Posts
132
Joined
1/9/2013
Location
Shawnee Mission, KS
US
Edited Date/Time
7/17/2018 6:25pm
Seeing Fox's recent effort with Pala made me wonder if the folks who sell bikes, gear etc should put effort into ensuring there are places to use bikes, gear etc.
I imagine liability is a big concern-but thinking more and/or better riding areas (tracks) would drive demand.
Multi million dollar corps depend on struggling local track owners to provide the means for corporate sales....if those local tracks ever went away....would be very bad for business, right?
More/better tracks-we ride more.
We ride more-it drives industry sales.
Food for thought/discussion...maybe an industry insider could weigh in.
I imagine liability is a big concern-but thinking more and/or better riding areas (tracks) would drive demand.
Multi million dollar corps depend on struggling local track owners to provide the means for corporate sales....if those local tracks ever went away....would be very bad for business, right?
More/better tracks-we ride more.
We ride more-it drives industry sales.
Food for thought/discussion...maybe an industry insider could weigh in.
Or maybe the liability is the reason they do something in Thailand and not in the US.
Or it's cheaper to invest in E-bikes.
The Shop
Anyways, I think the concept makes a lot of sense and not just speaking as a rider who’d obviously love to benefit from such an investment but from purely a business perspective. The sort of capital it would take to really turn heads would likely rule out local Mom and Pop shops but for any of the big boys i think it’d make a lot of sense. Unlike local track owners they’d probably be content just breaking even on the actual track operation but for an outfit like say TLD or Rocky Mountain ATV they’d benefit directly from marketing, brand awareness, etc. Heck they could even have a retail outlet on site. Kind of like a field of dream “if you build it, they will come” concept.
The more i think about it the more I’m surprised there’s not more direct investment in tracks from the industry big boys. Hopefully Fox’s investment pays off big for them and consequently it turns some heads/inspires some copycat investments from some of the other big players.
Great to see Fox doing this and I believe we need to see this kind of involvement to keep the sport alive. Just hope moto companies don't pour ALL of the resources into California and nowhere else. Some of these brands don't have much vision outside of the 909 and surrounding areas.
Its not like they make much money on a bike sale (at a dealer). Assume 500 a bike - maybe.
That isnt enough to then subsidize a track that (in our area) looses money plus takes on additional liability to the dealer who is really only making money on sxs and street
I realize they don't spend but a fraction of what they theoretically put up for grabs and im not sure if it would make a world of difference but speaking for myself....I quit riding for about 15 years simply for the fact that in a city of 2 million the options for riding on a track dwindled down to a single track over an hour away. I didn't quit riding because some amatuer got paid money to sand bag, i didn't quit due to injury or fear of getting hurt i quit because I got tired of driving and riding the same track.
I've never bought a particular bike because of who was riding it in the pro ranks let alone amatuer but I was good for buying a new bike every coupe of years.
So just by myself if I hadn't stopped riding and continued just buying a new bike every couple of years at a rough average of $7500 to cover that spectrum of years and never bought anything else such as spares, oil, gear etc. the Honda Corporation (if they continued to make quality bikes) lost out on over $56000.00 and who knows how much when you throw spares and replacement parts.
I'm pretty sure if they could've helped any existing tracks stay open by subsidizing insurance or maybe helped a new track or two get up and running their return on investment although difficult to quantify would result in many more riders, customers and corporate earnings.
http://www.yamahaoai.com/
"Yamaha accepts applications from nonprofit or tax-exempt organizations including OHV riding clubs and associations, national, state and local public land use agencies, outdoor enthusiast associations and land conservation groups with an interest in protecting, improving, expanding and/or maintaining access for safe, responsible and sustainable public use.
The Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative is the industry leader in guaranteeing responsible access to our nation’s land for outdoor enthusiasts. Through this program, Yamaha has directly and indirectly supported thousands of miles of motorized recreation trails, maintained and rehabilitated riding and hunting areas, improved staging areas, supplied agricultural organizations with essential OHV safety education, built bridges over fish-bearing streams and partnered with local outdoor enthusiast communities across the country to improve access to public lands.
The Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative has contributed more than $3.5 million in funding and equipment across more than 300 projects over the past 10 years to assist outdoor recreationists working to protect and improve access to public land and educate the public on its safe, sustainable recreational use. For those who rely on access to public land for work and play, the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative has proven to be the industry’s most reliable partner and a significant resource."
There's always "that" guy.
I dont think local dealerships should try to open up their own track, but instead just put more support to local racing and tracks. That dealer mentioned above that pays for people whom bought bikes from them to ride at a local track for free is pretty cool. We need more local dealers doing things like that. It doesnt cost the dealers much and it provides a nice incentive for people to buy from them. Also helps promote the track some as well. Seems like a win win win deal.
They should have an interest in ensuring people that buy their products have a place to use them. IMHO.
Post a reply to: Dealers/Manufacturers Riding Area Support