128: Recent Rides and #MotoPC2018 Update

TOPICS:

• Jon has been on the Tail of the Dragon again
• Rich attempted a ride to DC, but R6 leaking oil ended that trip
• Bacon rides when he can :)
• We discuss our progress and get Bacon's take on his first year participating in the MPC

U-TURN:

• The future of Harley-Davidson and let's talk tariffs:
  • Tarrifs levied by the US against Canada, Mexico, and the European Union for Steel and Aluminum
    • The Canadien component at least is against China, but that's for another show...
  • Europe then adds a 25% tariff on us goods including motorcycles (keep that in mind, we didn’t say Harley)
  • Then Harley says, we’ll build some of the bikes overseas to avoid the tarifs
    • Which was announced long ago to build bikes in Thailand, but whatever
  • Then the US President wants to chime in
  • Polaris is affected by this too for Indian Motorcycles and for boats (a large consumer of aluminum)
• Now the floodgates are open and Polaris may follow suit
• Not a done deal, but they are evaluating building bikes in Poland

Let’s take a step back from the politics and think about the effect here if any on the riding community. If HD is already sourced from global parts, does it matter that they are or are not made in the US? What if you can get a new bike for 20% less because it’s made outside the US, is that cool, uncool, or do we care? That’s where we take this topic.

EVENTS:

• 3rd Annual Motorcycle Podcasters Challenge - June 21st, 2018 thru July 11th, 2018.
• 1st Annual LoudPipes Meetup - July 13th - July 15th. Gettysburg, PA. Staying at DrummerBoy Campground
• 14th Annual Barber Vintage Festival - October 5th - 7th 2018

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Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes