Well, I had most pictures, but I guess they're too big. Oh well, you get the just of what I've been riding.
Kawasaki would love to have more demo events for exactly this reason and these types of people. Not too terribly long ago we had 3 semi trucks on the road, one dedicated just for cruisers (Vulcan Nation) that would hit the events such as Sturgis, and the other two with a full complement of demo bikes. One truck started at each end of the country and hit all of the major Bike Week shows and cities along the way on the weekends.If Kawi offered more demo events, it would help riders like you.
You'll never regret learning from research. Smart people do their homework.
N1K should fit your requirements at a modest price point.
You'll love it! Sounds like a great deal too...Well, I wasn't messing around, I bought a N1000 this morning. It was my first vehicle I've ever bought on ebay which is kind of scary. It is a 2011 with only 1,536 miles! I go to Memphis TN to pick it up saturday. Wish me luck.
Kawasaki would love to have more demo events for exactly this reason and these types of people. Not too terribly long ago we had 3 semi trucks on the road, one dedicated just for cruisers (Vulcan Nation) that would hit the events such as Sturgis, and the other two with a full complement of demo bikes. One truck started at each end of the country and hit all of the major Bike Week shows and cities along the way on the weekends.
The economy has certainly taken it's toll but almost equally are the "tire kickers". Don't get me wrong, I'm not talking shoppers that just bought a different brand, I'm talking about the people that never had any intention of buying a bike...just joy riding. Depending on some cities we were at we'd get some Stunt MC's show up in droves and try to dominate the availability of rides available and then think they were going to show us what "real" riders look like.
Add to that the Vloggers...not professional moto journalists but the wanna be YouTuber that is there just to do a video "review" and real world test ride. All I can say, is time and place.
I love seeing the actual people that are looking for their 1st or next bike and taking them out in my groups for demo rides. I enjoy even more the person that is a little unsure and not quite comfortable keeping up with the pace of the group and I will break off and ride just with them and let the group go with the other escort riders.
Unfortunately...there were a lot of "butts in seats" but not a lot of actual buyers, imagine what the cost involved with an operation of that scope is.
At the demo events you would usually qualify for a $500 manufacturer rebate and sometimes a dealer matched rebate. They would track that metric of how many rebates were being redeemed, they were only good for 30 days so it was effectively correlated as a result of the demo event. Just not enough buyers.
You would be surprised at the number of dealerships not interested or not willing to participate. Many of them don't want to pay the overtime or additional hours to have a staff person at a demo event that would otherwise be on the sales floor. The benefit to them seems to be obvious...it baffles the mind why our weekend demo events aren't at a dealership and instead Kawasaki has to pay for an event site ($$$), usually a shopping mall parking lot or similar. Even the "tire kickers" would probably at least go inside the dealership and buy some accessories. It seems like they would be able to convert many more Kawi Kash purchases on the spot vs. a consumer having to leave a demo event and then go to a dealership location. There are a lot of things that don't make sense, I don't pretend to know them/understand them all. I'm sure there are other corporate political / franchisee / dealership issues that I'm not aware of. But it seems like if only people would get out of their own way and do what made sense.I guess they can't keep doing the volume of demo events but either do fewer cities or do it every other year. Maybe it's easier to attach to a dealer for a weekend demo event like Yamaha. Find a large regional dealer and split the cost.
Way to dive into the pool headlong! let us know if there was water in the pool or if you impacted the concrete directlyWell, I wasn't messing around, I bought a N1000 this morning. It was my first vehicle I've ever bought on ebay which is kind of scary. It is a 2011 with only 1,536 miles! I go to Memphis TN to pick it up saturday. Wish me luck.