. June 30, 2011 at the Russell Center aboard Camp Lejeune. The intent of the stand down is for the Marines in attendance to walk away knowing how to make better decisions when it comes to riding.

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2nd MLG to host Motorcycle Safety Stand Down

24 Jun 2011 | 2ndLt James F. Stenger 2nd Marine Logistics Group

A motorcycle safety stand down hosted by the 2nd Marine Logistics Group is scheduled for 1 p.m. June 30, 2011 at the Russell Center here.

More riders typically take to the roads as the summer season and its warm weather arrive aboard Camp Lejeune. With this, the likelihood of an accident increases.

“In light of recent events that have taken place we need to educate and re-educate our motorcycle riders … Marine Corps wide we’ve had six fatalities with one here in II MEF,” said 2nd MLG Safety Chief Staff Sgt. Brent M. Sharp when asked about this year’s spike in motorcycle incidents.

For Col. Kenneth D. Enzor, 2nd MLG Chief of Staff, the event couldn’t be any timelier.

“When it comes to safety it doesn’t matter if it’s skiing or boating, you can never talk too much, but you can certainly talk too little. It’s the summer time, it’s when people ride motorcycles and ATV’s and it doesn’t hurt to remind them how dangerous a motorcycle is,” said Enzor.

The intent of the stand down is for the Marines in attendance to walk away knowing how to make better decisions when it comes to riding.

“We’ve lost more Marines in off-duty accidents than we’ve lost in war. The majority of times when you go and look at what happened it’s because a decision was made that shouldn’t have been made, they decided to do something they shouldn’t have done,” said Enzor.

Guest speakers will include: Master Sgt. Andrew B. Allen, the base traffic court magistrate; North Carolina State Trooper and Motorcycle Officer Sgt. Mark Brown; and Gunnery Sgt. Steven Sheals, a Marine who has made recent headlines for a dangerous traffic incident that seriously injured himself and a passenger and has landed him in legal trouble, said Sharp.

The speakers will cover the repercussions of both on and off-base citations, general motorcycle safety (to include the proper use of personal protective equipment) and the legal and medical ramifications that result from an accident, explained Sharp.

Anyone in the 2nd MLG who owns a motorcycle, has a motorcycle endorsement, or who is considering owning a motorcycle in the future is required to attend.

Every time we lose a Marine, that’s one less Marine we don’t have to bring to the fight anymore, concluded Enzor.