Gearuphelmets.com is heading back home from an always good Biketoberfest Motorcycle Rally in Daytona Beach Florida. The Daytona Speedway welcomed vendors and riders for their fall 4 day show. Yamaha and Spyder were there with their demo team, vendors were selling everything from tire changes and chrome, to helmets and riding gear. Bands played throughout the weekend and the racetrack was screaming with racers making the most of Daytona's track.
The weather for the show couldn't have been ordered in better. Motorcyclists filled the track parking and overflowed into the grassy areas all around. Beautiful motorcycles bright with colors, some with fat tires and others with loud pipes, some custom sportbikes and quite a few chromed out cruisers. It was definitely a good time to be had by all.
Prior to Biketoberfest, we made a trip to Hiawassee Georgia and Ocean City, Maryland for Georgia's State Hog Rally and for Bike Week in Maryland. Motorcycles were out in good numbers and enjoying the beginning of the fall riding season. Full Throttle Productions put together a good time in Georgia and Kerry and Ashley had a big turnout in Maryland. If you've never been to Hiawassee, Georgia and you like to ride, put it on your list. If you are heading to Ocean City Bike Week, be sure to bring your rainsuit cause it sure does seem to rain on us everytime we head there. It doesn't stop anyone from riding or having a good time though.
Biketoberfest is considered the end of our seaons though we are gearing up for this fall/winter International Motorcycle Show Tour. It's been a good year, not the 2006/2007 years but still good. We feel blessed to be doing something we love around a bunch of folks who love to do the things we do. We are already looking forward to Daytona Bike Week 2012 as it will be the kickoff of the next season of Gearuphelmets.com.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Thunder Beach, Myrtle Beach, Wing Ding, BMW MOA, Americade,
The busy season of a motorcycle rally has come and gone. Despite the economy's echo of "the sky is falling", motorcyclists have continued to get away and take a ride to their favorite rally or show. Since April after Leesburg Bikefest, we've done Thunder Beach in Panama City, Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, Wing Ding in Knoxville, the BMW MOA in Pennsylvania, and driven all the way to Americade in Lake George, NY for the biggest touring rally in the US. Motorcyclists were out in good numbers and getting away from it all even if just for a few days.
While it doesn't look like people are buying new motorcycles, they are enjoying what they have and buying riding gear and accessories to enhance their existing ride. These shows have been a welcome break from the everyday grind and provide an opportunity for riders to take some scenic rides, fellowship with other riders, check out the latest and greatest in the motorcycle industry, and to shop for just about anything motorcycle.
All these shows had good crowds, smiling faces, and had rider's spending some of their hard earned money on themselves and one of their favorite hobbies. There was no talk of the economy, politics, or contemplation of the future. It was just about the riders and the ride. You can say what you want about motorcyclists but the truth is that they enjoy the moment as much as anybody in the world. While riding a motorcycle it's about paying attention, it's about leaving everything behind and being in control of the ride. It's about being in the moment, enjoying your surroundings, discovering what's down the road, and being present for all that is going on with you and your motorcycle. It's no wonder during down times that the motorcyclist continues to ride. It's a get away like not other and a mental health break from all that ails you.
The fall season is coming up and while the show circuit is a little slower, we can be sure that we'll see riders at Fall Thunderbeach, Biketoberfest, and the International Motorcycle Shows. Rider's who may have put their bikes up for the winter will have a place to go and dream and think about the upcoming riding season for them and their motorcycles.
While it doesn't look like people are buying new motorcycles, they are enjoying what they have and buying riding gear and accessories to enhance their existing ride. These shows have been a welcome break from the everyday grind and provide an opportunity for riders to take some scenic rides, fellowship with other riders, check out the latest and greatest in the motorcycle industry, and to shop for just about anything motorcycle.
All these shows had good crowds, smiling faces, and had rider's spending some of their hard earned money on themselves and one of their favorite hobbies. There was no talk of the economy, politics, or contemplation of the future. It was just about the riders and the ride. You can say what you want about motorcyclists but the truth is that they enjoy the moment as much as anybody in the world. While riding a motorcycle it's about paying attention, it's about leaving everything behind and being in control of the ride. It's about being in the moment, enjoying your surroundings, discovering what's down the road, and being present for all that is going on with you and your motorcycle. It's no wonder during down times that the motorcyclist continues to ride. It's a get away like not other and a mental health break from all that ails you.
The fall season is coming up and while the show circuit is a little slower, we can be sure that we'll see riders at Fall Thunderbeach, Biketoberfest, and the International Motorcycle Shows. Rider's who may have put their bikes up for the winter will have a place to go and dream and think about the upcoming riding season for them and their motorcycles.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Leesburg Bikefest April 8, 2011
We're headed home from a hot but busy Leesburg, Florida Bikefest. Alot of folks went home with VEGA, ZOX, and Scorpion helmets this week. We saw many folks we had met in Daytona and met plenty of new folks. We always set up on Market Street and enjoy the show. It's the hardest show we do all year in terms of driving so far to get there, having to wait for tent to be set up after 7 pm on Thursday, roll off and merchandise in the dark, and be open to sell by 9AM on Friday morning. By then, the crowds come in and you sell till you drop until 9PM and after and do it again on Saturday. It really takes alot out of a girl. Me, Dee, and David, aka DDK, handled it all though and are coming home with a lighter load on our trailer. It's never a big big show but it will sure help pay the electric bill. We'd like to thank the community of Leesburg for welcoming all the motorcyclists and the event the way they do. Everyone receives us with open arms and treats us so nice. Wish all towns were so when we come to town. These folks define hospitality and we always look forward to coming back. We're home for a couple weeks then headed to Thunder Beach in Panama City, Florida. We usually are headed there now but because of Easter, these two shows are not back to back. Yall come by and see us at Frank Brown Park April 27 through May 1st.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Daytona Beach Bike Week!
Wow!! What a great 70th Annual Daytona Bike Week! Just when you think Daytona Beach couldn't make the Bike Week event any better, they do it again. The Daytona International Speedway hosted a great venue which included factory demo rides by Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Can Am, Spyder, Triumph, Boss Hoss, Victory, and Harley Davidson. They had over 1000 vendors selling everything you can imagine to make motorcycle riding more comfortable, more fun, and more exciting. Parking was perfect, the crowds were massive, and the weather for the week was special ordered for riding. The Supercross, the Flat Track, and the Daytona 200 races were awesome and many took advantage of a ride around the track Friday night on their own motorcycles.
It was a long winter and the media has been crying about the economy but you wouldn't have known it among the motorcycle community. Folks were out and riding, spending money, eating good, and just having a good ole time. Everyone was in great spirits and it sure made for a great week.
Gearuphelmets.com set up at the track and sold a few helmets and riding gear including the new Powerlet Heated Gear and the more than ever popular Scala Rider bluetooth headsets. By all accounts it was a very successful show and we can't wait to get back this coming Biketoberfest.
If you ever get a chance to go to Daytona, and you should, be sure to make the track a must destination. You can camp at the race track infield, see all the races, and be close to the beach and the famous Main Street.
Next stop for Gearuphelmets.com is Leesburg Bikefest coming up April 8, 9, and 10th. We'll be set up on Market Street downtown Leesburg, Florida.
It was a long winter and the media has been crying about the economy but you wouldn't have known it among the motorcycle community. Folks were out and riding, spending money, eating good, and just having a good ole time. Everyone was in great spirits and it sure made for a great week.
Gearuphelmets.com set up at the track and sold a few helmets and riding gear including the new Powerlet Heated Gear and the more than ever popular Scala Rider bluetooth headsets. By all accounts it was a very successful show and we can't wait to get back this coming Biketoberfest.
If you ever get a chance to go to Daytona, and you should, be sure to make the track a must destination. You can camp at the race track infield, see all the races, and be close to the beach and the famous Main Street.
Next stop for Gearuphelmets.com is Leesburg Bikefest coming up April 8, 9, and 10th. We'll be set up on Market Street downtown Leesburg, Florida.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Timonium Maryland Motorcycle Show
What a great weekend of motorcycle showing and telling. The Timonium Motorcycle Show promoters sure know how to put a show together. Having been to many an indoor motorcycle show, we have to say that this was one of the best bike shows we've done. The quality of motorcycle show entries from metric, foreign, american, vintage, and even sportbike, was amazing. Some beautiful motorcycles were on display. A Pirate Themed Bike won best display and a Michael Jackson themed sportbike took best of show! We think they gave out over 100 awards before it was all said and done. Timonium owes a big thank you to some awesome motorcycle builders and customizers. These folks were very gracious to share their work with us all and we were sure grateful.
Not only was the show itself good but the crowds were awesome! It was so crowded Saturday that you almost couldn't get down the isles. The weather was the best in a couple of months and folks must have had enough of cabin fever. If the buying and the interest and the excitement of these folks is a sign of things to come for the motorcycle industry this motorcycle season, we'll all be celebrating before the end of the season. Maybe it's true what they are saying about the economy, it's really coming back. We sure hope so.
We got a little cold camping in the vendor parking lot but feel good to have saved some hotel money. Hey, who needs a hot shower every night? We just tell ourselves we are being green and put on more perfume and deodorant and get on with it. It will be nice to get home and watch some TV, take a hot shower, and have room to move. We won't be home long though as good ole Daytona Beach Bike Week is coming right up!
This was our first time up to Timonium but you can bet we'll look forward to coming back. We think the International Motorcycle Show tour could take a few lessons from the Timonium promoters. Job well done, Timonium!
Not only was the show itself good but the crowds were awesome! It was so crowded Saturday that you almost couldn't get down the isles. The weather was the best in a couple of months and folks must have had enough of cabin fever. If the buying and the interest and the excitement of these folks is a sign of things to come for the motorcycle industry this motorcycle season, we'll all be celebrating before the end of the season. Maybe it's true what they are saying about the economy, it's really coming back. We sure hope so.
We got a little cold camping in the vendor parking lot but feel good to have saved some hotel money. Hey, who needs a hot shower every night? We just tell ourselves we are being green and put on more perfume and deodorant and get on with it. It will be nice to get home and watch some TV, take a hot shower, and have room to move. We won't be home long though as good ole Daytona Beach Bike Week is coming right up!
This was our first time up to Timonium but you can bet we'll look forward to coming back. We think the International Motorcycle Show tour could take a few lessons from the Timonium promoters. Job well done, Timonium!
Sunday, November 21, 2010
San Mateo Progressive International Motorcycle Show
Well, it's not the best show we've ever had but certainly not the worst. The crowds were really good, the promoters did a great job, but there were show layout circumstances beyond our control that made it a little tough for customers to find us. There were three buildings at this venue and we ended up in the littlest out building which was a little hard to find and not marked very well for the night time hours.
It also got really cold here and it rained the whole weekend. I'm sure that kept forlks from riding in for the show. Even so, I think a good crowd came and enjoyed the show. It was a 4 day drive for us out here and really probably not worth the drive though it beats our inventory sitting at the shop not selling. We like to go and enjoyed the travel and met some really nice folks here.
We've decided to help make it worth our while to stay out and go to Long Beach, CA for another show. This one is supposed to be the biggest show on the tour so we're excited about it. We are going to go visit friends and leave our trailer at their place after spending Thanksgiving with them and then fly home for a week to check on the house and the shop. Then we'll fly back and pick up our trailer and go to Long Beach for the show.
We'll sure miss our mama's cooking but know we'll enjoy the time with our friends. Hopefully the Thanksgiving sacrifice will pay off big at Long Beach!
We're staying onsite in our camper and boy has it been cold! Who knew CA could be so cold..it's a damp cold too. A cold that goes to your bones even though the temps are not below freezing.
It also got really cold here and it rained the whole weekend. I'm sure that kept forlks from riding in for the show. Even so, I think a good crowd came and enjoyed the show. It was a 4 day drive for us out here and really probably not worth the drive though it beats our inventory sitting at the shop not selling. We like to go and enjoyed the travel and met some really nice folks here.
We've decided to help make it worth our while to stay out and go to Long Beach, CA for another show. This one is supposed to be the biggest show on the tour so we're excited about it. We are going to go visit friends and leave our trailer at their place after spending Thanksgiving with them and then fly home for a week to check on the house and the shop. Then we'll fly back and pick up our trailer and go to Long Beach for the show.
We'll sure miss our mama's cooking but know we'll enjoy the time with our friends. Hopefully the Thanksgiving sacrifice will pay off big at Long Beach!
We're staying onsite in our camper and boy has it been cold! Who knew CA could be so cold..it's a damp cold too. A cold that goes to your bones even though the temps are not below freezing.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Dallas International Motorcycle Show 2011
The economy is down according to all the media and jobless reports and other reports seem to verify it. It's certainly affected the amount of vendors that are on the road and setting up at the motorcycle shows. The Dallas show while good, was at least half the size of past events. We've seen many of our vendor friends come off the road due to high gas prices and we assume lack of sales. While we've had a few down shows this year, I guess we're lucky to be holding steady. It's not like 2006/2007 when you didn't even have to try to sell yet sold everything but sales are still good and it doesn't hurt to have to work hard for what you earn as it builds your character, at least that is what mama said.
We set up this year at the Dallas Convention Center. The motorcycle factory folks were here, Honda, Harley, Yamaha, Kawasaki, and Suzuki and oh yeah Ducati and Ural. BMW was a no show but they pick choose their events anyway.
These shows have gotten kind of stale but this year they have set up interactive things for customers to participate in and it seem to liven things up. There were several motorcycle seminars throughout the weekend, a fashion show, a custom bikeshow that gave away big dollars, Jason Britton was there doing his biker boys stunts on his sportbike, and there was plenty of giveaways and places to shop for all kinds of neat motorcycle stuff. Also Progressive Insurance has become the sponsor and they have put a fresh look on things.
We stayed on site in the camper and while the lows were in the high 40's it was pretty comfortable. We had a slow start Friday night but had a great Saturday which made the trip worth our while. We met some great customers this weekend and got them all geared up, (pun intended).
We were headed home but got an offer we couldn't refuse to head to the second show tour stop in San Mateo, California. Sooo, we owe, we owe, it's off to work we go :) San Mateo isn't a very big show but we have a better chance at making money there than looking at it at the shop. It's 26 hours from here to make the drive and that means over 40 hours home...that should put us home and to mama's around Thanksgiving :) No more shows till mid December from there when the show hits Seattle, Washington and Long Beach, California.
We set up this year at the Dallas Convention Center. The motorcycle factory folks were here, Honda, Harley, Yamaha, Kawasaki, and Suzuki and oh yeah Ducati and Ural. BMW was a no show but they pick choose their events anyway.
These shows have gotten kind of stale but this year they have set up interactive things for customers to participate in and it seem to liven things up. There were several motorcycle seminars throughout the weekend, a fashion show, a custom bikeshow that gave away big dollars, Jason Britton was there doing his biker boys stunts on his sportbike, and there was plenty of giveaways and places to shop for all kinds of neat motorcycle stuff. Also Progressive Insurance has become the sponsor and they have put a fresh look on things.
We stayed on site in the camper and while the lows were in the high 40's it was pretty comfortable. We had a slow start Friday night but had a great Saturday which made the trip worth our while. We met some great customers this weekend and got them all geared up, (pun intended).
We were headed home but got an offer we couldn't refuse to head to the second show tour stop in San Mateo, California. Sooo, we owe, we owe, it's off to work we go :) San Mateo isn't a very big show but we have a better chance at making money there than looking at it at the shop. It's 26 hours from here to make the drive and that means over 40 hours home...that should put us home and to mama's around Thanksgiving :) No more shows till mid December from there when the show hits Seattle, Washington and Long Beach, California.
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