Visited a few dealerships today

[Midrsv]

While vacationing in Ft. Myers Fl this week, I decided to go shopping for a new helmet today. I visited all of the area dealerships in my quest. BMW/Triumph/MV Agusta/Ducati, Yamaha/Suzuki/Honda, Kawasaki and Harley shop. After all of the visits I came away with a few impressions.

 

The BMW shop was small the people generally friendly but somewhat looked down their nose at people not on one of their brands. They had very few helmets and all of their apparel seemed to be the BMW brand.

 

Yamaha/Suzuki/Honda shop was huge and new. Very few helmets styles to try, just a lot of the same thing. No one seemed to care that I was there or not. Did not really feel welcomed there.

 

The Kawasaki dealer seemed more into watercraft than bikes. There was a young guy there that came up to talk with me a bit and he was friendly enough. Once again, not many helmets to choose from.

 

The Harley dealership was the most inviting. While they also didn't have the type of helmet I was looking for, they were very cordial and welcoming. I was approached several times by friendly staff seeking to help me. Not pushy, just wanting to make sure I was taken care of. There was a lot of activity in the store with staff moving about taking care of business. One gentlemen asked what type of bike I rode and when I told him he offered a compliment on the bike and didn't seem to think any less of me. Of course there were a few Harley owners around with the "Harley" look and maybe attitude.

 

I must say, if I knew nothing about bikes and were shopping today for a new one the folks at the HD store would have had first crack at my business. And the new Harleys sure are pretty with all of the chrome shining.

 

Still helmet shopping.

 

Dennis

[Dragracer]

Drive north on 75, take 275 north, ride over the beautiful Skyway Bridge, and go to Barneys Yamaha, 10393 Gandy Boulevard North, Saint Petersburg, FL 33702, (727) 576-1148. They have a ton of helmets in stock. It's about 1.5 hours north of you. The area is great for sight seeing also.