Premier U.S. motorcycle cable, tools and controls manufacturer Motion Pro will again be a sponsorship partner for the planned 10-round MotoAmerica Championship this year - a third consecutive year. Founded in 1984 by 6-day ISDT gold medalist Chris Carter, Motion Pro "works closely with championship-level riders and professional mechanics all over the world to continue improving the company's products while also delivering an outstanding customer experience that makes it easier for enthusiasts to do what they love."
Cardo Systems, a global market leader in Bluetooth and mesh communication systems for motorcyclists, has been announced as the Official Communicator of the 2021 Progressive American Flat Track season. "As the official communications system for the series, Cardo's industry-leading PACKTALK BOLD will be featured as an important piece of equipment throughout the season."
Acquired by TVS Motor Company in April 2020, Norton Motorcycles (Birmingham, England) has announced former Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) CEO Sir Ralf Speth as Chairman of the Board of Directors at TVS, effective January 2023. Owned by TATA, another Indian conglomerate, Speth is widely credited for the transformation of the British brands. The outgoing TVS Chairman, Mr. Venu Srinivasan, will become Chairman Emeritus of TVS Motor Company from January 2023. As far as we here at AMD know, it is unprecedented for one of India's transport industry 'Big Five' to appoint a European as its Chairman and signals its determination to consolidate a position as a global player in the re-shaped transport industry of the future.
The Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC) has elected Paul Vitrano to continue serving as the Association Chair. Vitrano is the Senior Assistant General Counsel for Indian Motorcycle and Polaris Inc. Re-elected as Vice Chair was Chuck Boderman, Vice President, General Administration Business Unit at American Honda Motor Co., Inc. and Jim Woodruff, CEO of National Powersport Auctions, as Secretary/Treasurer.
Vespa, Moto Guzzi and Aprilia owner Piaggio's Boston based 'Fast Forward' (PFF - "a leader in smart following technology") has entered into a proof-of-concept collaboration with NASDAQ listed Trimble (Sunnyvale, California) to enable robots and machines to follow humans and other machines in industrial applications. The companies have integrated a patent-pending PFFtag smart following module prototype developed by PFF onto a Boston Dynamics' 'Spot' robot platform controlled by Trimble's advanced positioning technology.
Polaris and Optimus Ride are partnering to bring fully autonomous Global Electric Motorcar (GEM) vehicles to market. The joint development agreement builds upon an investment Polaris made in Optimus last year. An exclusive line of Polaris GEM electric low-speed vehicles (LSVs) will be manufactured to fully integrate Optimus Ride's autonomous software and hardware suite direct from the factory, for deployment nationwide on streets in residential communities, corporate and academic campuses, and other localized environments.
Responding to the inflationary pressures from freight and materials issues, tire maker Mitas has become the first manufacturer in Europe to publicly confirm that "unprecedented raw material and logistic cost increases" have led it to announce price increases of between 4.5% and 7.5% on its two- wheel and specialty tires. Production plants of Mitas tires are located in Prague, Zlín and Otrokovice in the Czech Republic, in Serbia, Slovenia, and in the USA at Charles City in Iowa.
The Recreational Off-Highway Vehicle Association (ROHVA) Board of Directors has announced it has elected Russ Brenan, senior advisor, government relations and public affairs, at Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A., as its chair. Alexandre Borduas, senior advisor, public affairs and government relations, BRP, Inc. was elected as vice chair. Michael Mitchell, senior general counsel, Polaris Inc., was elected secretary/treasurer.
Sources: AMD, IDN, FT, Reuters, PSB, MPN, BDN, MCN, AP, Bloomberg, MSNW, Electrek, electricmotorcycles.news, RideApart.com, Motor1.com, Cycle World, motorbikewriter.com