Best Toronto Motorcycle Show

[xrljoel]

Forum Sponsor

Am I the only one who goes to the show and doesn't care about new bikes? If I wanted to see new bikes I'd go to a dealer.
I want to see the stuff dealers don't have. Vintage, customs, race bikes and other one off stuff. I'm often just looking for ideas and neat trick bits that I can steal or mimic.

Yes, you are the only one.

Just kidding. I also go primarily for the other stuff you mentioned. One year there was a particularly nice Norton Commando in the vintage area. I spent a lot of time at that bike, taking pictures of various things like front brake line routing and other stuff as the owner had fitted lower bars and was able to use the stock lever/reservoir. He had also re-located the horn, and ignition.

Honestly, the pics took and noted I made after looking over that bike was worth the admission or at least left me VERY satisfied that I had gone to the show.

 

[adri]

You guys might be taking for granted that the dealers actually have the "new bikes"... They often don't.

Husqvarna dealers didn't get the new 2024 401s until October of 2024. If you started going to the dealer to see the new stuff you would have been going back every month for ten months. Ask me how I know.

I believe Aprilia dealers didn't get their 400-series bikes until September-ish?

Prior to that, Triumph didn't get their 400s to Canada until late spring, at which point they were all pre-sold at my local dealer, so they didn't actually have anything you could look at and sit on until mid summer.

In theory the dealers sssshhhhould have the new bikes for us to check out and sit on, but quite often that's not reaaaaaallly the case.

 

[Sunday Rider]

You guys might be taking for granted that the dealers actually have the "new bikes"... They often don't.

Husqvarna dealers didn't get the new 2024 401s until October of 2024. If you started going to the dealer to see the new stuff you would have been going back every month for ten months. Ask me how I know.

I believe Aprilia dealers didn't get their 400-series bikes until September-ish?

Prior to that, Triumph didn't get their 400s to Canada until late spring, at which point they were all pre-sold at my local dealer, so they didn't actually have anything you could look at and sit on until mid summer.

In theory the dealers sssshhhhould have the new bikes for us to check out and sit on, but quite often that's not reaaaaaallly the case.

Heck, my bike is a 1997; everything is NEW!

 

[adri]

Sure if we're looking at things one quarter century at a time haha

 

[xrljoel]

You guys might be taking for granted that the dealers actually have the "new bikes"... They often don't.

Husqvarna dealers didn't get the new 2024 401s until October of 2024. If you started going to the dealer to see the new stuff you would have been going back every month for ten months. Ask me how I know.

I believe Aprilia dealers didn't get their 400-series bikes until September-ish?

Prior to that, Triumph didn't get their 400s to Canada until late spring, at which point they were all pre-sold at my local dealer, so they didn't actually have anything you could look at and sit on until mid summer.

In theory the dealers sssshhhhould have the new bikes for us to check out and sit on, but quite often that's not reaaaaaallly the case.

And prototypes or pre-production examples don't come to Canadian MC shows very often, and the ones that do are put on an inaccessible pedestal.

 

[timtune]

things like front brake line routing

Funny, that's exactly the type of thing I'd be looking for.

 

[adri]

And prototypes or pre-production examples don't come to Canadian MC shows very often, and the ones that do are put on an inaccessible pedestal.

Harley was one of the last brands still dedicated to doing this in Canada. Prior to Deeley Harley-Davidson Canada obsoleted by the MoCo global office, we had a whole Special Projects team that was really dedicated to experiential marketing. Not just two separate teams taking two 18 wheelers across the country to hit up every Harley dealer that opted in for demo ride days, but also special activations at fun events like Boots and Hearts and that kind of thing.

We also tried to get people on the new bikes themselves at the shows. I was working for Deeley HD Canada and on the team when we were gearing up to bring out the LiveWire. We had a couple of them that did the tour of all of the shows and we put them on a dyno so people could come sit on the bike, rev them up, get a feel for the bike, and watch how quickly the speedo shot up. That's how I met Ryan at FortNine before he blew up.

Back when new bikes were still attractions, and men were still just boys. Ryan gained about a million subscribers since then, and I gained about 25 lbs lol.

Forum Sponsor