Ups And Downs 1994
UP FRONT
Ups and Downs 1994
David Edwards
WHILE IT MAY HAVE BEEN A BAD YEAR for major league baseball, the Royal Family (again) and celebrity spokespersons named after breakfast drinks, 1994 treated motorcycling pretty well. Up Front's annual look back at the past 12 months reveals more bouquets than Bronx cheers. Here goes:
For the third year in a row, an UP for new-bike sales. All the figures aren't in, but noted industry analyst Don Brown thinks the increase over 1993 sales will be about 5 percent. What’s hot? Harley-Davidsons, of course. Almost every 1995 model-and we’re talking almost 100,000 units here-was spoken for before it even rolled off the assembly line.
The Japanese cruiser class again showed strong growth, perhaps fueled by people weary of waiting for a Harley-Davidson. Touring-bike and dual-purpose sales are up, too. and while the 0-600cc sportbike market remained flat, sales of big sportbikes jumped almost 20 percent over last year.
Back to Harley-Davidson. Additional UPs to a renewed Buell, now halfowned by Harley, and to the steadily improving VR1000 Superbike project. Early on, the latter was skewered by certain pit-wall pundits-now strangely silent. Look for the VR to win in 1995. A future UP.
All is not sweetness and light in the House that Harley and the Davidsons Built, however. Because demand for the Motor Company’s streetbikes so outstrips supply, some free-market excesses have, unfortunately, taken place. DOWN s, then, to those greedy dealers who are tacking on way too much to suggested retail, and to those speculators buying H-D’s, sitting on them for a few months, then flooding the want-ads, asking exorbitant premiums. Shame on you all.
Sad to say, Harley-Davidson itself is worthy of a DOWN, for overzealous protection of its various trademarks. Clamping down on some fly-by-night T-shirt vendor is one thing; forcing an independent shop like The Hog Farm in Fresno, California, to change its name is quite another. Back in the 1970s, Harley-Davidsons had such piss-poor build quality that only hardcores like the owners of The Farm (as it's now called) remained loyal to the company. Rewarding that loyalty with cease-and-desist orders now that Harley-Davidson is living high on the hog (you'll pardon the trademark infringement) seems the height of ingratitude. Lighten up, Harley.
A Union-Jack-waving UP to Triumph for returning to the colonies with its line of modern Triples and Fours. Good to have you back.
Ducati is still on a roll, despite some evidence of financial difficulties back in Italy. A big UP for the new 916, which we picked as Bike of the Year and Best Superbike, as did most every major bike magazine around the world. The Sweet ’16 also nabbed the World Superbike crown in the hands of determined Brit Carl Fogarty.
Double DOWNs, though, are awarded to the product planners at Yamaha and Suzuki, who apparently don’t have a clue about what the American riding public wants, or are afraid to take chances—or both. Yamaha priced one of the great all-around motorcycles, the FJ 1200, into extinction, then declined to bring in the very tasty-looking Diversion 900 (think of a bigger Seca II with shaft drive), which is getting rave reviews in Europe. We won’t even ask about the XJR1200 super-standard or the longcalled-for TDM Twin sportbike.
Suzuki could use a serious shot in the arm, as well. Its chopperesque Intruder line, basically unchanged for 10 years, no longer sells strongly in an era of Harley lookalikes. The once-innovative and all-conquering GSX-R. now sorely in need of a major update, hasn’t won a Superbike race in years. On top of this, the company comes out with a new Bandit 600, a bike many Americans-and this magazine-have been pleading for, and U.S. Suzuki either doesn't know or won’t tell us if and when the bigger Bandit will hit these shores. A curious way of doing business.
On to racing. How about a well-deserved UP to that Wonder from Down Under, Mick Doohan, for trouncing all comers in the 500 GP series? Two years ago, a bone-shattering crash robbed the likable Australian of a sure world title and threatened to end his career. In 1994, Doohan and his NSR Honda were all but untouchable. Good on ya, Mick.
A GP-related UP to Wayne Rainey. We all knew Wayne would bounce back from his paralyzing injuries, but no one expected him to do it quite so quickly. The 250cc grand prix team he managed from his wheelchair last year ran into some hard luck, but don’t expect that to keep Rainey down for long. Nothing else does.
In U.S. racing, a collective UP to the quality of competition in general. Singular UPs to retiring motocrosser Jeff Stanton, who called it quits on his own terms and went out near the top of his game, and to flat-tracker Scotty Parker, who rode like the consummate pro he is and notched a record-setting fifth Grand National Championship. Evergreen UPs to Jay Springsteen, who remains a crowd-favorite after all these years, and to the follicularly challenged, 39-year-old Steve Morehead. who finished an impressive third in the series. Nice work.
If there’s a storm cloud in all this good news, it’s that just as motorcycle racing in America seems poised for entry into the Big Time, with more television coverage, increased mainstream press, bigger sponsors, etc., greed has raised its ugly head. Supercross promoters tried to axe the AMA out of the way and form their own series. Disgruntled roadrace officials have broken away and started their own series. All this leaves manufacturers, TV producers and, most importantly, the fans wondering what comes next, and may drive some of them away for good.
If that happens, there won’t be enough DOWNs to go around. □
