Despite it taking two cups of coffee and an hour of eyeing the show floor dynamic to remind myself of how trade shows worked, the school of organizational excellence that is the LeMans show machine made it easy to get back in the saddle and pick up on conversations left unfinished from 30 months ago at Louisville. Such is LeMans' market position that the show now not only fills the main Expo Hall at the Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired Monona Terrace Convention Center between the lakes in the Wisconsin capital, but now features a second hall of booths and extended show hours with enhanced sales representative training opportunities for the vendors. The industry was clearly pleased to be able to be "back in the flesh" and despite the growing economic (and geo-political) clouds, the parts and accessories aftermarket appeared to be in good spirits, positive about the future and positive about the value and service that Drag Specialties and Parts Unlimited bring to the market's dealerships…
BS Battery: The French battery and charger manufacturer has just become a new and exclusive (for the USA) brand for Drag Specialties and Parts Unlimited, and this was its 'NVP' debut. An extension of the company's five-year relationship with Parts Europe, the 2008 family-owned business offers an "exhaustive" range of battery solutions with all the technologies: lithium, AGM Sealed Lead Acid, AGM maintenance-free batteries, smart chargers and boosters for all the applications: Motorcycle, V-Twin, SSV, ATV, UTV, Snowmobile, Watercraft. Strong technical racing partnerships with the likes of Fabio Quartararo (MotoGP World Champion), Yamaha GMT94 (World SuperBike), Kawasaki Bud Racing (MXGP), Sherco Racing (Enduro GP, Hard Trial) and many others has made the BS Battery brand one of the fastest growing in the battery aftermarket as well as becoming a major OEM supplier to several high-profile manufacturers worldwide. "We are very excited to start this new collaboration with LeMans Corporation," said General Manager Benjamin Sebban (seen here in the middle), "our companies' visions are totally aligned: services and human above all, and that makes us confident for the future"; www.bs-battery.com
Dakota Digital: Josh Kobernusz says that the new MLX-9000 Series handlebar-mounted instrument systems come in a classic oval or edgy spiked shape in a black or chrome housing. With 31 illumination colors and independently selectable colors for speed reading, message center information, bar graph readouts and gauge labels, multiple message centers offer a wide range of information to show the rider exactly what they want to see. The speedometer can be calibrated for custom-gearing situations and features Bluetooth technology for the programming via the company's mobile app; www.dakotadigital.com
Memphis Shades: Mike Curry told AMD that the Rossville, Tennessee based manufacturer's spoiler windshield for 'Rushmore' Tourers (2014 and up) were designed using CFD to work in concert with the splitstream vent. Manufactured in Lucite branded PMMA, they are available in four custom heights (3", 4.5", 6.5", and 8.5") in Smoke (a medium bronze tint with 30% visible light transmission), Ghost (a light black tint with 85% visible light transmission) or Dark Black Smoke (a black tint with 25% visible light transmission); www.memphisshades.com
JIMS: Still under family ownership and operation, recent new products from the Camarillo, California tools and performance specialist include hardware organizers, crankcase splitting tool, transmission rebuild kits and an oil pump alignment tool for M-8 engines; www.jimsusa.com
NAMZ: Following the introduction of what is thought to be the world's first standalone motorcycle fuel injection system (in collaboration with ThunderMax and Dakota Digital), the Oreland, Pennsylvania specialist continues to "make it easy to do it right" with new sensor and wiring kit replacements and upgrades. The additions include 100% plug-n-play year-specific replacement twist grip sensors for all throttle-by-wire motorcycles 2008 and up, a 2017-up TMAP sensor female connector kit, a 2017-up sensor female connector kit, including wire seals and terminals, and an OEM rear black fuel injector connector with terminals, wire seals and secondary lock for 2017-up models; www.namzccp.com