Motorcycle organizations coming together for "Riding for the Long Haul" event

PHOENIX (FOX 10) -- According to the Arizona Motorcycle Safety and Awareness Foundation, there are more than 3,000 motorcycle crashes in Arizona each year. To combat the numbers, the foundation holds a safety event to help stay safe on the roads.

It's a fight for life. Motorcycle organizations are coming together for the 5th annual "Riding for the Long Haul" event.

"This is the community coming together," said Mick Degn, executive director and founding board member of AMSAF. "We've got the police here [and] we've got some drill teams here."

Held at the Shriner Auditorium and Convention Center in Phoenix, the event aims to reduce fatal crashed in Arizona by spreading safety and awareness.

"We've got 206,000 motorcycles registered here in the state of Arizona, and we want to help keep those folks safe," Degn said.

The AMSAF offered free demonstrations at the event as well as offering free classes on road safety throughout the year. It's education that organizers say could mean life or death.

Captain Fett with the Arizona Precision Motorcycle Drill team says no more.

"We lost two motorcycle riders to left turners this week alone," Fett said. "For the motorcycle community, watch further ahead. If you're in traffic, watch four or five cars ahead for motorists. Just because you see one headlight, [that] doesn't mean it's a car with a bad headlight."

"You get 10 hours of riding and five hours of classroom [time]," Degn said. "That's really important because [there's] a lot of people on the road."

Degn also went on to say he wants to raise awareness because a lot of people on the road don't see motorcycles.

AMSAF also offers scholarships and grants for anyone wanting to take road safety classes.