KTM Cancels AMA Pro SB Racing Plans

Hated to hear it. Tough break for Fillmore.
http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=46772

 

Ever heard of rat farts?

 

Well that just sucks.

 

searched first but now see it's a repost. oh well

 

Riddle me this, Batman:

What do rat farts, leprosy and mmm Bop have in common?

 

Had Dave done a better job of titling his thread maybe this repost could have been avoided!

 

Well we all know Dave is a big peepee face, so that ain't gonna happen.

 

They all stink?

 

Seems like the only time I hear about KTM in racing is when they're pulling out of something or announcing they won't actually get into something. "KTM is quitting Moto GP and leaving Team KR without an engine." "KTM was thinking about WSBK but is now gonna just stick to IDM." "KTM is pulling out of US Red Bull Rookies Cup, leaving all of the young racers high and dry."

If quitting were a championship they'd be dominating.

Granted, it's not like KTM is selling a ton of bikes here so it's not surprising. I have to think the RC8 hasn't sold anywhere near what they wanted to and after that I can't imagine any of the rest of their streetbikes are selling that well. Would be surprised if KTM's next big pullout is that they're not gonna sell streetbikes in the US anymore.

 

KTM spent too much money on Dungey

 

KTM cooperate would probably disagree. Head out to any MX club event regardless if its trails or track and count how many Orange bikes you see. Its unbelievable. Orange is in right now and the bikes even cost more than the big 4. That being said, I agree this sucks big time!:down:

 

I had just finished reading the RRW article from last issue about the RC8R and was pumped to see them in the series.:down:

 

Too many excel spreadsheets and not enough vision.

That bike is suffering from lack of exposure in racing. It is a capable, beautiful machine that deserves to be out there fighting against the rest.

Kinda like owning a Ferrari that never gets out of the garage....................what a waste.

 

This. Just read the article the other day and was excited to see them next year.

 

I agree. I'm absolutely positive that if the RC8R won, or even placed well they'd sell a lot more of them. Whether or not it would be enough to justify the cost of racing, idk.

 

racing is a marketing expense, not a way to make money for just about any company. It's hard to recover the funds you spend going racing if you are looking at direct sales comparisons...

that being said, it comes down to brand image. if you are racing, people will consider you a "contender" for whatever area you are looking at. if you aren't racing, there are people that won't consider what you are selling as being "worthy".

 

My most recent search indicated that only 4 of the Factory "R" bikes left. After seeing Fillmore at AMA and Scott Brown in WERA run one, they are awesome bikes.

I don't see anywhere that KTM was foolish or over-expected.

 

KTM said a sponsor pulled out. Seems KTM is a lot like Ducati in that they won't go racing if they don't have a sponsor to pay the bills. Makes perfect sense.

But Ducati won't come and take their motors back at midseason if they don't like the tune the caller is belting out at the square dance. Screw you guys, I'm going home.

 

There are only two in the US not sold. One in Pittsburg at Bentleys and one in TX...

They are awesome bikes and for the money, a great choice for racing. There are several guys racing them with success and while it has been a learning experience for me vs the inlines, the handling outweighs a lot of the setup time it has taken...

It's also coming back for 2012 and will be available again to anyone interested...