Some pics from DC Motorcycle Show

[shah269]

That looks like....
well where are the bikes?

[st2sam]

Thanks for sharing the pics Ken.
I'm suppose to attend the NYC show, but after seeing this    I'm having second thoughts.  

[Stripes]

Thanks for the preview!    I'm looking forward to attending the show in Novi, MI this year. Ducati won't be in MI but it doesn't matter to me... I'm looking forward to seeing Triumph again finally & hopefully the local Ural dealer! Cheers

[RangerG]

Harley's sparkle paint (?) looked very...interesting in person

Harley's paint has caught up with their technology................ 1970's !!

[falcofred]

Thanks for sharing the pics Ken.
I'm suppose to attend the NYC show, but after seeing this   I'm having second thoughts.  

I agree, the past few years has been a bit of a disappointment for me. The show used to be in Greenville SC, which is 2 hours from me, but now is in Charlotte which is just over 3 hours.
The show is in late February. I guess it will depend on how the weather will be between now and then.
If the weather sucks, I'll need a bike fix, if the weather is decent, I'll have ridden enough that I won't need  a fix and will skip the show.

[Prubert]

I agree, the past few years has been a bit of a disappointment for me. The show used to be in Greenville SC, which is 2 hours from me, but now is in Charlotte which is just over 3 hours.
The show is in late February. I guess it will depend on how the weather will be between now and then.
If the weather sucks, I'll need a bike fix, if the weather is decent, I'll have ridden enough that I won't need  a fix and will skip the show.

I will be working this show also....just working the floor this time.

[Mastros2]

Thanks Ken for sharing the pics.  

[kendenton]

Thanks for sharing the pics Ken.
I'm suppose to attend the NYC show, but after seeing this    I'm having second thoughts.   

Sam this is what the NY show looks like on a Saturday:

[Bravo12]

I was there Saturday, with my main riding buddy Todd. Some memorable items:

Todd sat on the 50cc Ruckus and noticed that when he turned the handlebars, they went right into his knee. He asked the Honda rep if they made an adult-sized version. The rep's response: "If you know someone who can weld, you can put on a higher Yamaha bar." That's the answer, right from a Honda rep.

Todd called me over to the ~$22k Ducati Multistrada and made me sit on it. I had heard nothing but wonderful things about this bike for years, and this version is supposed to be even better. So tell me, when I slide my feet back on the pegs to get on my toes (like when I want to weight the pegs going into a corner), why does my heel land on the arm for the centerstand? I have no doubt I would eventually crash that bike in a left-hander, when my heel presses on the centerstand and levers the rear wheel off the ground while leaned over. Not to mention how uncomfortable that would be while droning down the highway; the movement of your feet is very limited. Same thing with the FJR, I discovered!

Todd was not familiar with Rotax, so he asked the Can-Am rep about it. The rep said it's basically a motor company known for making aircraft prop engines. So Todd, being a Beemerphile, asks, "So is it like a boxer motor?" The rep responds "sort of. It's got like three cylinders..."  At this point I walked away, because I already knew the Spyders have a 998cc V-twin motor, built by Rotax. The rep sounded like he was explaining a rotary engine.

And there was a CanAm 4-wheeler that looked pretty off-road bad-ass. Todd asked the rep standing next to it, what the fuel capacity was. He thought a minute and said "I think it's around 10 gallons, but I'm not sure." Then Todd asked what kind of fuel mileage it gets. The rep answers with, "Not sure but it's got about a HUNDRED horsepower," like we were supposed to be impressed. Todd counters with "So how much does it weigh?"  The answer was around 1100-1300 pounds. We did some quick math: 100hp motor, ~1200 lbs, ~10-gallon tank... maybe a range of 250-300 boring miles?

Very few dealer reps could give us the fuel capacity of the model they were standing next to. Someone told us scooters don't list mpg ratings because the EPA doesn't require them; although some admitted their maxi-scooters only got about 40-45mpg.

And I don't know why they stacked all the flashy pimped-out R1s and Hayabusas right inside the door, where most show-goers stopped and gawked, blocking the entrance for everyone else. And how about people standing in line for 20 minutes to get their "free gift" from Progressive? We got crappy key chains, but we went on our way out when everyone else was watching the crappy stunt show.

My opinion: I won't go to the DC show again. The show has been going downhill for years. They seem to cater to the ignorant, with the horrible stunt show and local dealer reps who don't know anything about the products they are selling.

And I REALLY don't like driving down to DC. I worked in DC as a police officer for almost 2 years; I hated that city then, and I hate it now. Can people cross the M-F'ing street without giving me hard looks while I wait for the light?! I thought they did that before because I was in a police cruiser, but they did it to me and my son while we were in my Forester. Not once, but at least half the time we were stopped at a light. People in DC like to give hard looks, almost like they're daring you to "say sumthin'!"  In contrast, if you give someone hard looks the same way in Philly, they take offense and shoot you in the gut. And not one person returned my smile the entire time I was in the city. Not the people scanning our tickets at the entrance to the show, not the dealer reps, not other show-goers. Most of the time, if you smile at people, they instinctively smile back. I honestly don't know what's wrong with DC, but I know I don't like being there. /endrant

I might try the NYC show next year, if it doesn't interfere with the 48hrs of TriState charity event we do every January. Actually, I might not bother at all. Americade is much better for seeing the bikes out in their natural habitat, and they even let you demo them. If I'm in the market, I'll make the effort to hit Americade, but I think I'm done with the IMS.

[sprk_sprd]

And I REALLY don't like driving down to DC. I worked in DC as a police officer for almost 2 years; I hated that city then, and I hate it now. Can people cross the M-F'ing street without giving me hard looks while I wait for the light?! I thought they did that before because I was in a police cruiser, but they did it to me and my son while we were in my Forester. Not once, but at least half the time we were stopped at a light. People in DC like to give hard looks, almost like they're daring you to "say sumthin'!"

Maybe they remembered when you locked them up back in the day.  

[DogBoy]

Someone get Bravo12 a drink or some medicine before he gets (even) older and crustier.  

[mxvet57]

Someone get Bravo12 a drink or some medicine before he gets (even) older and crustier.  

Can't wait for chapter 2.  

[Carbonero]

I've been to 3 NYC shows and 1 DC show; the NYC show is the "better" show, but man oh man, the crowds make it nearly impossible to navigate on anything but herd mentality.

[shah269]

The only thing good about the NYC show is that well it's in NYC.
Which if you ask me is a great city.
Only issue I have is that they hold it in the winter which sucks for walking around and enjoying a day in a great city.
As for the show it self, it's usually so so to crap with the + being the strippers that get hired from the local Huslter club to stand next to the pimped out bikes.
Usually I go with friends on a Friday and we spend an entire day and much of the evening in the city.
Is it worth it? A day with good friends looking at bikes? Yes.

[Rincewind]

The only thing good about the NYC show is that well it's in NYC.
Which if you ask me is a great city.
Only issue I have is that they hold it in the winter which sucks for walking around and enjoying a day in a great city.
As for the show it self, it's usually so so to crap with the + being the strippers that get hired from the local Huslter club to stand next to the pimped out bikes.
Usually I go with friends on a Friday and we spend an entire day and much of the evening in the city.
Is it worth it? A day with good friends looking at bikes? Yes.

+1.  I <3 NYC.  I'll have to keep a closer eye for the strippers next time, though.  

I took my family there last year and we had a lot of fun in the city for the rest of the day despite the cold.  We are debating whether to go back again in 2-weeks.  

[malbojah]

  We are debating whether to go back again in 2-weeks.  

Week from Friday (slightly less than 2 weeks, don't want you to miss the show and have to go to Novi, MI)

[Iago]

Missed this because of other stuff. Thought about taking a charter from the baltimore bmw dealer for 60 buck to the NYC show but the pics pretty much put me off.

Has anyone done the Timonium MD show? Any good?

[Cablebandit]

Timonium is even worse than DC.

[R Doug]

I will be working this show also....just working the floor this time.

   I'll see you there.  And, unlike Ken, I won't blow you off.  

[Mastros2]

I've been to 3 NYC shows and 1 DC show; the NYC show is the "better" show, but man oh man, the crowds make it nearly impossible to navigate on anything but herd mentality.

Friday night or Sunday is the best time to go. Ever since Ken and I went on a Friday, I wouldn't go near the Javits Center that Saturday.

After saying that and seeing the pics, I may have to go to DC next year.