Louisville, Kentucky - January 20-21, 2024
Universally acknowledged by the vendors and dealers in attendance as an excellent show, the Drag Specialities and Parts Unlimited 2024 NVP Product Expo at Louisville, Kentucky, in January proved to be a great 'season-starter' for Drag vendors who were there.
At a time when even the customary uncertainties of the annual business cycle are themselves uncertain, it left all concerned a lot more optimistic about the business landscape for the year than might otherwise have been the case.
As beautifully well planned and executed as always, with a new 'variation on a theme' of high speed but still intense distributor 'Rep Training' getting everyone's vote as a good new formula.
Some seventy plus V-twin specialist vendors and brands and a whole slew of cross-over business opportunities kept the attending dealers busy and hopeful that 2024 will be a year when, to channel Fred Fox, "everyone will get to go to the bank happy" ...
Puig USA: The Barcelona, Spain based manufacturer is best known for its dominant position in the European 'mainstream/metric' motorcycle parts and accessory market. However, it also has a strong custom accessories program for Harley models and a fast growing model-specific line for the Pan America that leverages its ADV experience with BMW, Yamaha, Triumph, Honda, Ducati and Suzuki models; www.puigusa.com
Progressive Suspension: Founded in 1982 by Don Rickard and Jay Tullis, Progressive Suspension recently celebrated its 40th anniversary and always was, and still is, respected for its R&D investments. Innovative features such as the IAS (Inertia Active System), a forerunner of the FST system that enabled shocks to automatically differentiate between low-speed chassis movements and high-speed wheel movement, have made Progressive a V-twin industry 'go-to' brand; www.progressivesuspension.com
Pro-One Performance Products: New Pro Board V2 Floorboards have been "designed with performance in mind," says Operations Manager Willie Woo. "They are CNC Machined from T6 6061 billet aluminum and include traditional BMX style traction pins that provide fantastic grip. Featuring a tapered design for additional clearance in the heel area and a replaceable scrape pad to protect the edge of the board from hitting the ground, they measure 10" long by 5" wide." They are available in black anodized, chrome and gold (titanium nitride coated) for all Touring and Dyna Switchback models; www.pro-one.com
Vance & Hines Racing: With a new race sponsorship deal in the bag with RevZilla, and dual championships in the trophy cabinet for 2023, for the Santa Fe, California based exhaust manufacturer it's already been 18 months since the introduction of its hugely popular torque boosting generation of Power Chamber Exhaust (PCX) versions of its most popular exhaust systems - with included catalyst to ensure EPA emissions compliance. At the time, the company was able to say that its new PCX technology delivers higher performance and rider comfort while retaining the popular styles of its exhaust systems. What's more, shows like Louisville expose the V&H staff to regular dealer comments extolling the virtues of the deep, "satisfyingly sonorous" sound that its customers love; www.vanceandhines.com
RidePower: Innovative Jacksonville, Florida based cable and accessories manufacturer founded in 2014 by Steve Young. Having developed a charger cable for his phone, which connected directly to his SAE battery connector cable, he incorporated advanced electronics circuitry into the cable and began selling to the powersports network. The rest, as they say, is history. Young, in partnership with GloDea, has grown the RidePower collection from a single phone charger cable to a recognized brand that includes phone charger cables, power connector cables, adapters for the phone and power, inductive charging phone mounts and more; www.ridepower.com
Show Chrome: The Rice Lake, Wisconsin based accessory brand is carving itself a leading position in the 'reverse trike' Roadster accessory market with model-specific designs for the Polaris Sling Shot, Can Am Spyder and Ryker - and don't go thinking it doesn't have anything for V-twins, it does - from lights to luggage racks and more, including the recently acquired Ultra Guard range of motorcycle and trike covers; www.bigbikeparts.com
Klock Werks: You've just gotta have Flare! Brian Klock's top-selling 'Kolor Flare' windshields were chosen for multiple top award-winning custom projects in Europe last year and are one of those product designs that come along once in a while and catch a wave - the right idea in the right place at the right time; www.getklocked.com
ODI Grips: The Riverside, California specialist is best known for its best-selling Old School classic VANS 'Waffle' pattern grip sets, and is now making a name with Its V-twin Lock-On grips sets. The clutch side billet alloy lock-on clamp "delivers 100% slip-free security," with the throttle side featuring a model-specific molded-in throttle tube. They are available in both Hart-Luck or VANS models with many choices of colorways for 1984 and up H-D cable-actuated, 2008 H-D Throttle-by-Wire and 2018 and up Indian Touring TBW models; www.odigrips.com