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MRF is to hold its 40th Annual ' Meeting of the Minds ' Conference in St . Louis on September 26-29 , 2024 . The agenda will include advance planning and legislative agenda development for its 2025 ' Bikers Inside the Beltway '. Described as " a training ground for the future of motorcycling ," the success of this year ' s ' Bikers Inside the Beltway ' saw a " direct correlation between the handson training sessions that the MRF is known for and the end results on Capitol Hill ." This year saw a record attendance ( over 150 attendees from 37 states ) in Washington , DC , with " motorcyclists ' rights advocates spread out from one side of Capitol Hill to the other . Appointments were made with over 200 members of Congress , and before the day was over , MRF legislative packets were presented to all 535 congressional offices ."
After multiple lobby efforts , ABATE of Louisiana has succeeded in gaining legal protection for consumers to be able to choose what kind of vehicle power plant they want to buy . Governor Jeff Landry was among 16 Governors who wrote a letter to President Biden asking him to reconsider his Electric Vehicle ( EV ) mandate . Because of this stance , Landry signed HB 515 into law on May 28 - the law protects consumers ' rights to choose conventional internal combustion engine ( ICE ) vehicles , if that is their preference . Louisiana is the third state in the nation , after Ohio and Kansas , to have a law protecting Internal Combustion Engines and vehicle choice .
Having invested a reported $ 14m to expand its 720 employee Sea-Doo Switch pontoon boat manufacturing facility in Sturtevant , Wisconsin , in 2023 , the company is said to have laid off nearly 300 staff in two tranches this year ( March and May ) due to ' soft demand '. Both marine and snowmobile sales saw revenue dropped in Q4-FY24 . Seasonal products , which include snowmobiles , decreased 27.8 % YoY .
BMW in Germany decided to bring back its formerly annual ' Motorrad Days ' this summer ( returning to Garmisch-Partenkirchen , Bavaria ), and BMW Motorrad USA has announced continuation of the BMW Motorrad Days Americas that it trialed last year as part of its 100 years celebration as a motorcycle manufacturer . The event will be hosted at the Barber Vintage Festival ( October 11-13 ).
BMW R20 Concept - ' Rad ' Roadster ?
Primarily a May auto-fest and held in the elegant surroundings of the Villa d ' Este on the shores of Lake Como ( northern Italy ), the annual Concorso d ' Eleganza Villa d ' Este nonetheless does showcase some exceptional motorcycles from concourse condition classics and authentic restorations to contemporary and often avant-garde customs through to advanced concepts and prototypes . A highlight of the spring season for ' petrol heads ' and poseurs alike , BMW is a lead sponsor and a major player in exhibit terms , and generally has something to show for its winter workshop endeavors . This year saw a debut for an R20 concept as a follow-on from the R18 . Described by BMW as a Roadster , it is a ' runner ' and with a " punched out " 2,000 cc ' Boxer ' engine , it would be the second largest displacement motorcycle in the world if it does make it to volume production - second only to Triumph ' s 2,458 cc Rocket 3 Triple . Having turned 100 last year , BMW Motorrad continues to mine its heritage - the R20 designation hails from 1937 / 1938 when the first R20 was developed from then best-selling 8 bhp R2 . The 192 cc R20 of that era only saw 5,000 examples being sold - the overhead-valve engine was housed in a frame made from boltedup steel tubes and equipped with an undamped telescopic front fork . This 21st century iteration looks as stylish and ' rad ' as the original must have done back in its day . The minimalistic avant-garde StreetFighter vibes of this R20 aren ' t ' Roadster ' in the purest sense and the high ground clearance makes look ' flickable ' - like it could carve canyons - not something normally associated with the weight and geometry of BMW ' s air-oil cooled flat twin . The chassis has been completely
The first iteration of the BMW R20 designation - a 192 cc / 8 bhp single in 1937 .
BMW Motorrad ' s two-liter big Boxer R20 ' Roadster ' concept .
From concept to more of a pre-production prototype - this was the ' runner ' that BMW Motorrad unveiled at the Concorso d ' Eleganza Villa d ' Este in May .
redeveloped from the one developed for the R18 , with a black double-loop main frame made of chrome-moly steel tubes forming the backbone , and BMW tradition meets modernity with a two-arm version of the proven paralever swingarm . The exposed driveshaft , conceptually adopted from the R18 , has been shortened for integration into the roadster architecture and if features fully adjustable Öhlins Blackline suspension components at the front and rear . The basic vehicle geometry has a 62.5-degree steering head angle and a 1,550 mm wheelbase , with radially mounted brake calipers from ISR - six piston front , four piston rear and 2-in-2 exhaust . " The BMW R20 concept takes the Big Boxer culture to a new level ," says BMW Motorrad ' s newly installed head of design Alexander Buckan . “ The R20 concept is a bold interpretation of the BMW Motorrad DNA . It combines modern technical elements with a classic roadster design . Its oversized proportions and minimalistic aesthetic give it an unmistakable character .” New concepts shown by BMW Motorrad at the Concorso d ' Eleganza do have a habit of eventually making it into production , one way or another , at one stage or another . So , based on its established ' modus operandi ', watch out for a slew of pre-production custom protypes as a telling next stage . That said , with R18 sales not having met expectations since its launch in 2020 , it ' s equally possible that ' Munich ' may be gun-shy this time .
22 AFTERMARKET MOTO DESIGN - JULY 2024 www . AMDmag . com