Yesterday at the Show And Shine at Indian -Victory Elizabeth St showroom  it was confirmed all  Aussie Scouts delivered will have ABS braking and the standard 2 year roadside assist that comes with all new Indian models. The first delivery is expected early December, with 24 sold in Victoria in the first week alone, one of head honchos at Indian Australia Peter Harvey  at the Show & Shine said this bike is “A bargain,and originally he expected a much dearer price for this model” I agree Pete that it’s even better value for money now $18,000 ride away for a base model it blows the price of H-D 1200 Sportster to the weeds and has 30 BHP more to boot at the same weight. Peter was not forth coming on much else except the possibilities of this platform to build variants in the future were endless, I had a friendly wager on the future of the Indian 4  but zero was said by him (to be expected) on this happening so we live in hope. The Indian chaps are all coming to our next meeting to answer all your questions on the Scout and the 2015 models as they did last year on the return of Indian in Australia so it will be well worth attending on a winters night. John Munro (Burt”s lad) looks happy on the Scout doesn’t he?

John Munro happy on a Scout

Burts New Record   (Click on Link)

The latest A.M.C of America (Antique Motorcycle Club) quarterly magazine has arrived & as always is a great read I only buy it only for the articles and the pictures, the editor Richard Spagnolli has a very good editorial on “Why we don’t want to lose the next generation” and basically this is effecting almost all Clubs worldwide. Some one make clubs the two VOC’S ,Velocette & Vincent owners club have this problem already and they reflect this by the pseudonym “Very Old Children” a “in” joke with their members they were the largest one make club in the world in the sixties only the Vintage Club UK was larger, unfortunately the ranks are diminishing rapidly as they grow older, the obituary column in the hallowed MPH magazine every month reflects the inevitable they are “dying off”. We are not as badly off in the IIRA as now new Indians are available new blood is starting to flow through as we accept all versions, the point Richard raised was there is a huge swing in the “Bobber or Custom” groups in the States and this appeals to the younger generation as buying a fully restored machine is out of reach financially for most riders getting into old machines so bikes from the seventies old choppers or cafe racers are bought cheaply and not restored but modified & ridden. Some riders I know from this era admit to chopping a machine from 70’s era & now repent by purchasing an exact model to restore, many such people are respected as “Guru’s” now started as chopper builders hmm, shows here such as ‘Oily Rag” attract many of the younger group that have a spare $3,000 or $4,000 to spend certainly not $35,000-$70,000 one recently asked me was it worth buying a fully restored bike to modify, as a restored motorcycle was “cool but not cool enough”. So does this mean your lovingly restored Flying Merkle, Indian 4 or 1959 Triumph Bonneville will eventually be bought by a Gen Y or X and chopped, maybe but that wont matter as you are only another of the many that have already owned your machine and it will have had a life both before and after you. Meanwhile your still alive so start encouraging the younger riders into your hobby they may “take up the reins” and become interested enough for them to buy your machine and care for it even if that means modifying your treasure we need the next generation to join us then you can relax. I bet that Sportster owner isn’t relaxed.

The week-ends here again and to cheer you up in Winter nothing like a good laugh.