Ups & Downs

UPs & DOWNS

UP: To Costco, for adding Kawasaki motorcycles to its members-only "auto" pricing program. The program currently is only available in Southern California, but plans for a nationwide rollout are expected in the near future. The promotion allows Costco members to purchase any 2011 Kawasaki motorcycle,

ATV, watercraft or utility vehicle at a pre-arranged exclusive price through a local participating Kawasaki dealership. To learn more, go to www.costcoauto.com/kawasaki or call 877/5602520 for participating dealer information.

DOWN: To the harsh California Mojave desert, for slowly ravaging Honda's HPCC testing facility, and in doing so, forcing the company to put the 4255-acre proving center up for sale. Speaking with a Honda representative, we were told the primary reason for the sale was that the entire 4.5-mile road course is desperately in need of repaving, and the costs associated with doing so are prohibitively expensive. Since Honda has similar testing facilities in Kumamoto, Japan, as well as access to the Transportation Research Center in East Liberty, Ohio, the decision to let HPCC go made economic sense.

UP: To federal lawmakers and the AMA, for gaining ground in the support of H.R.

412, the Kids Just Want to Ride Act. The bill was introduced to exempt kids' off-highway vehicles from the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (informally

known as the "lead law"). The

CPSIA took effect in February of 2009, but key portions of the act won't be enforced until the end of 2011. If H.R. 412 is not successfully passed, youthoriented motorcycles and ATVs could be pulled from dealer floors at the end of the year. Currently, 37 representatives are supporting the bill. Log onto www. americanmotorcyclist. com and click on the Rights section for information on how to contact representatives.

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