The Ysr50 Phenomenon
The YSR50 phenomenon
ROUNDUP
CAMRON E. BUSSARD
IT STANDS A MERE 25.5 INCHES OFF THE GROUND AND weighs under 200 pounds, but it just might throw the biggest shadow of any motorcycle sold in America this year. It’s Yamaha’s YSR50, a street-legal, 49cc, shetland pony of a motorcycle with a suggested retail price of $999 and a top speed of 49 miles per hour. And right now, it’s the sport’s very own hula hoop, mini-skirt and Farrah Fawcett poster, all rolled into one almost-irresist-ible package.
The fad started at Yamaha’s dealer show in Las Vegas, where the YSR’s unveiling drew a favorable response, but not an overwhelming one. Until, that is, the dealers had a chance to ride the bikes around a demonstration course set up in a parking lot. Many came back with eyes aglow and promptly doubled the YSR order for their shops. Even a slow tip-over that laid waste to one dealer’s three-piece business suit didn’t diminish his zeal. Said one Texas shop owner, “It’s the only bike recently that I’ve personally gotten excited over. I’d even spend my own money just to have it around.”
Judging from the sales in most areas of the country, he’s not the only one. One Southern California dealership sold 25 YSRs in a week. Another has sold 33 and is presently taking orders for the 1988 version, the release of which has been moved up to this August. The bikes seem to be selling themselves. “Anytime there’s a group of people in front of the store, I start up a YSR, ride it around the parking lot, and sell it,” related one dealer. “I tied balloons to one, ran it up and down the street, and sold three.”
Three weeks after the YSR went on sale to the public, dealer orders were so strong that Yamaha’s warehouses were empty, a process that usually takes four to six
months. And if you can ferret out a new YSR in the Los Angeles area, expect to pay a preminum for the privilege of being allowed to buy one. Prices in the $ 1400-$ 1500 range are not unheard of, and one report is circulating that someone fanned out a cool $ 1650 for one of the little beauties.
In most of the other sunbelt cities, prices have remained closer to the suggested retail; still, the bikes aren’t lingering on showroom floors. “They’re going like hotcakes,” said a Miami salesman. “We get four or six bikes in, and bang, they’re gone.”
It’s only in the Northeast and Midwest where sales haven’t caught on as strongly, although the spring thaw may be changing that. “There’s a lot of interest in the YSR,” said a Boston-store sales manager in May, “but people here can’t quite figure out how to use it. They look at it, scratch their heads and ask, Ts it for adults, is it for kids, is it street-legal?’ Still, we sold four here last week.”
Who is buying the YSR? Just about everybody, it seems. High-school and college kids who want something a little sportier than a scooter. Women who appreciate the bike’s small size. Older, former motorcyclists who had given up the sport because it was too costly. Even experienced riders who just want to have some inexpensive fun are YSR buyers. None other than Kenny Roberts has one, although as befits the King, his has an aluminum frame and a YZ80 motocross engine.
It’s too early to tell if the YSR50 can sustain its sales pace when the ’88 models are released. But one thing is clear: There is a place in the motorcycle market for an exciting, truly inexpensive bike. The YSR may be little, but it’s big news.
Remembering a friend
"See ya Ron," was Jim Erickson’s way of saying goodby. Jim was a close friend and faithful off-road riding companion for 23 years. During those years we rode thousands of miles in the wilds of Baja, and the deserts and mountains of America. His unique sense of humor, and his love of both motorcycle riding and remote country enhanced the value of these experiences Jim was also a friend of this magazine, often helping us test off-road bikes and appearing in photos.
Erickson lived and enjoyed life to its fullest, so his decision to take his own life on April 27, at the age of 45, was devastating news.
Respecting Jim’s last wishes, his ashes have been scattered along “his trail” in the Mojave Desert, “north of some place called Four Corners.”
See ya Jim.
Ron Griewe
