Upfront

Hide the hooch

It’s a well-known fact that house parties have a way of spilling out onto the porch, the steps and the front lawn (or front strip of concrete). Some Sacramento residents may be unwittingly joining the criminal classes, thanks to a new city code adopted September 5. The law forbids the consumption of pinot noir, Night Train, Heineken or malt-liquor 40s on “private property open to the public, including but not limited to parking lots and shopping centers.”

Sgt. Chris Taylor explained that “the hope is that this is a tool to clean up blight. It gives police another tool to prosecute.” He went on to mention unwelcome transients partying in parking lots or stairwells. But if the police show up at a party that has spilled outdoors, and the tenant doesn’t assume responsibility for his guests, the guests could be charged under the new code as well.

The amendment also outlaws drinking on private property without the permission of the owner. But the new code may be a bit redundant. “People can’t just drink on your lawn,” said Karen Flynn, chief assistant public defender, when asked about the amendment. She pointed out an existing California law, Public Code Section 602, otherwise known as trespassing.

Two-wheeled terror

A motorcycle designed and built by Grass Valley’s Denis Manning set a new land speed record for two-wheeled vehicles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah on September 5. Stockton-born motorcycle-racing champion Chris Carr achieved an average speed of 350.8 mph in Manning’s 24-foot-long, fire-engine-red “streamliner.”

“I tell ya I’m feeling pretty good right now,” Carr told Cycle News magazine. “I’m only 5-foot-5, but I’m feeling 5-foot-8.”

As previously reported in SN&R (”The streamliner’s handbook,” SN&R Arts&Culture, August 24), Manning has been chasing land speed records for both motorcycles and automobiles for more than three decades. He set his first record for motorcycles in 1970 with a bike he built for Harley Davidson. Manning went on to found BUB Enterprises, an aftermarket motorcycle-parts company headquartered in Grass Valley, but he never lost his taste for speed.

The new record was set at the third annual International Motorcycle Speed Trials, which is presented by Manning’s company, BUB. Hundreds of riders from dozens of different motorcycle classes showed up for what turned out to be the most competitive meet in years. In the unlimited class, Carr and Manning faced stiff competition from ACK Attack’s twin-engined Suzuki streamliner, which started off the meet with a run of 342.97 mph, eclipsing the hold mark of 322 mph that had stood for 16 years. Carr, however, beat that speed with room to spare. He plans on returning to the salt again next year.

“I believe the BUB streamliner has the ability to go 400 mph-plus, and I want to be the guy that takes ‘er through that barrier,” he told Cycle News.

Members of the local deaf community have been anxious to connect with a therapist who understands deaf culture; speaks fluent American Sign Language; and can help them deal with the anger, depression and grief that sometimes go untreated in a primarily hearing world. (See “Can you hear me now?” SN&R Feature Story, June 8.) Jane Graff, who is deaf herself, recently was chosen to be that therapist. Local advocate Lois Diamond sent out a victorious e-mail: “After two and a half yrs of struggle, we have FINALLY gotten the mental health counselor for the deaf set up in our Sacramento area.” Graff trained at the New College of California in San Francisco and received a Master of Arts in counseling the deaf through well-known Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C. She will see patients at her Watt Avenue office on Wednesdays and will increase her hours as her client list grows. A forthcoming county contract soon will allow her to accept MediCal patients. “A therapist who is deaf is able to greater [empathize] with these types of struggles deaf people go through to gain autonomy and self-esteem,” wrote Graff in an e-mail to SN&R.