AMD261 April 2021 American Motorcycle Dealer 261 April 2021 | Page 8

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NEWS

BRIEFS

As the organizers of EICMA in Milan continue to seek to reassure its exhibitor community about the status of the 78th staging of the show , following BMW ' s decision to withdraw permanently , the latest news includes confirmation that Honda Motor is among the OEMs who will display their wares in November ( 24-28 ).
After ADV events in Norway ( 2017 ) and South Africa ( 2019 ), Honda Motor Europe has postponed the 2021 edition of the Honda Adventure Roads experience that was slated for 30 CRF1100L Africa Twin riders for Iceland this year - new dates for 2022 are June 24 to July 4 . With BMW taking GS Adventure riders to Albania this summer , and KTM planning to tear up Western Greece , now that it hopes to be a player in the ADV space , it will be interesting to see if Harley raids its depleted marketing budgets to play the " us too " game for such an undertaking in the future .
NBC Sports has announced that it will again be showing Progressive AFT this year , with all 17 races to be screened on NBCSN , with TrackPass on NBC Sports Gold to livestream every race of the 2021 season .
In what has been described as a " shock finding ", a French risk-assessment study has said that a five-year lane-splitting trial caused a 12 % increase in motorcycle crashes , so the French authorities have not legalized filtering . The study found that while riders were less likely to be rear-ended , there was an increase in motorbikes running into the backs of other vehicles .
Despite the alarming findings of a road safety survey into lane splitting in Europe , the momentum towards it as a congestion busting solution appears to still be behind it - Montana being the latest U . S . state to pass motorcycle lane-filtering legislation , making it the third state to do so ( California and Utah are the other two ). Contrary to the research findings in Europe ( entirely different riding conditions and street architecture ), the AMA endorses lane splitting , given the long-term success in California and a University of California-Berkeley research study showing that the practice enhances motorcycle safety .

2011 AMD World Champion Ken Tabata Passed Away

AMD was saddened to hear of the death of Ken Tabata of Tavax Engineering , Osaka , Japan . Ken was the winner of the 2011 AMD World Championship - a fitting reward for 3 1 / 2 years of determination , inspiration and innovation . Ken won at Sturgis with his muchadmired Tavax 2011V - hand-sculpted , polished aluminum custom loveliness inspired by the coiled-up energy and elegant , fluid motion of a ' Cheetah ' racing through the Savannah grasslands . Using his own hand-fabricated custom frame , housing an S & S Shovelhead style engine with custom rocker boxes , cam box cover and air cleaner for the S & S carb , almost the only other items Ken didn ' t make are the modified stock transmission , Rivera Primo primary with a sprung pulley to provide the tension to keep the belt in place and the heavily modified and lightweight Marchesini wheels with Dunlops . The advanced suspension system was all Ken ' s work . The swingarm itself is suspended by a single coil shock , which is activated by a sports bike style linkage system . At the front of the bike , linkages are also used in the suspension - where the fork begins at the axle as a leading link with a pair of pivoting arms in each of the fork legs ,
The organizers of Motor Bike Expo ( the ' Verona ' show , Italy ) have postponed its planned Easter date - which was itself a postponement from the usual January 2021 timing - and announced instead that they are " working on a new formula for an extraordinary edition , where the motorcyclist will be even more protagonist ." The new dates for MBE 2021 are Friday 28 to Sunday 30 May at Veronafiere , with a renewed format that moves the event away from dependence on midwinter static displays to combining it with live action - " engines running , motorcycles in motion and the development of outdoor activities with itineraries , demo rides and
working on a horseshoe shaped piece that pushes a single shock in a design similar to that of a Springer fork .
competitive activities ." The show will maintain its opportunities for motorcycle , accessories and apparel vendors and will follow the trend seen at other expos in Italy , such as EICMA and Biker Fest , by taking advantage of the late May timing to supercharge the offer with boosted action and activity elements . One of the cornerstones of the new iteration of MBE will be the demo rides and the increase of all the outdoor activities that will surround the static display .
Our thoughts are with Ken ' s wife Akiko , seen here with him at the ' AMD ' at Sturgis in 2011 .

Motor Bike Expo Verona , Postponed to May , New Format

Plus , unlike a winter event , enthusiasts will be able to reach the fair more easily by motorbike and on arrival they will find motorcycle- specific parking inside the exhibition center with a gear-friendly cloakroom . An additional feature will be a shipping center to allow them to send themselves any products they purchase at the fair .
8 AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - APRIL 2021