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MOTORCYCLE – Motorcycle Digest

Ducati Restructures Marketing Department
Changes are being made to the marketing department at Ducati North America, Cupertino, Calif.
Director of Marketing John Porter will be leaving the company at the end of June. Ducati North America CEO Michael Lock will act as both CEO and director of marketing during the interim period. Lock has served as Marketing Director for Triumph in Europe and as a Marketing Manager with Honda Europe.
Dan Carson joins the marketing department as event manager. He has served the past eight years as a contractor for Ducati.
As a result, Vincent Chiaro will have a revised role as PR coordinator, responsible for press fleet activities, press relations, as well as Web site and press release content in his job of PR Coordinator.
Sian Goad has joined the company as marketing coordinator. Goad most recently served as vice president of marketing for a motorcycle luggage and apparel company. Her responsibilities include co-op advertising, dealer marketing support and advertising coordination.
Coordinating all the efforts of the Marketing Department will be the responsibility of Sarah Bogosian, marketing manager. She will run the daily operations of all marketing projects and report directly to Michael Lock.

Spied – BMW T 800
A spate of recently revealed spy photos have BMW enthusiasts frantically searching the Internet and the latest consumer magazines for news about what is expected to be the next BMW-Aprilia joint product: the BMW T 800.
The T 800 may run on what is thought to be a 800cc Rotax parallel twin delivering 75hp-85hp. Photos reportedly show the proposed T 800 S – a bike that looks to be a middle-weight sport-tourer featuring a two-into-one left-side exhaust, a belt-driven final drive, and what appears to be an under-seat fuel tank.
Adding fuel to the fire, Germany’s Motorrad magazine reports BMW plans to add a half-fairing and naked version to form a T 800 family of bikes. Expect all to come with BMW’s usual optional amenities – anti-lock brakes, heated grips and model-specific luggage.
Rumors are that the engines will be built by Rotax in Gunskirchen, Austria, and the bikes will be assembled at Aprilia’s factory in Noale, Italy.
BMW and Piaggio-owned Aprilia announced in April that the two companies had signed a contract to co-design and produce a new line of two-wheeler to be manufactured in the Aprilia factories in Noale and Scorze’ near Venice.
At the time, BMW said only that the contract “refers to a future supply of products which are not included in current BMW production.”
“This is a further widening of BMW’s range of motorcycles and doesn’t regard the current single-cylinders,” Herbert Diess, president of BMW Motorrad, said when making the announcement.
Aprilia manufactured the first version of the BMW F 650 from 1993 to 1999, before BMW switched manufacturing of the following version to the company’s sole motorcycle factory in Berlin.

2005 ISDE Team USA Announced
Thirty-four enduro riders from the United States will compete in the 80th International Six Days Enduro (ISDE), September 6-19, 2005, in Povazska-Bystrica, Slovak Republic.
The ISDE, often called “The Olympics of Motorcycling,” gathers the world’s best off-road riders to challenge some of the world’s most difficult terrain. It’s considered the ultimate test of a rider’s endurance, speed, mechanical ability and tactics, and for the motorcycle it’s the ultimate test of performance and reliability.
“It’s an off-road rider’s highest honor to represent the United States in the ISDE,” said Douglas Neubauer, Director of AMA Sports.
To earn a spot on ISDE Team USA, riders competed in qualifier events held in Idaho City, Idaho, and Athens, Ohio.
The six riders on Team USA’s “Trophy Team” are Kurt Caselli, Jimmy Jarrett, Aaron Kopp, Fred Hoess, John Barber and Jason Dahners.
The four riders on Team USA’s “Junior Trophy Team” are Cody Mastin, Russell Bobbitt, Ryan Powell and Wally Palmer.
The 24 riders on Team USA’s “Club Teams” are Richard Jung, J.D. Hammock, Steve Morefield, Jay Hall, David Kamo, Teddy Hahn, Donald Murray, Dan Melvin, Luke McNeil, Brian Barnes, Rick Thomas, Derek Steahly, Brandon Johnson, Eric Ducray, Paul Neff, Lars Valin, Wes McKnight, Quinn Cody, Scott Bright, Rich Libengood, John Yates, Dylan Debel, Dan Janus and Jeff Fredette.

City of West Hollywood Plans Exhaust Noise Crackdown
The City of West Hollywood, Calif., held a press conference June 20 to announce the implementation of its new zero tolerance policy on excessive motorcycle noise within the city limits.
City officials say the zero tolerance policy will be put in place to improve the quality of life for West Hollywood residents and visitors, many of whom have complained over the years about “bothersome” noise generated from motorcycle mufflers.
Held at West Hollywood Park, the event was attended by members of the West Hollywood City Council; West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station Captain David Long; West Hollywood community members; and a small gathering of motorcycle enthusiasts.
Capt. Long said West Hollywood Sheriff’s deputies will aggressively cite any motorcycle riders who are not in compliance with California Vehicle Code. The first infraction will be a fix it ticket and any subsequent violations will be infractions. Furthermore, the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department, West Hollywood Station, plans to maintain an updated database of all motorcycle noise violators.
Demonstrations of legal versus illegal motorcycle noise took place immediately following the press conference.

Saxon Announces Customer Programs
Representatives of Saxon Motorcycle Company have announced the launch of a three-pronged program designed to strengthen the Saxon brand and turn Saxon Motorcycle buyers into life-long customers. The three programs include the:
1) Customer Satisfaction Assurance Program.
2) Nationwide Service Coverage. and
3) Dealership Branding Program.
Saxon Motorcycle Company was created to produce semi-custom motorcycles at a more reasonable price point than currently available and to apply professional management and production processes to a segment that is dominated by fragmented manufacturing practices. Saxon operates out of a 40,000-square-foot manufacturing facility on 9 acres in Casa Grande, Ariz. Find Saxon on the Web at www.saxonmotorcycles.com.

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