FR4 time to lay out what's what

RE: FR4 time to lay out what

Having had no impact on the last ride, I can only correct you on a couple things.

There is no top brass. It's a community. As you stated yourself, you kept quiet while others stepped forward and did the best they could to make the ride great. I would suggest that you not keep quiet next time if you see something that you don't agree with. I know it's against your beliefs to speak up on a perceived injustice, but hopefully you'll find it in yourself to do it for the good of the community

I'm confused about "the wrong side of the table". It seems as if you think it became a goal of the people organizing the ride to make money. Unless I'm sorely mistaken, the support of the companies stopped at providing goods to the people that took time and made the effort to make it to the ride(I may be wrong, maybe there's a Swiss bank account with all the fluff money somewhere?). If you're suggesting that the ride be somewhere other than NA, then take the reigns like the Aussies did and I'm sure you'll have interested parties.

Sorry if I misunderstood your post Mr. Lloyd, but in fairness, I'm out of practice on my Taffyese. I promise to brush up on it tonight.

thanks,
json

Taffy,

All is well taken, and good points made. I would like to take a moment to correct a few things.

Regarding the number of riders at the event. As you mentioned there is a recession about, and that has, I believe severely restricted the turn out at this years event. Most after market companies sales are off by 30-40%. One of the japanese bike companies is off by 55%, while KTM is off by roughly 30%. So, with that in mind, and the fact that there was what, liberally speaking 70 riders at FR 2, then minus the 30% on the conservative side that leaves 49, and on the more liberal side 70 minus 50% leaves 35. On the sign up roster we had 53 people who signed up, and to tell you the truth, I'm not sure exactly how many showed up but by my closest count it was like 43 folks. Now I'd say about 8 came just for the demo rides, and of those 8 one left town with a new 570, and another bought one as soon as he got home, so I'd say about 37 or 38 folks showed up with berg's and their friends bikes. So not too bad all things considered, I'd say we were down 45% on site sign ups. So, if we add in all the folks who were there to help out as guides, some were on Bergs some were not, well toss in another 12 in the group, who by way contributed at the chili dinner and that brings the number up to lets say 49 which is well within line with the economic driving forces. The guides and locals were very much part of the group and were a good lot and were a lot of fun to hang out with, as well as rely on as seasoned riders of the area-a priceless resource to say the least. Pluse they all hauled a**, especially Dalton, Nathan's boy.

However your point is well taken here.

Second point about Tall Texan. It is my opinion that there would have been no trouble at all with all staying at the TT if everyone would have pulled the trigger like myself and reserved their "space" right from the git go. There really was no reason not to as you could cancel up to one month ahead with no penalty. And, with a bit more planning, the pavillion area could have been outfitted with the portable fire rings-aka old washer tubs- for hanging out. The only draw back here is that the curfew was 2200 hours on the revelry. Again, with just a tad more planning and some co-ordination and commitment by those attending, I feel the folks at the TT would have accomodated us, they seemed like nice folks to me. So lesson learned there. One last time, the word COMMITMENT comes to mind.

Commercialism. I totally agree with your concerns here. Some were quick to worry about this, this time. However, the support we had was, I want to say this forcefully enough without the use of colorful metaphors, AWESOME. Those who sponsored us looked only to enhance the experience for those who came. There was NEVER any perceived or blatant coersion of our event, only the wish to be a part of the experience and in the case of Husaberg North America get some word of mouth exposure from real riders-not posers. And just so everyone knows this since I have not seen it mentioned yet, in regards to Clay Stuckey (insert southern draw here) "that boy can ride ya'll!!

As far as a place to go for FR 4, well I'm up for returning to Gunnison. I was told, and know, that we only scratched the surface of this area. For me, either location Moab, or Gunnison, is a two day drive for me. I don't care, really, like you I'm looking to go riding with a good group of guys and have a great time riding and chatting it up at the end of the day.

So now let's address HBG NA involvement. Clay came on some time back, and now his buddy Rod is also a member who obviously enjoyed meeting the squad. Seems to me that Clay keeps an eye here, and is trying to be involved and make sure that the bikes and their owners are well looked after. I recall one recent post where some owner of a new bike was having trouble and Clay interviened and made sure the problem was taken care of. Further, at FR 3, Bobzilla's intake manifold cracked causing an air leak and Clay offered to have one overnighted to get him going again. Pretty top shelf if you ask me. Again as far as having anything forced on us, well I just don't see that happening.

So to set it straight, Clay is a damn good rider, he races, all over as a matter of fact, contributes to the site, and is on the look out to make sure that UHE members purchasing new bikes are well taken care of. I think that makes him officially unofficial. I think perhaps more so than Jedi-remember him?

I'm not sure about the top brass comment-however, you don't have to worry about me old boy.

In regards to your assertion "my views which are agreed with to my face by a small few but important UHE members - tacit or otherwise." Anonymity has no authority, accuracy, or courage. I am a union E board memeber and deal with management here at work with various grievances et al. And nothing is worth anything unless it is in writing and has a signature. So if anyone has an opinion let them speak now. I have to wonder if any of them were the ones walking away with boxes of free stuff generously provided by our sponsors with only the promise of a small logo on a T shirt and a logo on a web site with a hyperlink to their business.

I will go further at this point with commercialism and sponsorship. Those that sponsored us did so with the enthusiasm of well, enthusiasts. One even lamented that they did not get on board for being the title sponsor-$2000 worth up front. That same sponsor let me know they wanted to be sure and be the title sponsor next year, and they were bummed when I informed them there wouldn't be a FR next year. Another when told of how well things went was encouraging me to try and have one again next year so that they could give away another $650 worth of their product. The "other" sponsors that I contacted, well some never responded, others messed up and sent me an email string that was supposed to stay internal (god you gotta love idiots!) and in this email string were not only condescending but questioned my integrity as a reward-no response from them when I sent it back to them. Another large company wasn't even interested in giving up some banner tape for the demo courses, not big enough fish I guess. And still others were nice enough to respond with a pleasant no thanks.

Yes, a few of the Husaberg riders were not from this site, but, were from the Husaberg section of KTM talk. His name is Clovin he and his son their names are Tod and Ted can't remember which is which right now, invited us to their private property (the staging area with the lake) to stage out of for the ride to Aspen, and the other ride with Cheeseberger. As we left for the days ride, unbeknownst by all of the riders, the Elder Clovin had his very nice girl friend go to town and buy a whole bunch of burgers and bratts and all the fixins, including beer, and at the end of the day a fire was lit and grill put into place and a camp fire cooked dinner was made for everyone there, along with the liquid libation. Which of course led to many hours of conversation. In fact, Clay couldn't get Oliver to leave until very late in the evening as he too is an enthusiast and was having a great time chewing the fat with the UHE and ahhhem non UHE members around the fire. A big thanks to the Clovins indeed.

So, here's my In closing-for now.

While I knew of some people from the site and was thrilled to meet them in person, I met a bunch of people that I did not know from the site, and they were super cool people, regular as I like to call them. Who were generous to a fault, very helpful, and gracious.

Other than the one accidental injury that we had, I thought the event was a cracking success. To a person, I believe everyone in attendence came up to me and thanked me for the effort I had put into the event, at which time I was happy to say your welcome, it was my pleasure, but, there were a lot more people than me who put this all together, Ossaman for the T shirts and the banker, Berger for the accomodations, Bobzilla for handling the dinner, and Dezduster for keeping track of things, and all the other members who's input shaped the location and outcome of the event. And last but not least Fritz and his lovely wife Vicki and all their friends for making the rides happen.

Wish you could have been there Taffy, many folks asked about you and were bummed that they did not get to meet you. So, I think your concerns have merrit, but, everything worked out fine.

Added here for clarification, although it is posted in the sign up list section of the 2009 FR:

Taffy,
Wow! Didn't expect that reaction to our sponsorship of FR3.
When I worked for Kawasaki (almost 20 years) I never understood why the Japanese OEMs did not support the clubs/organizations built around their product like the Concours Owner's Group, the American Voyager Association, and the Gold Wing Club. I came to realize that it is because the employees of Japanese companies are very seldom enthusiasts and don't understand the product and its uses well enough to talk to the club members about their bikes. It is difficult for KTM to support KTM Talk because KTM Talk supports their member dealers who give discounts over other dealers. KTM can't be a part of that.
The first time I went on the UHE site, I was pleasantly surprised at the closeness of the group and the love of the product. There is very little HB bashing (actually....none) and I really like the desire that the group has to help other riders. I wanted to be a part of that as a member of the industry and an enthusiast. I saw it again at FR3. Members were glad to see old friends again and asked about jobs, friends, family, bikes, etc. This group is close.
Dale was very kind when he complimented my riding ability (Dale...check's in the mail!) I have to admit that I am proud of my ability to ride a motorcycle. That's about all I want to do. I enjoy it tremendously. I like to ride with others who like to ride. I also understand your concern that the group doesn't lose it's purity through corporate sponsorship. If the group decides to go that way in the future, I'll still be at the ride as a member rather than a sponsor. I expect Oliver Goehring will, too! (Hmmmm.....there's a thought....if we go as members rather than sponsors, we can ride more!)
So...where we going for FR4?
Clay

Other than the few obvious issues, I would not change a thing. Everything was top notch. The hospitality unrivaled from all that were a part of this. From Fritz'z crew to the TT to the people working the local ER....everyone.
One could only hope to try to come close to what F3 was, for F4.
I would hold F4 in Gunnison again in a heartbeat if it were up to me.
The only things I would change would be making sure we are all in the same place if possible, that would be paramount. The second thing would be to spread responsibility alittle more. Dale took the reins and ran with it. He did an exceptional job. The only problem being is that he did way too much. I feel bad that I did not contribute more.

Those that missed F3 were indeed missed, and those that missed F3 missed out.

With that being said, I think we are slowly getting these events down. I am looking forward to F4 where ever it may be.
Maybe we can get a group ride together for 2010 like the previous Hatfield/McCoy and Phoenix rides.

berger said:

Maybe we can get a group ride together for 2010 like the previous Hatfield/McCoy and Phoenix rides.

Click to expand...

That sounds like a plan indeed!

Taffy
I was more than a little concerned about the sponsor ship /commercialization of the event at first and spoke my mind clearly to the other planning members. My worries were addressed and in the end it was to the members benefit by a long shot that we had the sponsors we did. I know I came away with more swag than my entry fee was not even counting the T shirt and dinner.

Husaberg NA, Clay, Rod, Charles and from the Factory Oliver. Top notch people that share the EXACT interests that we and are lucky to get paid to do what we pay to do. There was never any attitude other that " here take it and go have fun", " before you go let me fix that", " if you dont like that one try this one" and it was that was for the whole time. If you had a problem they were doing their best to get it fixed. I think some one even had a leak and Charles said come back in a few and I'll put a new seal in and have it fixed. That was not on a demo . I know that HNA got a lot of publicity out of this trip and I am glad. I know how bad the "goodwill" of Husaberg was in this country not too long ago. If this went a long way to help the PR then I hope it was worth what they spent . I know it was not cheap. I know I did not baby the bikes I was on and some others even threw them down Good folks and Oliver even let me pass once :lol: he is a good rider and he speaks English better than Cypher

In regards to the non site members in attendance, I never felt we were being "overrun" or pushed to the back by any of them. I met many site members for the first time and hate to say I cant remember all of their names (short term memory loss due to growing up in the sixties). I did in fact meet some non site members , a few were on Husabergs and some were on KTM's and a Honda or two and a Husky. I know for a fact one of the Honda's wanted a Berg after the ride. Lizzard and Candy were with spouse's that had Bergs

The riding area was fantastic and the ability to have GOOD TRAIL LEADERS that knew the system AND were paying attention to the group of riders they had to change the ride or pace to suit the ability level was far and away BETTER than either Moab trip and I was one of the trail leaders both times at Moab. The variation of rides offered every day was great. Fritz and Vicky were the greatest. Having the ride there really interrupted their business and they probably spent more than they made off of us. I have 2 small business and know that a disruption is costly. Wonderful to be able to hang out and ride ( well I only saw him at the stops :twisted: ) with a legend and feel comfortable. Thanks Fritz and Vicky

I was one of the ones that was not satisfied that we could not all stay in the same place. Most of the blame was on me because of the other things going on in my life. It was not that I was not committed to the ride I just did not know weather I would be camping or cabining. I waited too long. If the TT had more cabins then I think all of us would have fit but with the number of cabins they had some would have been out either way. I did miss the camp fire in the evenings but made the best of what we had and enjoyed it thoroughly. The next one MUST have accomadations for all members.

I was very against opening up the invitation to KTM talk etc. I wanted to make sure it stayed a small gathering of like minded folks that for the most part "knew" most of the atttendees. My concerns were listened to by the group and the general consensus was that if any problems occurred we would kick them out. I was worried we would have a bunch of people that did not have the same interest and commonality that we have shared in the past. You have to admit some of us rub each other the wrong way but we get along like brothers. I hope after 3 trips together Berger does not think he still needs a gun in his hand to talk to me JK Ken. I didnt meet a Dick all week!

I have to admit that Dale is more organized than I am and maybe a bit more than I like but his influence made the FR3 go off without a snag. Thanks for being Daleincharge
The Tee shirts were great Thanks Ossaman you would have enjoyed the ride.
Dez I wish you would have made it I really miss talking with you hope you heal quickly
Berger we wont tell them that we had the best accomadations. Thaks for finding me a place to stay

I wish all could have attended but with the economy the way it is I think we had a pretty good turn out

Overall I have to say that with the exception of not staying at the same area as the rest of the group and not having the Canuks(Fry et al) and of course you Taffy It was GREAT

Taffy

Are you smoking crack?? Dude are you nuts? Little too much Ale??This ride and experience was absolutely stellar to say the least!

A big super hillbilly thanks to Clay, Long lost friend Rod, New friend Charles, Brad,Oliver, Fritz also a fellow Danish Viking come to find out, New friend Dale the man who has his ***** together, And to Berger for graciously letting me ride his 570 to help make my mind up to by new one!!!!!

Many Many Thanks to Dale and others who put in a tremendous amount of effort and work to pull this off so nicely. Oh by the way feel free to contact me for FR4 and I volunteer to help in any way I can.

I was the one who had a clutch cover leak right on the trail and Clay says " Charles get on over here and fix this here oil leak" , pada plop, it was fixed and I was back in action, now thats people who care ,not just commercial BS... These people are good folks who bent over backwards to be a help and do what they humanly could and beyond to make sure we had a good time.

I say bring them back if they will have us again. The sponsorship completely rocked, I won a truck load of stuff that is now bolted to my new Berg!

I vote for CO again, it would be nice if everyone was staying at the same place but it was not a show stopper by any means.

Oh by the way Steve stranger from Tucson bought a bran spankin new 390 from Fritz, dude we need and welcome these people to come hang out with us super cool Husaberg crowd and buy new Husabergs too.

Don't mean to get in your face but Dang dude grow up !

Oh by the way Bobzilla, darn good chilly of course, good to see you again.

Sethro the hick!!!!!!

I don't know Taffy, I was just talking w/ a friend today about what a fantastic time I had at FR3... It was more than worth the 26 hours of drive time. The Tall Texan was a great place to stay. Thanks to Dale for getting all the sponsors in line (B.T.W. I've been emailing "thank you's" to the sponsors). My friend, you should give yourself a pat on the back, a raise, and an extra month's vacation...

Bob, the chili was awesome... Better than my dinner on Wednesday night!

Gunnison Motorsports and the associated trail guides were fantastic, to say the least.

Next, a big thanks to the Husaberg guys... I still owe Charles a few beers for helpin' a brother out...

I have to agree with berger, regarding FR4. If it went back to Gunnison, CO that would be fantastic... With some luck, I'll be sprotin' a new Husaberg by then.

I'd have to say, that having some folks that don't ride Husabergs is beneficial in getting the word out regarding the brand.

Heck, I had a blast and I was in the hospital two days. So it couldn't have been too bad. I already thanked everyone, but I'll do it again. As far as the "corporate" deal, the fact that the guys that market the brand in this country are hard core enthusiasts is a huge plus. Most of the Husaberg dealers are the same, big time enthusiasts and riders. Honestly it's a big reason why I ride the brand, and I hope that never changes (Husaberg please don't add too many dealers!--let the ones that stuck with the brand in lesser times reap the benefits now).

I missed some friends I made at the FR2 that did not make it for this ride.

As already noted, the only thing we really need to make sure and do is all stay together at the next event. The campfire at Moab was great.

Oh, and I sure wasn't too worried about a KTM guy (oh the humanity) pitching in to haul me out of the sage and then take care of getting my bike out of there as well (Thanks Tod).

Lead,follow or get out of the way.by Thomas Paine.

I was the one who had a clutch cover leak right on the trail and Clay says " Charles get on over here and fix this here oil leak" , pada plop, it was fixed and I was back in action

Click to expand...

Actually...this isn't correct. I tried to start the repair and Charles pushed me out of the way because he didn't like how I was doing it. So I told him to do it. He did it quickly AND correctly.

Taffy,
I'm not sure I'm completely understanding your view of commercializm at FR3. Are you saying it was wrong to solicit raffle goodies from these companies, in exchange for them getting exposure to enthusiasts ? Should Clay and all the HBG NA guys come only as UHE members and bike enthusiasts ? Is the concern that if it continues in this direction we will end up with a "pit" area where after market companies are hawking their wares ? I'm not 100% sure , but I think Fritz sold some riding gear, but the major things sold were Husaberg motorcycles. Is this a trend that does not bode well for the community here ? As to guys on other brands, my friend Steven from here in Durango (CRF450X) went up with a friend on a FE550 who is a recent member here, all that kid can talk about was the great ride to Aspen and how the hell is he going to get him a Husaberg and which one should he get. He was thouroughly impressed with the support shown by Clay and the HBG NA guys. They were not in his mind trying to "sell" Husabergs, they were there as fellow enthusiasts showing off the bikes they love to ride. I definitely don't want things to change here at the UHE (just say NO to Thumpertalk & KTMtalk) I know of 3 guys that are on Husabergs because of me and mine. I do want to make sure that I am corectly understanding you as I value your friendship and knowledge and don't want the atmosphere here at the UHE to change. For the record I detest slanderfests and hidden agendas.
Later Boys
Ron
P.S. The reports I got back about FR3 was the riding, fellowship, and Bergs were GREAT !

i feel that i want to write so much in response to the opening post but perhaps its best if i keep it short.

you werent there.

if you had been you wouldn't have started this thread.

the only thing that those of us from previous rides commented upon was the fact that we were split between campsites, but hey ho, you cant always have what you want.

Funny thing words. They really can not hurt you unless you let them. You are calling this thing you started a slander fest, don’t dish out what you can’t take man.
It is absolutely unbelievably absurd that someone actually has the audacity to disparage all of the ones that supported FR3, taffy.

You think FRs should only be about existing Husaberg owners and ones who already know each other at that. If you want to go riding with people you already know, go ride with them & hang out by a fire ring after the ride & talk talk talk, no one is stopping you. We do that all the time. Before we showed up at a FR we didn’t personally know any of the UHE members. To us FRs have always been about meeting new people, , getting to ride with them, learning new things & getting to experience amazing places. I know quite a number of people who after being exposed to the Husaberg gig, bought them when they previously rode a different brand.

(This is rhetorical question taffy, I really do not care what you think) How do you think new Husabergs get sold? It is definitely NOT by closing the doors on the ones that will be our "mates" & new Husaberg owners & riders. It is important for current HB owners for more people to be enthused about the Husaberg brand & get addicted. Get more people riding Husabergs. The more the merrier. I know you know this but, Husabergs ROCK! The world should know it! Not just a miniscule group of snobby guys like you want, not willing to let the word out about something so state of the art as the new Husabergs. Trying to keep it a secret is counterproductive. Trying to keep every one else out on other marquees is ridiculous. If we as Husaberg enthusiasts want a continuation of what we have recently been introduced to with the new HB developments/ innovations, we should all graciously welcome any who would choose to come hang out with us at a FR & because of getting to ride ALL of the new HBs decide to purchase a new HB. I have a new "mate" from Tucson who showed up at the FR with a Honda & after the efforts, sponsorship, support & 8 new Husabergs to test ride as long as any of us wanted from Husaberg NA, decided to buy a new HB from Fritz & Vicky's shop, Gunnison Motorsports. What a great way to support those that supported us. My new mate from Tucson, you & your wife are welcome to stay with us any time & experience the riding up in northern AZ. We also have a new friend from BC Canada that we will surely make the haul up to go ride & fish with.

All of the rides & guides at FR3 were AMAZING & we THOURGHLY enjoyed ourselves! Thanks goes out to all of the supporters, sponsors, coordinators, trail leaders, members & new riding buddies that made FR3 so GREAT. Those of us who actually made the effort & took the expense upon ourselves not expecting or even implying that someone else pay our way, to travel to CO were definitely not let down & most assuredly not "forced". We LOVED where it was held & would have driven much further to go to Gunnison. Colorado ROCKS! Yeah there is a terrible recession for the time so we, being very effected by this recession, decided to camp in our truck, it turned out awesome, we saved some $ & still got to experience FR3 & CO. The TT was Great, accommodating & clean. We made so many new riding buddies, what will, I am sure, turn out to be life long friends who we welcome to come go riding with us any time. One of the trail leaders is going to come with his wife to go ride with us here in AZ in a few weeks & has invited us back to Gunnison.

taffy, It is understandable, with as much fun as was had by so many at FR3, that I am sure you have read all the posts about, you are probably just bitter & jealous that you could not be there to enjoy the comradeship, to ride all of the new Husabergs on the super fabulous trails & the super cool sponsor freebies (thanks being to DaleEO for going through the time consuming effort to get us all of the sponsors & to all of the sponsors especially HB NA- Clay, Charles & Rod) so many of us won on Bobzilla's chili night. By the way thank you sooo much Bobzilla, the chili was awesome & it was a super fun night we all spent together with friends old & new. We were soooooo appreciative for the immense amount of effort that went in to making FR3 such a FANTASTIC SUCCESS. We having attended other bike functions & Force Rides, thought FR3 appeared to go off without a hitch, except of course for Johnf3 getting so seriously hurt, it was simple, relaxed & exhilarating at the same time. Yeah some of the members chose to stay somewhere other than the TT but, all went well despite the inconvenience. We got together every night relating many of our riding forays & more, which kept us stoked to get to see our friends again & for the following day's rides.

DaleEO what you posted with all of the #s & %ages, Rock on dude! Its true FR3 was a super cracking success! . :-D What you said about Clay Stuckey from Husaberg NA whom just so happens to be our fellow UHE MEMBER/ friend & rider of his tricked out Reklused FX450 is true too. That Stuckey, Whowee, boy howdy he sure nuf can RIDE! That's coming from a true TN girl herself. :-D It was awesome getting to meet & spend time riding & hanging out & goofing off with someone from back home, & Rod too, he is our long lost bike buddy from Campbellsville KY. What a small world we live in, especially the bike world. Rod & I worked at the same bike shop just not at the same time & he even remembered the bike Seth rode back then.

Quoting Berger, “Maybe we can get a group ride together for 2010 like the previous Hatfield/McCoy and Phoenix ridesâ€Â

Elf,
If the decision is left up to me, HB NA will continue to support Force Rides. That is assuming that the membership decides to continue allowing corporate representation and sponsorship. It looks to me from the responses here that the majority think our support is a good thing. Let's start planning FR4. I need to let our "Global" manager know where it will be asap!
Clay

I recommend Idaho and volunteer to help coordinate and or facilitate FR4 however possible.I live motorcycles.

arkley, You was...... there at FR3 ? Please elaborate, what didn't you like ? I'm not fully understanding Taffy's concerns and I want to make sure I understand them correctly. As I do condider us to be a community here, all acting for the greater good of the whole.
Later
Ron

Stove,

The only foreigners there were Maddtrapper and I.

Arkley, what are you talking about?

ps. i forgot about Oliver