2011 Indianapolis Dealer Expo Report
Every year in mid-February Indianapolis, Ind. showcases the industry’s largest collection of powersports accessories. If you’re looking for something new to add to your ATV or side-by-side chances are it can be found here.
For 2011 the Dealer Expo was quite different from previous years. The most notable change was the weather! Mother Nature was kind enough to provide us with temperatures in the 50s, which was quite a nice change from the frigid temperatures of years past.
Not only was the weather different than in the past, the entire format of the Dealer Expo was changed up. In the years prior, the Expo was strung about the Indianapolis Convention Center in each convention hall, hallway, and ballroom which made it difficult to see everything that the Expo had to offer in just one day. This year the organizers decided it would be best if each segment of the powersports market was in its own designated area. This made the Expo very easy to navigate and easy to find what you were looking for.
First on our list to check out was Blingstar’s new Suicide Lambo Doors and Tonto Cover for side-by-sides. We had heard a bit about these doors and Tonto cover in the weeks prior to the show but this was our first chance to see theses very innovative products in person until the Dealer Expo itself. Not only are the doors very trick looking, but you can also purchase them with an optional remote door opener which allows you to open them from about 20 feet away! Rumors are that Blingstar also plans to come out with a remote opener for the Tonto Cover as well.
The next product that caught our eyes was Hiper’s PROfill wheel inserts. This product does the basically the same thing that TireBalls do but at fraction of the cost. The Hiper PROfills are inserts that you place inside your ATV tire that allow you to run little to no air in the tires so you no longer have to worry about getting a flat. The Hiper PRPfills are ideal for trail riders and woods racers that are prone to flat tires at inopportune times. (P1030903.JPG)
As we were walking around in the apparel section of the expo, we came across a new Goggle/ Camera hybrid. A company called Liquid Image integrated a video camera right into the goggles! The camera can record in full HD 1080P at a rate up to 30 frames per second with audio and an additional High Action mode that features HD 720P video at 60 frames per second. We can’t wait to get our hands on a pair and test them out on the track so stay tuned!
An apparel company that you might have seen at PacSun or Zumiez has hit the shelves with its new collection of off-road riding gear. Grenade is the name of the company and is recognizable from its brand logo of a hand grenade. Grenade had a few samples of its new riding gear on hand for us to check out. The gear features more edgy designs we quite liked.
Not only did Scott Goggles change up its logo recently, it has also come out with new goggles that you can adjust to fit your face better. The new frames allow you to adjust the fit from four different positions by turning a screw inside the frame. We had a chance to play with these at the expo and found them very comfortable to wear.
SSV Works was also at the show displaying its waterproof speakers for UTVs. In our opinion, if you use your UTV for a pit bike at the races or just for cruising around in SSV Works speakers are a fantastic option. Several different styles of speakers are available, ranging from in dash, floorboard and overhead speakers that mount right up to the stock roll cage in less than 15 minutes. SSV also offers a waterproof casing that allows you to secure your MP3 player to supply the music.
PowerMadd switched up its handguard extensions this year. While effective, previous models were a bit bulky. These new extensions are easier on the eye and are soft to the touch. PowerMadd says its new Race Flare doubles the amount of protection previously offered. We thought this was a nice improvement and were happy to see the change.
In all the 2011 Dealer News Powersports Dealer Expo was a nice change. The weather was on our side and it was very easy to navigate the expo. We were very happy to see the changes this year to the Expo as well as seeing new innovative products.
Be sure to check out our huge photo gallery of the Dealer Expo and keep an eye out for some reviews of some of these products in the near future.
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