Polaris is Expanding - Buys into Brammo!

Brammo Empulse RR

Surely, you have already read this, but the news is still encouraging for the motorcycle industry and thus it must be brought to the attention of those involved in it. Polaris most recently took over the new Indian - which seems to be going well at this early stage - and now they have bought a minority share in Brammo. They do make a good bike, in my opinion, and seem to be walking a solid line with the business operations as well. Brammo, based here in Oregon, is on the path to real industry relevancy; soon, no one will laugh at electric motorcycles.

So, without further crap from me, here is the press release:
http://tinyurl.com/697mqj6

Wednesday Afternoon Moto News - Polaris Purchase & Valentino Rossi's Future

Polaris - makers of the Victory line of motorcycles - has purchased Swiss engine builder swissauto Powersports, who is well-known for producing very high-performance and highly efficient engines. They even had some engines they built win Grand Prix races and several Championships. Polaris only purchased the motorcycle side of the business and it will continue to be based in Burgdorf, Switzerland.

http://tinyurl.com/ykzu48w

Once again, Valentino Rossi has stated that he plans on remaining with Yamaha if he continues to race in the MotoGP Championship beyond 2011. Rossi says that this should all be laid out before June of this year - which was about the same time of year they announced his 2009-2011 contract. Many expect him to flee to Ducati, but that is highly unlikely given that Rossi is often a man of his word.

http://tinyurl.com/ylkygrj

PR: Cardo Systems and Polaris & Victory Motorcycles

It's a new agreement and will expand the places where you can purchase a Cardo Systems motorcycle communications systems. And, it helps Polaris expand their offerings as well. As you are probably aware, Cardo manufactures the Scala Rider Q2, which can be used for bike-to-bike communications, listening to a Bluetooth-enables GPS, mobile phone or music source and FM radio. More and better - gotta love that!

http://tinyurl.com/yczx6dq

P.S. Watch out for the ad which comes up when you launch the site - just close it and you will be able to read the article.

Polaris Industries to Manufacture Electric Vehicle

They are the parent company of one of my favorite cruiser makers - Victory - and they also make ATVs and snowmobiles, not to mention the many derivatives they manufacture. Now, they have seen where the future of the powersports world is heading and they have already started to produce the 'Breeze' - an electric vehicle aimed at retirees in the Sun Belt. It is only a start, though, as they plan to learn from this experience and, possibly, go further into the electric vehicle market...maybe even electric motorcycles.

http://tinyurl.com/ygq3nob