As the biggest motorcycle trade show in the country, the Indy Dealer Expo is the place to be each February to see new products and innovative ideas being introduced to the two-wheeled world, including the very people who make the industry go ’round. Today, Dirt Rider editors Chris Denison and Pete Peterson bring you the latest straight from the floor of the convention center, and the duo will be serving up even more updates throughout the weekend. Check it:
Dubach Racing Development’s Terry Beal is pretty excited about the latest exhaust components being offered by the company, as well as the epic waves that he’s going to shred when he gets back to California. With Doug Dubach’s racing experience and Beal’s total commitment to producing competitive products at privateer-friendly prices, DRD has solidified its place as a legitimate player in the off-road and MX scene. Now, if they could only start producing headers for surfboards…
Being the hardcore trail riders that they are, the boys over at Pro Moto Billet/ Fastway needed a way to safely transport a full-size chain saw on the back of a dirt bike. With a little elbow grease and some modifications to their existing rack, they came up with this ingenious, sano setup to use for clearing and maintaining trails. The PMB booth was also a popular stop due to the plethora of steering stabilizers, footpegs, handguards and other trick billet goodies.
EVS rocked the first day of the trade show with a completely revamped product line consisting of several new items. The new fully convertible F2 chest protector was a hot item, as the user can switch between a number of configurations include back-less, neck brace compatible and totally armored. There were also a number of cool new paint helmet schemes, as well as some killer hot-weather undergear.
Trail Tech continues to gain ground in the off-road market with its unique line of bike and helmet lights, and the all-new Voyager GPS has to be one of the most radical gadgets in the show. You may recognize this X2 light from the pages of Dirt Rider, where we rocked a similar version on our long haul Christini AWD 250X for the better part of two years with zero problems. Compared to stock, the Trail Tech light seems like it could give you a friggin’ sunburn!
Bel-Ray’s Scott Lukaitis is pretty stoked on his new position as Brand Manager of the company. On Friday at Indy, Scott’s job consisted of hanging out with Chad Reed and Carey Hart while they signed autographs, and then showing off the latest Bel-Ray goodies to a huge group of enthusiasts who pretty much just want to talk about dirt bikes. This guy is proof that having a job that you like in the industry is pretty darn sweet!
Fresh off a solid finish at the Dakar Rally, Jonah Street’s Yamaha rally bike was on display in the Klim booth. More than one off-roader cruised by and commented, “Man, I’m a WR owner, but my bike does NOT look like that!” You really have to see this bike up close to get a feel for how totally trick all of the components are; after all, it did finish one of the most demanding racers on earth!
Klim also had a demo unit set up that allowed visitors to feel first hand (literally) how well Gore-Tex material works. In this photo, DR’s Chris Denison got his hand wet, stuck it inside of a pure Gore-Tex glove, and then wiggled his fingers underneath a stream of water for one minute. Afterwards, his hand was completely dry. Superior moisture wicking properties or just plain magic? You decide!
Wolfman’s Eric Hougen is always tinkering with cool new ways for off-road riders to carry their stuff around. This wild creation is a top-secret prototype dry-bag setup that Eric literally tossed together right before the show. Will you see something like this in production soon? Heck yes, and with complementary bike-mounted bags to match!
Do you know what this is? This is the face of someone who wants to protect your right to ride. Don Riggle, Director of Operations for the Trails Preservation Alliance, is serious about saving the future of the sport. But he can’t do it alone, and it’s going to be a challenge to keep riding areas open. Riggle was cruising the show spreading the good word about the TPA. Want to find out more? Visit www.coloradoTPA.com, or else this guy might come looking for you!
Bell helmets is making a huge push with their new Moto-9 helmet which features, among other things, an all-new fit for more universal rider comfort. Dirt Rider has done some initial testing with this lid and we’re pretty pleased with the results, but of course we’ll have to continue to beat the snot out of the helmet for another few weeks before we can actually write the test. Stay tuned!
The Powerflow Intake Radiator Shrouds from Cycra are a stronger, lighter variation of the stock unit, with a whopping 40% claimed airflow increase to the airbox. The JGRMX squad has been digging the Powerflow shrouds, and the slimmer feel provided by the setup is evidently just what the Doctor ordered for increased rider comfort on the new blue steed.
Mishimoto was on hand to show their beefier-than-stock radiators, some heat wrap, but what caught Pete’s eye was the temperature gauge radiator cap. It’s not the ideal place to read a gauge, but it’s simple and tucked away from crash damage.
Rekluse showed off their brand new auto clutch. And the best news is the ‘auto’ part can be bought separately and run in your stock clutch. So for $400 you can never stall again! And it’s adjustable with different weights. Way cooler than trying to restart you bike on the side of a hill!
Twisted Throttle has some very cool racks to mount just about any case on your adventure bike. We liked the yellow, but this is just a trade show display color. You don’t have to look like a Ringling Bros. clown bike just to get your side bags mounted securely.
What do you want on your head in the event of a monster get off? A Monster branded Arai helmet, of course!
LA Sleeve had this cool ‘top end in a box’ including the sleeve and details on how to get it installed into your cylinder. It’s not fun to need a new cylinder, but it’s cool that it’s now this convenient to go from seized engine to break-in day.
Is your stock two-stroke pipe looking old and hammered? PJ1 hasn’t forgotten about you and your need to look like the manufacturers still make your trusty and fun smoker. Their Fast Black paint had Pete thinking it was still 2005!
K&N filters was showing off their new filter for the Yamaha YZ450F and boasting about their website. Why? Because if you look up your bike’s filter and click “product test data” you can actually see how the K&N version of your filter performs. Their filtration efficiency goes UP when they’re slightly dirty! Pete was beside himself when he realized now not cleaning your filter is an engine mod!
HJC showed off their top-of-the-line CL-X6 helmet. This is the kozmos colorway, and we thought it looks out of this world!
The guys at GoPro had this amazing 3D set up. You take your own GoPro wide cameras – two of ‘em, and for just under $100 you get a case, sync cable, 3D glasses (the red and blue style) and software to create your own 3D helmet cam videos! That’s just cool-cool!
Pete was blown away by the GoPro 3D display. He thought he was back on Pandora with the Avatar aliens!
Tennis, anyone? Risk Racing’s FlexIt light is cool. You can bend it to put light anywhere, stick it to metal with its base magnets, and serve a mean overhand cross-course ace between motos!
Bell had a custom helmet painter doing his thing at the booth. It was pretty cool to watch the pinstripes go on, even though it was a street bike helmet.
Fulmer had a dancing mannequin. It moved so lifelike it scared Chris, but Pete thought it was funny. Robotics have come so far they look exactly like some weird guy put on gear and started dancing to “Play That Funky Music White Boy” in the middle of a trade show!
Italian exhaust company Leo Vince recently starting bringing these two-stroke silencers (with removable spark arrestor screen) into the country. They’re not yet marketing them, they’re not yet promoting them, yet they keep selling out every batch that shows up. Two-stroke guys rule!
Check back in to www.dirtrider.com for more dirt from the Indy Trade Show!
