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SMOKEOUT WEST KICKS IT ON FRIDAY, MAY 8–The 10th Anniversary Smoke Out will start in Cottonwood, AZ with a two-day blow out launch party. The party in Cottonwood starts Friday night May 8, 2009 and goes all day Saturday. The party will include the usual mayhem with music, The AZ Derby Dames, venders, a chop-off, bike show etc.
XsSpeed will be there and the XsSpeed mini-bike races will be one of the key highlights of the weekend (remember: you must be in a superhero costume to race). We will also mint a commemorative poker chip and have one free (at the gate) with each purchased ticket. If you pre-register we will also have a commemorative poker chip for you at the gate.
The bands this year include The Last Call Brawlers, The High Rollers, Hellbound Hayride and Jasmine Cain.
Sunday morning the hardy chopper-jockeys that dare will start a 2,000-mile ride to the Rockingham Drag Strip in Rockingham, NC. The ride called, The Long Road, will be about a 350-mile ride each day with an insane party each night. Click here for SMOKE OUT details.
Pied Piper Releases Customer Satisfaction Study–Ducati dealerships ranked highest in the newly released 2009 Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index U.S. Motorcycle Industry Study, which measures how consumers are treated when shopping for a new motorcycle.
The independent study sent 2,100 mystery shoppers into motorcycle dealerships nationwide, and then used the patent-pending PSI process to compile the results into a measurement of how each brand’s dealerships treat motorcycle shoppers.
Following Ducati was Harley-Davidson whose dealers were ranked first in 2007 and 2008. BMW, Victory, Buell and MV Augusta round out the top spots. Overall motorcycle industry performance improved from 2008 to 2009, with eleven of the fifteen major motorcycle brands achieving higher PSI scores.
Harley-Davidson dealers still performed substantially above the motorcycle industry average, but 2009 marked the first time in three years that dealers from another motorcycle brand were ranked higher. Consistent improvement beginning in 2007 propelled the Ducati dealers to their first place ranking in 2009, where they led all brands in 30 percent of the sales process factors evaluated by the study. Harley-Davidson dealers held onto the highest ranking for 20 percent of the sales process factors. Buell, BMW, MV Augusta and Victory each led multiple sales process areas too.
Examples of sales process factors dominated by Ducati salespeople include the ability to answer product questions, offering test rides, offering brochures and asking for the sale. Harley-Davidson salespeople led all brands for taking time to determine how a motorcycle would be used, and for addressing features and benefits specific to the prospect’s wants and needs. BMW salespeople ranked first for greeting prospects promptly, for making the special order process easy and for mentioning the availability of accessories.
For more information about the Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index go to www.piedpiperpsi.com.
–from MPN mag
MaxFlow and HiFlow Air Filters From Zipper?s–To Make More Power, you must have more airflow!
Increasing airflow at the inlet is step one – even for a stock engine. Zipper’s MaxFlow and HiFlow air cleaners include high quality 100-percent washable, pleated filter elements made from multiple layers of surgical-quality cotton gauze material that traps the smallest dirt particles while providing dramatic flow increases. USA-made cast backing plates incorporate internal breather passages and are available in three finishes to match your engine and budget (standard silver aluminum cast, texture black or chrome). All accept the standard TC “football” air cleaner cover (not included). Two filter depths are offered, standard HiFlow and MaxFlow:
HiFlow keeps the outer cover at the same location as stock.
MaxFlow version moves the cover out approximately 5/8″ wider due to the extra deep MaxFlow filter element.
HiFlow is recommended for stock engines; the MaxFlow filter should be used on modified engines with high flow exhaust systems for best results. All required mounting hardware and instructions included
Legal in California only for racing vehicles which may never be used upon a highway.
Contact:
ZIPPER?S PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS
6655-A Amberton Drive
Elkridge, MD 21075
Phone 410.579.2828Fax 410.579.2835
www.ZippersPerformance.com
www.Thunder-Max.com
Time for the Annual MEMORIAL WEEKEND IN MITCHELL event!–Each year Klock Werks sponsors a Charity Ride on Memorial Weekend where the proceeds benefit Cystic Fibrosis.2008 saw the ride expand to a complete celebration of Memorial Weekend in Mitchell where Main Street is blocked off and events fill the streets!
Saturday, May 23rd
Sunday, May 24th
Fun for the WHOLE FAMILY!
Kids events including games, face painting, 18? slide, train rides, inflatable animal playland, big wheel races and more!
Family events including a Car, Mud Truck and Motorcycle Show (awards are given for the best in many classes!), Photo Contest, NASCAR Simulator, Hot Air Balloon Rides, LIVE Charity Auction, Silent Auction, Shopping, Food and Drink.
The Cystic Fibrosis Charity Ride leaves from the Moonlight on Main Street at 1:00 PM Saturday, Rain or Shine, Cars and Bikes welcome!
CELEBRITY GUEST APPEARANCE: PAUL YAFFE!! www.paulyaffeoriginals.com
4PM-Midnight the STREET PARTY BEGINS!!
7:30 PM – JOHNNY LUNCHMEAT
8:30 PM – JUDD HOOS BAND will be playing on stage on Main Street Saturday Night, 8:30PM to Midnight!
Sign up for the GOLF TOURNAMENT and/or attend the MUD RACES on Sunday to complete an awesome weekend.
Proceeds from the events of the weekend benefit Cystic Fibrosis.
If you?d like to attend, pre-register for the ride and/or golf tournament. Or just show up. You don?t want to miss this!
Pre-register by printing out and completing the form attached and a limited edition T-shirt designed by our own BIG JOE will be set aside just for you. He does a new design each year. They are becoming collector?s items!
HURRY! Must pre-register by MAY 11, 2009.
When you get to town, be sure to stop by the shop and see what?s new with the Klock Werks Krew!
KLOCK WERKS OPEN HOUSE Friday night, 7-9:00 PM
For a COMPLETE schedule of events and more info, visit www.memorialweekendinmitchell.com
To learn more about Cystic Fibrosis, visit: www.cff.org
Hotels in town offering special rates:
Days Inn: 605.996.6208
Comfort Inn: 605.990.2400
Ramada Inn: 605.996-6501
Hampton Inn: 605-995-1575
There are great campgrounds in town as well.
Hope to see you Memorial Weekend!
Twin Club Norrtelje Swedish Custom Bike Show–Organized by Twin Club MC, Custom Bike Show is the Official World Championship of Custom Bike Building program’s Scandinavian Championship, and is believed to be the oldest established custom motorcycle competition in the world.
This year’s one-day ride-in show will take place on June 6 in its usual location of Societets Park in Norrtelje, north of Stockholm.
The event draws large crowds on the national holiday weekend and usually sees good weather, as well as excellent support from Europe-wide parts and accessories distributors including Custom Chrome Europe, Motorcycle Storehouse, MotoSpeed and Redneck Engineering’s Sweden-based European operation.
The standard of the event reflects the tastes and styles of custom design and engineering in that part of the world, and two of last year’s winners will be in Sturgis this year, as current Scandinavian Champion Flying Choppers of Finland took third place at this year’s Official European Championship in Mainz, Germany, and last year’s third placed contestant, Lasse Sundberg, won the Bigtwin Bikeshow in Rosmalen, Netherlands, last November.
They will be joined by this year’s winner, who wins expenses towards the cost of participating in the Official World Championship on August 2-5. This is the fifth year that the event has been an Official Affiliate, and the winner’s prize (given by Twin Club MC) is worth some 5,000 euros (nearly US $6,700), with additional prizes of 1,500 euros each for second and third-placed winners to compete at the annual Official European Championship.
www.custombikeshow.se
LEAD LAW ENFORCEMENT HELD OFF–The CPSC voted a stay of enforcement into place that effectively lifts the ban of youth-model motorcycles and ATVs on Friday, May 1, with the document being made public on Monday, May 4. The stay extends through May 1, 2011, following a unanimous vote by acting chairwoman Nancy Nord and commissioner Thomas Moore.
While this provides relief to the industry, it?s not the permanent solution. Simply put, the fight isn?t over ? it?s just a two-year timeout.
?While we applaud the CPSC commissioners? vote to stay enforcement of the law, this doesn?t solve the real issue, which is the law itself,? said AMA vice president for government relations Ed Moreland. ?Youth-model motorcycles and ATVs should be exempt from the law, and Congress needs to act to make that happen. Hopefully, this stay will give Congress the time it needs to fix this law, and we will continue to work with both legislators and our partners in the industry to make certain that it does.?
The CPSC voted on the Stay of Enforcement on May 1. The AMA, MIC and others at the forefront of this political issue on behalf of the OHV industry had yet to fully examine the 25-page document that was made public on May 4, but so far, it seems to be the relief they were hoping for.
?It would be a mistake to let our guard down and say, ?Aw, we got a two-year stay ? now let?s worry about other things,?? Hilbert said. ?My biggest concern right now is that we use those two years to get the law fixed. Now is the time to resurrect any energy that was there around those two bills and make sure that they?re brought to the floor as quickly as possible.?
–Cycle News
BIKERNET GOVERNMENT WATCHDOG GROUP FINDINGS FOR THIS WEEK– This is going out as an example of WHY Government needs to be smaller and taxes need to be lower…. Because if they have so much of YOUR money they waste it on crap like this……. Tony C.
Feds Will Spend $400,000 to Study Drinking and Sex Habits of Homosexuals in Argentina
(CNSNews.com) ? The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is funding a study that seeks to discover a link between drinking and having sex among homosexuals in Argentina.
The study will send researchers to six bars in Buenos Aires to interview both patrons and proprietors in an effort to discover what it is about those bars that may encourage the risky behavior.
The study began on Sept. 30, 2008, and runs through Aug. 31, 2010. It already has cost taxpayers $198,776. By the time the project ends, it will have cost $403,902, according to NIH.
The grant, awarded to the New York State Psychiatric Institute, was provided by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the division of NIH that studies the effects of alcohol and alcoholism.
The study?s primary focus is to determine the relationship among drinking, bars frequented by homosexuals, and risky sexual behavior to see if certain bars in Argentina might be good targets for HIV-prevention campaigns.
The study has six goals, including the collection of information on six specific bars in Buenos Aires; the appearance, of those bars, alcohol availability, patrons, and types of sexual behavior taking place. The study also seeks to identify which factors contribute to alcohol consumption and sexual behavior in the bars.
?The specific aims of this study are to ? 2) identify factors that contribute to alcohol use and high-risk sexual behavior in the venues,? says the abstract.
Researchers will interview 48 of the men who patronize the bars, as well as the bar staff to gather information on the types of alcohol consumed and sexual behavior engaged in.
The study is among a number funded by the NIAAA to examine the relationship between drinking and the spread of HIV, including a study of tourism, prostitution, and HIV in the Dominican Republic and another study examining drinking and HIV among prostitutes in China.
Monday, May 04, 2009
–By Matt Cover
–from Tony C.
Once a Marine… …Always a Marine OOORAHHH !!!!!
SCOOTER DALLAS WEEKLY ACTION–Be sure to join us for the upcomingVictory Bike Nights with 92.5 KZPS!
We will be hosting Bike Night on the following Thursday nights:
Thursday, May 28
Thursday, June 11
Thursday, July 9
Come join us for hot girls, cold beer, and great deals on all in-stock Victory Motorcycles! Stay tuned for location information and updated event details.
Don’t get caught in the dog house this year!Let Strokers Dallas find the perfect gift for the MOM in your life!
We have plenty of ladies apparel, helmets, gloves, boots, jewelry, belts, accessories, and leathers to choose from! Tons of new Rock Steady, Lucky 13, and Strokers branded apparel is on the floor now.
Our girls will help you find the perfect size, style, and item for every MOM on your list.
SEMA MOTORCYCLE WORK GROUP UPDATE–In these difficult times we are attempting to set up a Motorcycle Work Group with the encouragement of SEMA, the largest Automotive Aftermarket Support group in the world. We currently have 86 very interested members of the motorcycle world who want to be involved. Fortunately SEMA allows major manufacturers, Aftermarket manufacturers, dealers, shops, builders and individuals join their organization. We need all the support we can muster in a time of regulation over freedoms.
Here’s the latest letter to our group: Well, it’s time to move, from several perspectives. We now havethe opportunity to show SEMA that we have what it takes. SEMA has openedtheir massive Las Vegas show to power sports and motorcycle exhibits. And weare faced with many legislative objectives including:
* Smog testing motorcycles in California.
* EPA issues and their efforts to spread control.
* Growing noise issues and the MIC’s effort to develop a testing andcertification effort.
We need to find way to support our bike building industry and support themotorcycle rights community that has diligently kept us free for almost fourdecades.
First, we need to form a committee–a Custom Motorcycle WorkingGroup, and get active. Second, we need to take a vote on our missionstatement. Third, we need to decide how far to spread the membership of thisgroup.
Send me a note if you would like to be an active member of the committee.You might rate your desire on a scale from one to ten, ten being a highlyactive leader. Here is our initial mission statement. Feel free to makechanges or give me your thoughts:
Motorcycle Work Group Mission Statement
Our first and foremost goal is supporting the freedom to build and ridecustom motorcycles. Another goal is to create an active link between themotorcycle aftermarket industry and the motorcycle rights community. We willendeavor to create an ongoing communication forum and promote legislativeefforts as widely as possible. A primary objective is to provide meaningfulsolutions to industry-specific issues and challenges, thereby perpetuatingthe growth and prosperity of motorcycle aftermarket parts manufacturers.
Regarding membership we can keep this to the American V-Twin aftermarket,dealers, shops and builders, spread it to metric cruisers, or? Let me knowyour thoughts.
A final note: It’s vital that we all write California Senator Fran inopposition to motorcycle smog testing. ABATE of California, the CaliforniaDealers Association, and the MIC are working with California AssemblymanMike Duvall, who is a SEMA member and Chairman of the SEMA-sponsored StateAutomotive Enthusiast Leadership Caucus. He is currently holding up thebill. You might want to drop him a supportive note.
State Senator Fran Pavley
Capitol Office – Room 4035
Sacramento, CA 95814
We also need to discuss our next meeting. I believe we are about to facecritical times in our industry. We need to discuss how we hope to handlethese obstacles, and perhaps turn them into opportunities. I also have thenotion, although I could be wrong, that this effort with SEMA could opendoors within our industry to reach customers on the automotive side.
One more comment before I go. This industry has been my life, and I hope tohelp it stay free and vibrant. On the other hand, I’m not a control freak,except when it comes to Jack Daniels. As you respond to our agenda itemsabove, we will be looking for a working group of leaders to take on the roleof president and other leading positions, so don’t hesitate to step up. Letus know your desires and willingness to act.
Thanks, and ride forever
–BANDIT
Bandit@Bikernet.com
PAUGHCO FILLS THE SPACER GAP FOR BUILDERS EVERYWHERE–Must have item for any shop or home builder. Paughco is now offering an assortment of chrome plates steel axle spacers that will save builders a lot time and grief. Kit contains 28 pieces with 2 each of 14 different lengths from 1/4″ to 3″. Available in 3/4 and 1″ ID. Shipped in handy plastic tubes. 3/4″ $179.00. 1″ $199.00.
Seat King Mike Corbin Set To RetireLists Manufacturing Company For Sale–motorcycle seats for 42 years, but now he?s ready to call it quits. Corbin, founder of Corbin-Pacific, one of the leading developers and manufacturers of motorcycle seats and accessories, has put the company up for sale. The details are presented here. The second part of this report includes information from a lengthy conversation I had with Corbin about how he built the company, how he sees changes in the marketing of motorcycle products, and what he plans to do in retirement.
After designing and building some of the world?s most popular motorcycle seats for more than four decades, Mike Corbin has had enough. He?s ready to retire, and he wants to sell his company, Corbin-Pacific, Inc., including its headquarters and manufacturing facility in Hollister, Calif., and its retailing facility in Daytona Beach, Fla.
He?s not going to go away entirely, though. He?s available to work with the new owner for up to two years to ensure a successful transition.
He?s listed the company with an LA sales and acquisitions firm, Business Team. Jeff Beland, executive vice president, is the contact, if you?re interested. He can be reached at (310) 539-8300 or jbeland@business-team.com.
I spoke with Mike and Jeff this week and here?s a summary of the selling information:
Corbin Pacific, Inc. It?s listed at $11.5 million. The company develops, manufactures and markets a wide line of custom motorcycle seats and accessories. Mike Corbin founded the company and has been its resident design genius for 42 years. He holds 82 patents and has developed everything from custom leather motorcycle seats and backrests to apparel and highly stylized fiberglass fairings, bags and other accessories.
The company?s products are designed specifically for individual models of motorcycles and scooters. Corbin also produces products for the unique three-wheel BRP Spyder roadster.
Corbin maintains an inventory of more than 1,500 fiberglass seat molds for every major brand and model in street and off-road categories.
In an unusual move for this industry, Corbin has eliminated all sales to distributors and now sells directly to dealers and consumers, largely through the Corbin website.
The company generated revenues of $14.6 million in 2007 and $14.7 million last year, almost all of it through the company?s Internet website. The company lost money the last two years, but has returned to profitability this year, according to management.
Hollister, Calif., Property. It?s listed at $7.2 million. This modern 82,000 sq. ft. facility houses the company?s headquarters and main manufacturing operation; it?s where all Corbin seats and accessories are produced. Built in 1997, the building includes a restaurant, customization service area, customized wiring and an OSHA Certified work area. There?s also a showroom that presents the history of Corbin and the many products he?s invented and produced.
Ormond, Fla., Property. It?s listed at $3.2 million. The Ormond showroom is an 11,000 sq ft building designed to handle sales, marketing and product installation. The classy building serves as a showcase of Corbin products for East Coast riders. The showroom is located on Main Street in Daytona Beach, which hosts two motorcycle rallies annually and draws more than 200,000 motorcyclists.
That?s it for the sales information. Next time, I?ll write about my conversation with Mike that will touch on his future plans, his unusual marketing approach, and a bit of the history of the company and the man.
–DealerNews
BIKERNET MEDICAL CENTER DEVELOPS 4 Snacks for Weight Loss– Eating small, healthful meals throughout the day not only helps keep blood sugar levels stable and energy levels high, but can also help prevent overeating and promote a healthy weight. Start by making your main meals smaller in size and stocking up on healthy, satisfying snack items to round out your day. Good choices include:
Fresh or lightly steamed veggies
Whole wheat pita and hummus
Seasonal fruit with low-fat yogurt and freshly ground flaxseed
Whole grain crackers with a small piece of cheese or some smoked salmon
These healthy snacks also have the added benefit of being part of the anti-inflammatory diet that I recommend, and can help reduce the incidence of inflammatory related diseases.
–DrWeil.com
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