Barnes Bros. Builds and Donates a Custom Police Bike

The Mayor and Police Chief of Canonsburg have accepted a gift of a new, specially outfitted Police motorcycle from the owners of Barnes Bros. Motorcycles & Off-Road of Canonsburg.

Mayor David Rhome and Chief Alex Coghill expressed their gratitude not only for the gift, but also for the extra effort put forth  by the dealership team to deliver the motorcycle in time to be a feature in the Canonsburg July Fourth Parade.

 
The high-tech bike was given by Brad, Blake and Liam Barnes in honor of the late Officer Scott Bashioum who was killed in the line of duty on November 10, 2016.  Watching from outside their dealership during Officer Bashioum’s funeral procession, the Barnes family saw more than 300 First Responder vehicles pass by.  Some of the vehicles were motorcycles, and it was then that they agreed that the Canonsburg Police Department would benefit physically and financially by owning and using a police motorcycle.
 
The Barnes team thought that a custom designed Adventure-type motorcycle would be the best Police bike.  Adventure Bikes look like a cross between a Sport Bike and a Dirt Bike and are one of the fastest growing categories of motorcycles in the US. 
 
Brad, who is the father of brothers Blake & Liam Barnes, pointed out that in cities, police motorcycles are usually the heavy cruiser type bikes like those escorting VIPs on city streets.  “The Adventure Bikes have many advantages over cruisers for police work.  They are lighter and more maneuverable and the operator sits upright,” Brad stated. “The operator’s head is the same height as the driver of a pickup truck. In addition, the operator can see over the roofs of most other vehicles,” Brad said.
 
Blake and Liam stated that the Adventure Bikes can also be ridden off-road and handle rough rural roads quite well.  Since a Police Package is not offered by any of the major manufacturers of Adventure Bikes, Brad began reaching out to industry experts for advice on custom building a high-tech Police bike in their dealership at 589 West Pike Street in Canonsburg.
 
The Barnes Bros. dealership is noted for customizing bikes and off-road ATVs for customers, with the advice they received they were confident that they could do the job.  They first contacted Canonsburg Police Chief Alex Coghill to explain the project they hoped to undertake.  The chief, although not a rider, said he was intrigued with the generous offer of Barnes Bros. and that he was grateful for the thought.
 
Brad and his sons decided that the 2017 Suzuki V-Strom 650 would be a great base motorcycle to use for the project because it features a number of important technology upgrades not typically found on this type of motorcycle.  Because the V-Strom 650 was completely redesigned for 2017, finding accessories to convert it into a Police motorcycle took many phone calls and countless planning hours to even begin the project.
 
“The support we received from Suzuki, GIVI, an Italian producer of specialty cycle luggage, and Whelen, the manufacturer of emergency lighting, gave us a lot of help on adapting ways to outfit the bike.  We were also very fortunate to have one of the top race bike and race car designers in the country create special graphics for the V-Strom,” said Brad.
 
With all parts and accessories finally at the dealership just a week before the Police motorcycle debuted in the Canonsburg July Fourth Parade, Barnes Bros. Service Manager and Lead Tech Adam Tibbs, stripped the bike down to its frame and began the build.  Adam installed a special aluminum case normally used as luggage to house the electronics.  He installed more than 120 feet of wiring used to control the 12 LED police strobe lights, a siren, a public-address system, and a combination of special auxiliary lighting, all designed to withstand the rigors of all-weather police use.  Adam was assisted by other members of the Barnes Bros. team of certified technicians and the motorcycle was completed just in time to ride in the parade dedicated to First Responders. 
 
Blake and Liam pointed out that the safety upgrades on the 2017 model are significant and include three modes of Traction Control, an ABS brake system, and many other technological improvements designed to prevent or reduce common accidents. In addition, the bike gets between 50 and 60 MPG, and the emergency lighting is designed to operate even when the engine is shut off, without depleting the main battery.  The cost of both purchasing, outfitting and operating the motorcycle is affordable for a small police department.
 
The owners of the Barnes Bros. dealership have a special affinity for policemen and the services they provide.  “Many of our customers are police officers from various communities and troopers from the Pennsylvania State Police who are bike riders,” said Brad.  “It is common for our conversations to arrive at the conclusion that motorcycles would be of a great benefit to Police Departments,” he added.
 
All three of the Barnes Bros. owners express pride in their business as one of the area’s top powersports dealers, including a large selection of both on-road and off-road motorcycles, ATVs and UTVs or Side-by-Sides.  But they all agreed that their pride of ownership was matched by the feelings they experienced by building and presenting the first such police vehicle in this area to the Canonsburg Police Department in honor of Officer Scott Bashioum.
 
“We are so very proud of our community’s Police Department and consider it an honor and a privilege to be able to express our gratitude with the motorcycle gift,” Brad said.  “Our officers deserve the admiration of every Canonsburg resident for the services they provide,” he concluded.