The Citizen motorcycle lifestyle exhibition, held at the Kyalami racetrack last weekend, appeared to be a fully-fledged success story, judging by the general level of activity on worker’s day.
The Citizen motorcycle lifestyle exhibition, held at the Kyalami racetrack from May 1-4, appeared to be a fully-fledged success story, judging by the general level of activity on worker’s day.
The upper section was taken up mainly with accessories, including a colourful selection of crash helmets and the heady smell of racing leathers.
At track level, the manufacturers had their displays tastefully laid out, with ample room for drooling, taking pictures, ogling, discussing the various designs and… did we mention drooling? Well, who wouldn’t with the mouth-watering likes of, oh crumbs, where does one start?
Lets take the Veloce dealership group, managed by Motovelo SA. Here we find appealing Aprilias, beautiful Benellis, jaunty Gileras and masterful Moto Guzzis. According to Benny Eizenberg, it won’t be long before a dealership opens up in Cape Town to complement the existing six outlets.
Separate from this exotic Italian line-up is legendary Ducati, which had its own stunning display of red, yellow and black machines mounted on carousels, the 999s and new Monster range looking every bit the winners they have proven themselves to be.
Yamaha had a full range of on and off road bikes, and were offering special show deals on some models, for example a GSX 1400 for R75 294. Suzuki and Kawasaki likewise had full ranges, all the Japanese importers additionally offering traffic trouncing scooters, Yamaha with their own BW’S 100 and Kawasaki with their PGO range, Suzuki with the SYM Jet 100 and Shark 125 which sports a four-valve head.
Of course, the market leaders of the scooter brigade, Kymco were there with their Cobra, B&W 125 and 250 and the 250 vee twin Venox. Piaggio’s Vespa range provided Italy’s answer to urban crawl.
On the low, large and slinky front, cruisers were well represented by the low slung likes of Moto Guzzi’s California, Yamaha’s XV 1700 (no, not a misprint, the engine actually has a capacity of 1670 cc!).
Smaller versions offer a more sensible, if less manly, versions such as the XV 1100 and the XVS650 Drag Star. Kawasaki have their big gun, the 1500 Mean Streak, Suzuki displaying the 800 cc Volusia, which looks bigger than it’s engine suggests and is even better looking than the Intruder, while Harley Davidsons and Buells completed the picture in typical inimitable style.
Don’t forget that Kawasaki distribute the Triumph range as well, while, on the four-wheel front, on show were a variety of quads, with an off road track with straw bale barriers for testing.
And now for something completely different. If anyone is interested in a joint venture importing Honorich motorcycles from Hong Kong, contact John Hsu on 0723338350. The bikes are small Honda-based versions and include the good old “monkey” bikes of 50, 70 and 90 cc capacity plus 100 and 125 cc on off and on-road machines.
Some of the bikes could be “hired” for a two-lap stint around the track for a reasonable price of between R10 and R40.
According to exhibiters, the show keeps growing. Thanks to AMID and with backing from the Citizen, we can look forward to more motorcycle fun; only problem is the 12-month wait.
