Barcelona based luggage manufacturer SHAD has won two ABC Mobility Awards for 2022 for its TR40 adventure saddlebags and the upcoming TR55 aluminium top case for two helmets. These are the sixth and seventh international design awards for SHAD's TERRA range in just two years. The prestigious ABC Mobility Awards are design awards given by the German Design Council.
It's official! The new world record attempt by Polini Motori and the journalist Valerio Boni - the "24h Polini Minibike" - has now received the official record from the Guinness Book of Records. The purpose of the challenge was to cover as many kilometres on a minibike as possible in 24 hours. On the 7 Laghi track in Castelletto di Branduzzo (PV), Valerio, helped by the Polini team's staff, the new record is now officially recognised at 751.488 km - a total of 1,236 laps - using a single Polini 910 Carena RS HP 6.2 minibike with 17 stops for refuelling, one front and three rear tyre changes, one new chain, two pairs of new pads and one clutch. Hurrah!
Airoh has been named the official helmet of the Enduro KTM Trophy.
Enduro tyre specialist Borilli Racing of Brazil has announced a € 5.7m investment for the construction of a new plant in Tapejara, Brazil. The new plant will be 100% automated and have a capacity of 600 tons/month of rubber processing.
Following the recent news that Piaggio is to run a share buyback programme, BMW AG has announced that it will buy back its own shares up to € 2bn from July 2022 to Dec 2023. The re-acquired shares will be largely cancelled, reducing outstanding share capital accordingly. This is a first stage in an AGM authorisation for BMW AG to buy back up to 10% of its share capital within five years.
Ducati has opened a new mono-brand flagship store in Barcelona, "just a few metres from the Sagrada Familia". There is a historical link between Barcelona and Ducati - the Catalan city was the only place outside Italy to produce Ducati motorbikes. They were made under licence between 1960 and the end of the 1970s. Ducati bikes won the 24 Hours of Montjuïc for 12 of the 36 times they entered.
Anoka, Minnesota based Bell Helmets owner Vista Outdoor Inc. has "entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Irvine, California based Fox Racing, a global icon in performance motocross, mountain bike and lifestyle gear for adventure seekers". The initial purchase price is said to be $540m. Founded in 1974 by Geoff Fox, a Ph.D. who taught physics at the University of Santa Clara, Moto-X Fox started as a small distribution business for European MX parts and accessories in a 1,500 sq ft building in Campbell, California. Fox Racing grew net sales by approx. 20% CAG from calendar year 2019 to 2021 and is expected to grow in excess of that in 2022.
The name American Bantam is to make a powersports industry comeback. The Pennsylvania business was the designer and builder of the original U.S. Army Jeep in 1940. The new American Bantam Car Corp. will introduce what it is describing as a new class of vehicle - "Street-Legal Off Road" - designed for ATV/SxS buyers. CEO and founder Charlie Paglee describes American Bantam as "a heritage mobility brand bringing cutting-edge plug-in hybrid-electric powertrain technology to propel the off-road industry into the 21st century."
The death of Fraser Scott has been announced - the founder of revolutionary chain oiling tech manufacturer Scottoiler.
Cardo has partnered with KTM to provide a special edition of KTM Packtalk Edge rider communications suite. Featuring a distinctive KTM orange finish, the recently released EDGE includes second-generation Dynamic Mesh Communication (DMC) connectivity, audio clarity from JBL, Natural Voice Operation technology, an enhanced microphone and noise cancellation system, faster pairing in DMC and Bluetooth modes, and is capable of connecting up to 15 riders with a range of nearly one mile.
Piaggio Group has signed an agreement with a consortium of banks to extend and increase its revolving line of credit to € 200m. This is up from the € 187.5m credit facility signed in 2018. The money is from Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Banca Nazionale del Lavoro, HSBC, Intesa Sanpaolo, ING Bank and Unicredit. "The main purpose of the agreement is to extend the revolving credit facility expiring in July 2022 by two and a half years and improve the quality of the Piaggio Group's debt profile by expanding its financial flexibility and residual average life".
Sources: AMD, IDN, FT, Reuters, PSB, MPN, BDN, MCN, AP, Bloomberg, MSNW, Electrek, electricmotorcycles.news, RideApart.com, Motor1.com, Cycle World, motorbikewriter.com
