10,000 Miles!

I’m back after a quick 5-day visit to China’s Canton Fair in Guangzhou. It was quick, it was fun, and surprisingly, the time change is not bothering me. I made a conscious decision to not get on China time while I was there. When I came back from the Fair each day, if I was tired, I slept. If I woke up at 3:00 a.m., I got up. And I got lucky on the flight back…I slept the first 6½ hours after we took off, and the rest of the 13-hour flight went quickly after that. I watched the video monitor showing our flight stats, and just as we touched down it showed the total distance traveled to be a cool 10,000 miles.

You know, it’s a cool thing to do…flying halfway around the world to see the latest offerings from the country that makes the most motorcycles. I had a blast. I saw a lot of motorcycles, including a handful of adventure touring motorcycles coming to market from other companies hoping to cash in on the RX3’s success. You always wonder…is there something out there better than the RX3? You can wonder about that, but I’ve taken the trip to make the assessment and the answer is: No, there is not. I saw some interesting ADV and other machines, but nothing I liked as much as the RX3. Zongshen hit a home run with the RX3, and we fell into clover picking it up for the North American market. It’s been, and continues to be, a great ride.

Dajiu and Arjiu making waves in Guangzhou!

Another cool thing was the reaction to my business card. Motorcycle folks in China know CSC and they know what we’ve done to publicize the RX3, the TT250, and the overall quantum leap forward in Chinese motorcycles. “Ah, CSC…” was the reaction I heard more than a few times when exchanging cards with the folks in other booths. It was also very cool to see highlights of the 5000-mile Western America Adventure Ride and our trek across China prominently featured in the Zongshen booth. Knowing that we’ve made a difference worldwide is a very satisfying feeling. Yeah, I’m bragging a bit. Or maybe not. Facts are facts.

The business end of the City Slicker. Belt drive!

The next big thing for us? We’re diving into electric bikes, and that will start with the Zongshen ZS1500.  It’s a cool bike with cool features, including a very slick instrument panel…

As I mentioned a few blogs down, I was surprised to see so few electric motorcycles at the Canton Fair; in fact, Zongshen was the only manufacturer there with an electric motorcycle. It’s the one we’ve dubbed the City Slicker. Bringing this bike to America is going to be a grand adventure and I am looking forward to it. We’ve got more IC-engine bikes coming to Azusa, too, but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. Keep an eye on the blog, and we’ll share the details with you in the near future.