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Your Life Might Depend on Your Fire Extinguisher

Published on 9/13/2022

Your Life Might Depend on Your Fire Extinguisher



You need to be prepared in the event of an emergency and fire certainly counts as a big emergency. Fire safety and preparedness is a cause our Executive Director, Keith Kizer, is very passionate about, as well as one that some of our Blue Ridge Chapter members are taking to heart now as well. Three months ago, while out on an early morning ride, 84-year-old Fred Obst (yes, Steve’s Dad) suffered an accident when his front end washed out from under him. Not only did Fred and the bike hit the ground, but the gas cap was forced open and the gas that spilled all over the bike, the road, and Fred ignited. Larry Offill, also on the ride that day, pulled Fred from the burning bike and ultimately Larry and Steve were able to snuff out the flames engulfing Fred. The incident did not leave them unscathed – Larry suffered first-degree burns for his rescue efforts, and Fred suffered third-degree burns on almost one fifth of his body. The photo to the left is an image of Fred’s 1975 R75/5 BMW Toaster Tank as it burned.




While you’ll be hearing more about the story of that fateful run in the Nov/Dec magazine and in another online news article we will be putting out with more photos and video of the accident and the aftermath, one thing is for certain – having a reliable fire extinguisher within easy reach in case of an emergency can save lives and reduce danger to life and limb. AMCA members Bill and Eric Kitchen, both Cannonballers, are the U.S. Distributors of the Element Fire Extinguisher, as seen on Jay Leno and other shows. They’ve teamed up with AMCA to help “get one of these on every bike.”


The Element Fire Extinguisher is the listed as the world’s smallest and longest lasting fire extinguisher. They are 80% smaller and 1/10th the weight of other extinguishers, have 5 times longer discharge, never expire, are non-toxic, and make no mess. With a variety of mounting hardware available, they can be put virtually anywhere on your bike to be easily grabbed and deployed in the case of an emergency.


You can see the product in action in several great videos on the Element website. You can also find a story of a bike (and rider) saved when another fire erupted at the Cannonball and a rider pulled out his Element to save the day. Most importantly, you can purchase your own Element Fire Extinguisher there as well. If you’re a member, use the AMCA Member 10% discount code on our Member Benefits code page! If you're a Chapter who wants to purchase in bulk, you can get a 20% discount by calling Bill Kitchen directly at (559) 259-4301. Point of purchase displays are available for those who want to sell them in their stores. (Again, call Bill.)




We send a thank you to Larry for his efforts in helping Fred, and all our best wishes to Fred for a speedy recovery and return to health.

Consider this your “smoke signal” – don’t wait until you’re in an emergency situation and wish you were better prepared. Get prepared now!



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