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Sept. 26, 2005 – Distributor Report

Motorcycle Stuff Holds 22nd Annual Dealer Show
Motorcycle Stuff, a unit of Global Motorsport Group, Inc., held its 22nd annual dealer show September 9-11 in Clearwater Beach, Fla.

Motorcycle Stuff deals in the ATV and street and off-road motorcycle markets. Offered brands include Michelin, Dunlop, Repsol, Ferodo, Yuasa, M2R, K&N, Progressive, UFO, FMF, Warn, Kolpin, Quad Works, Teknic and Shogun, among others.

“The event was fantastic,” Tim Dodd, president of Motorcycle Stuff, told Powersports Business. “And right now we’re doing our best to get the orders processed from the show and get them shipped on a timely manner and into a dealer’s hand so they can go out and sell it themselves.”

Described by Dodd as a “buying show,” the show brought together approximately 67 supplier exhibitors, 200 Motorcycle Stuff dealer customers and 60 inside sales representatives.

The event took place in Florida in 2003, but moved to the company’s headquarters in Morgan Hill, Calif., last year. Dodd said the return to Florida resulted from “an overwhelming number of requests from attending dealers.”

Motorcycle Stuff didn’t reveal any new suppliers or lines at the show, but Dodd said that was a result of scheduling.

“We’re kind of in a holding pattern,” he said. “We’re starting to work on our 2006 catalog right now and starting to review new product lines that have come in over the course of the summer.

“We’ll make a determination if what those suppliers are offering is a good fit for our company or not, and probably get back to them this month.”

The 2006 Motorcycle Stuff catalog is scheduled for release shortly before the 2006 Indianapolis dealer show, held in February.

Asked about his goal for Motorcycle Stuff, Dodd responded: “To be a better overall supplier to our customers.” The first step toward that goal, he said, is to expand customer contacts through the addition of sales reps both in the field and on the telephone.

Motorcycle Stuff’s 2005 catalog and dealer applications are available online at www.mcstuff.com. For additional information, call 800/325-3673.

Tucker Rocky Announces New River Road Catalog
Tucker Rocky has a new catalog featuring an expanded line of River Road products, including motorcycle apparel, boots and luggage. Released this month, the 70-page catalog is available in both dealer and consumer versions.

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Contact your Tucker Rocky sales rep for more details.

JL French Forms Chinese Joint Venture
JL French Automotive Castings, Inc., Sheboygan, Wis., has formed a joint venture in China to produce high-pressure aluminum die-castings and machined and assembled components. The deal – signed the deal with Chongqing Yujiang Die Casting Co., Ltd. and Chongqing Liangjiang Machine Manufacture Co., Ltd. – forms the Chongqing JL French-Yumei Die Casting Company, Ltd. in Chongqing, China.

Located approximately 640 miles northwest of Hong Kong, Chongqing is China’s central hub for motorcycle and automobile production.
JL French Automotive Castings, Inc. is a leading global designer and manufacturer of highly engineered aluminum die cast automotive parts including oil pans, engine front covers, engine blocks and transmission cases.

The company has manufacturing facilities in Sheboygan, Wis.; Benton Harbor, Mich.; Glasgow, Ky; Saltillo, Mexico; San Andres de Echevarria, Spain; as well as two plants in the United Kingdom.

Chongqing Yujiang Die Casting Co. Ltd. is a leading player in die-casting, supplying China’s motorcycle OEM market. Chongqing Liangjiang Machine Manufacture Co., Ltd. is a machining company that also supplies the Chinese motorcycle business.

Buell Explains Design at IDSA Event
Erik Buell, chairman and chief technical officer of Buell Motorcycle Company, described the unique challenges of designing motorcycles, and how he is implementing new design and technology applications during think3’s annual Industrial Designers Society of America conference held earlier this month in Washington, DC.

Buell presented to a standing-room only crowd of more than 200 IDSA participants.

“At Buell Motorcycles, we’re dedicated to making the riding experience fun, and in unique ways, too,” said Buell. “We have dedicated teams focused on every component of what we refer to as ‘customer-driven design.’ We get into the customer’s head and focus on intangibles to ensure the customer/product identification early on in the design process.”

Buell says his design philosophy – “simplicity through invention” – is built on a foundation he calls the “Trilogy of Tech.” This involves incorporating three fundamentals of design into every Buell motorcycle: 1) Mass Centralization; 2) Frame Rigidity; and 3) Low Unsprung Weight.

“A beautiful, innovative product is only the sum of its parts,” he said. “Every part that’s going to be seen must be beautiful on its own. Everything has to be really right – optimized in styling and function.”

Conference organizer think3 provides industrial design solutions to mid-sized manufacturers worldwide. Customers include BMW, Audi, Maytag, Alessi and GE Medical Devices.

think3’s industrial design tools were used in the development of the 2006 Buell Ulysses, which was unveiled in July. think3 facilitated the design process by enabling work to be done in a multi-CAD environment. Additionally, key parts of the Ulysses were designed and engineered from start to finish using think3 CAD capabilities, and every new component of the bike was solid-modeled using think3 technology.

According to Buell, the key benefits of using think3 technology included the ability to read any legacy data; hybrid surface and solid modeling capabilities; and improved design to manufacturability – having the flexibility of doing iterative designs without losing data, time or design intent through manufacturing.

Metzeler Reduces Sportec Prices
Metzeler has lowered the pricing of its line of high-traction Sportec M-1 street sport radial tires. The new Sportec M-1 pricing is nearly 30% lower across the board than the original pricing, and it provides riders with the chance to experience the best high-tech tire available at a cost lower than any competitor.

For instance, a size 130/70-16 previously sold for $148.95 and now sells for $119.95; a 200/50-17 was $259.95, and is now $182.95.
The Sportec M-1 is designed for street riders desiring high performance and street durability. Sportec M-1’s provide grip close to the brand-new Metzeler Racetec DOT race tires, but with faster warm up and consistent traction in all weather conditions and across a wide temperature range.
Metzeler tires are available through Parts Unlimited. Visit www.us.metzelermoto.com for more information.

FMF Seeking Riders
FMF Racing, Rancho Dominguez, Calif., is accepting resumes for its 2006 racing programs.
FMF Racing travels to over 50 major races a year to provide support for riders. For specific program details and information check out the FMF Racing website at www.fmfracing.com.

New Job Board Launches
Launched September 1, MyMotorcycleJobs.com is a new industry-specific job board designed
to use the collective power of the internet,
motorcycle-related print media and web link exchanges to promote and disseminate infor-
mation regarding its password protected database of resumes and the public display of industry
specific job offerings.

Company officials say any success will depend on building a viable profit sharing program through strategic affiliations with industry related web sites, print publications as well as recognition by industry associations, counsels and educational institutions.

For additional information contact Otto Geyer at 770/633-9459 or email otto@mymotorcyclejobs.com.

J&P Offers Online Job Search
J&P Cycles, an aftermarket retailer of parts and accessories for Harley-Davidson and metric cruiser motorcycles, also has a new online job board. This one, however, is dedicated to openings at J&P.

With two locations – one in Iowa and one in Florida – J&P now has 300 employees and openings in a number of departments, including Accounting, Maintenance, IT Administration and Parts. The company created the job site, JOBS.JPCYCLES.COM, to aid in its recruitment efforts.

“In today’s job market, you have to sell the advantages of working for your business, including the location, and the overall culture,” said J&P Cycles President John Parham. “By checking our new site, job seekers will learn about J&P’s history, the lifestyle in our Iowa location, our community involvement, plans for growth in Florida, our benefits package, and much more.”

For more information, visit JOBS.JPCYCLES.COM or call 800/397-4844, ext. 6453.

LoJack Enters Southern California
LoJack Corporation has announced that its new LoJack For Motorcycles, a tracking and recovery solution for stolen motorcycles, is now available in the greater Los Angeles and San Diego areas.

With this introduction, LoJack for Motorcycles is now available throughout Massachusetts, in Florida in the Miami/Dade area; in Texas in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and in the L.A./San Diego area.

The company’s Police Tracking Computers are installed in police vehicles, helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft and are used to track and recover stolen vehicles.

LoJack For Motorcycles is being rolled out on a
market-by-market basis in the United States. More information on the product is available at www.lojack.com or by calling 800/4-LOJACK.

Changes at Warn
Warn Industries, Inc., a part of Dover Corporation’s Dover Resources Division, has named Karl Christensen vice president of the Powersports division, John McCalla vice president of the Powertrain and Industrial divisions, and Dave Burns vice president of the Truck/SUV and Warn Works divisions.

Warn, Clackamas, Ore., manufactures more than 600 products and accessories at two manufacturing facilities in Oregon and a technical facility in Livonia, Mich. WARN products, sold in 65 countries, are distributed primarily through wholesale distributors and long-standing OEM agreements with Ford, General Motors, Daimler Chrysler, Kia Motors, Polaris, Honda and Yamaha.

LeMans Adds Sales Reps
LeMans Corporation’s Drag Speciaties has added two new regional sales representatives, and the company’s Parts Unlimited unit has added a rep in Indiana.

Stephanie Feld is Drag Specialties’ new Northeast region sales rep, and Benny Harwell is new Western region sales rep. Feld has worked in dealerships since 1983. Harwell most recently served as a dealership parts manager.

Neil Zander, Parts Unlimited’s new Northern Indiana Sales Rep, also most recently served as a dealership parts manager.

– Guido Ebert

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