American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 235 February 2019 | Page 64

HardDrive Announces New
BRIEFS Distribution Agreements with
Three Major Industry Brands
NEWS
We here at AMD were saddened to
hear of the passing of legendary
performance engineer Jerry Branch.
An AMA Hall of Famer, Branch is
perhaps best remembered as one of
the most innovative designers and
builders of motorcycle racing engines
in the second half of the 20th
century. John O'Keefe, Branch's
business partner for 43 years at
Branch & O'Keefe Co., said Branch
was still coming to the shop to work
regularly until his passing. Involved in
the formulation of the original AMA
Superbike rules, Branch authored
several books about his work with
cylinder head air flow - his
innovations in engine design and
performance were far reaching. He
founded the company Branch
Flowmetrics, which he sold to Mikuni
in the late 1990s.
The world's largest Harley-
Davidson dealership group, The
Motorcycle Company (the
Veracka family), has announced
further expansion, acquiring
Desert Wind Harley-Davidson in
Mesa, Arizona - the fifth
dealership acquisition in the
past 12 months and 12th Harley
store under its ownership
currently. TMC is targeting
10,000 Harley retail sales in
2019.
UBS estimate that domestic U.S. H-D
retail sales in October and November
2018 were looking like they were
“down double-digit percent” - which
is worse than expectations and
especially concerning as numbers lap
the hurricane disruption months in
Florida and Texas last year - FL and
TX are the 2nd and 3rd largest states
for motorcycle retail, accounting for
some 11-12% of total U.S. sales.
October and November are said to
typically be around 72-73% of
Harley’s Q4 U.S. retail sales and 11-
12% of full year retail. 2018 has
been Harley’s fourth consecutive year
of U.S. retail sales decline.
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Boise, Idaho headquartered distributor
HardDrive American V-twin Products,
the specialty custom parts division of
Western Power Sports (WPS), has
announced three new distribution
partnerships with Paul Yaffe’s Bagger
Nation (PYBN), MagnaFlow Exhaust
and Rekluse (clutches).
“I am extremely excited to start
offering these brands throughout our
HardDrive dealer network,” National
Sales Manager Ronnie Wehr
explained. “All three of these brands
are well respected in the V-twin world
and we couldn’t be happier to work
with them. Each of these brands are
distinct, giving HardDrive’s vast dealer
network even more options for V-twin
enthusiasts across the country.”
For over 30 years Paul Yaffe’s products
have been industry staples in custom
Harley-Davidson creation, always
coming up with unique parts. Located
in Phoenix, Arizona, Bagger Nation’s
diverse line-up “includes only the
highest quality parts for Harley-
Davidson touring motorcycles. This
new relationship will allow HardDrive
to further help market and distribute
Paul Yaffe’s products in dealerships
across North America.”
For PYBN, National Operations
Manager Mark Goss said: “We are
delighted to announce our partnership
with HardDrive. As a manufacturer of
the highest quality parts for Harley-
Davidson touring motorcycles,
including the best-selling handlebars
in the world, we feel this relationship
will be very complementary to both
companies, benefitting dealers and
their customers.”
MagnaFlow describes itself as a
“global leader in exhaust design and
AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - FEBRUARY 2019
manufacturing with over 35 years of
experience. MagnaFlow engineers use
state-of-the-art
manufacturing
techniques to give V-twin riders that
extra boost of performance, style and
unmistakable sound. Proudly made in
the USA, MagnaFlow develops and
manufactures their products to
exacting standards to ensure that
every part is of the highest quality.
HardDrive is proud to begin
distributing MagnaFlow to dealerships
across North America with their
National Sales Manager Ronnie
Wehr: “I am extremely excited to
start offering these brands
throughout our HardDrive dealer
network”
customer-focused service.”
For MagnaFlow, Director Chris McGee
said: “We are excited with the addition
of HardDrive as a sales partner to
enhance the service and support of
MagnaFlow to V-twin dealers and
shops across North America.
MagnaFlow and HardDrive are both
family-owned and built from the
ground up by good people with
determination and a vision for the
future. We look forward to more good
things in the future with HardDrive.”
Founded on the philosophy of “good
is not good enough”, Boise, Idaho
based Rekluse is “continually
innovating clutch technology, offering
high performance auto and manual
clutches for off-road and street
motorcycles, including V-twin clutches
- indeed Rekluse are the ‘Official
Clutch’ supplier of the American Flat
Track race series.
“Trusted worldwide, from weekend
warriors to world champions in
multiple riding disciplines, Rekluse
proudly engineers, develops and
manufactures in-house here in our
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