Age of attendees-Classic Bike Show- near Bristol

I went to the Classic bike show yesterday with my son, and was surprised to see how few 'younger' enthusiasts of Classic Bikes are out there. It was interesting to note that whilst there were several exhibitors for Triumph/ BSA spares, there was little in fact no real representation for Norton spares-even a printed T shirt seller did not have a Norton shirt, but had almost every combination of BSA and Triumph logos.
The Norton owners club stand (conveniently next to Laverda for me!!) had a range of motorcycles including rotaries, although disappointingly (for me) not an 850mk2 for to inspect and photograph details.
It would be interesting to see age statistics of this show, but I would not be surprised if the average age of attendees and exhibitors alike was less than 45-50.
I am not sure if this bodes well for long term interest ( say next 30 yrs) in Old British machines, and particularly Nortons.
Are Norton lovers a dying breed? how do we get new an younger interest into the marque to stop it dying out? Thoughts guys?

I've noticed that at bike shows in the U.S. as well. -British car shows too. A very aged crowd. I feel like a 38-year-old child.

Don't worry about it Marcus, all the more for us.

When my wife and I went to the theater a few years ago to see "The World's Fastest Indian" my wife looked around at the audience and pointed out that she and I looked like the youngest in the crowd...and we were around 50 at the time. As I scanned the small crowd I also noticed that I knew over half of them.

When I ride my Commando now it's not uncommon for people to look at my bike and ask "who makes Norton?" Of course, I always answer "Norton!," but I find that very few even know the Norton marque. Of course, they seem to be asking which country made Norton which tells me that they don't even recognize a British bike when they see one. Most of these folks are over 30 too.

When I was young, I bought my Commando because it was the baddest, fastest bike around. Back then, 'Classic' meant 'old'....I was not.
For the most part, Old Cars and Motorcycles = Old Folks.
I don't blame the young, look at what you can buy nowadays! Fast as hell, push button, plug and play, outrageously fun....it's a great time to be young if you have the cash, or can get a loan, and like to go fast.
Most riders I know either can't remember Nortons or have come to riding since the whole British thing vanished. But the ones that do, show a spark of recognition and respect in their expression, they maybe never knew anyone who owned one, but recollect it was top of pyramid back in time somewhere.

A new Norton company that survives can help some with the new generation, but not if they are priced like a Bentley.

As the owner of companies which deal with the classic Norton owner I am interested in the future for my companies (Andover Norton and Norton Motors). Judging from past experience, the interest in classic Nortons will not die with us but move on.
When I studied in England in 1979/80 I was a member of the Vincent Owners Club (as well as the Norton Owners Club), riding a Vincent twin besides a couple of Nortons. I was by far the youngest in the VOC in that region if not in England at the time, the typical Vincent owner then being between 50 and 70 years of age. I thought then that in another 10 to 20 years the Vincent scene was going to be stone dead. Now, 30 years on, this is definitely not the case. The Vincent scene is still alive, so is the VOC and its Spares Company.
Vincents stopped production in 1955, Norton stopped serious production in 1977. I have several youngsters in their twenties now who own and ride Commandos, including my son. I believe if we let the youngsters sample the joys of riding a motorcycle that works, looks and sounds like the archetypal motorcycle, i.e. a Commando, we can pass the bug on. The youngsters I know have owned/own modern bikes, but they still love to ride their Commandos.
As for absence of Norton goods at the Bristol Show, sorry, we don't do shows as a company, being primarily the Genuine Norton Factory Parts source for the Norton dealers. We do not want to pirate the individual Norton dealer's efforts. Should you not have a local, competent dealer to go to Andover Norton will serve you directly. But we prefer you to support the few remaining local outlets.

Face it, our bikes have aged along with the riders who own them. Once "Superbikes", now classics and soon to be antiques.

There will always be young folks who don't want to follow the crowd. That's why I bought a Commando instead of a Harley or Honda when I was 23. Whether there's enough of them to keep our vendors afloat when we're gone, only time will tell.

On a plus note however, the hooligan cafe crowd is still alive and well... and they love the classic stuff..
http://www.rockersct.com/

This (I think) just reflects the motorcycle industry as a whole, new and old. Sales (i.e. interest) has dropped across the board. Probably a combination of recession, trends and marketing. Harley sales are really down, and the Japanese manufacturers are especially feeling this. Suzuki imported 0 new models for 2010 into the US. None.
If you look at the hot mcy scene right now there are a lot of people in their early 20s (i.e. those with not much money now ) with a lot of interest in fixing up 70s Hondas and Evo Sportsters because they can be had really cheaply. So there's still interest it's just "frugal". Some of these folks I think will turn to Norton and other classic bikes in the coming years.
I think one big factor in the continued interest in Norton is the fact that all the parts are available from Andover Norton, etc. so anyone who gets one will be able to keep in on the road. I was always getting asked something like "Must be pretty hard to get parts for that thing?" when I had my Combat. People were surprised that you could still get them brand new.
So maybe the best way to get new people interested is to keep out and about on them.

tocino said:

So maybe the best way to get new people interested is to keep out and about on them.

Click to expand...

Keep on riding, brother!

I pulled into a parking lot one day and a young fella on a ricer pulled in behind me. Dressed in color coordinated leathers and helmet with all sorts of lightning bolts and whatnot per the current styling fad.

His comment on my Commando: "Dude! I could sooo rock that!"

I think it was a compliment...

maylar said:

His comment on my Commando: "Dude! I could sooo rock that!"

Click to expand...

I using that for at least a month!

tocino said:

This (I think) just reflects the motorcycle industry as a whole, new and old. Sales (i.e. interest) has dropped across the board. Probably a combination of recession, trends and marketing. Harley sales are really down, and the Japanese manufacturers are especially feeling this. Suzuki imported 0 new models for 2010 into the US. None.
If you look at the hot mcy scene right now there are a lot of people in their early 20s (i.e. those with not much money now ) with a lot of interest in fixing up 70s Hondas and Evo Sportsters because they can be had really cheaply. So there's still interest it's just "frugal". Some of these folks I think will turn to Norton and other classic bikes in the coming years.
I think one big factor in the continued interest in Norton is the fact that all the parts are available from Andover Norton, etc. so anyone who gets one will be able to keep in on the road. I was always getting asked something like "Must be pretty hard to get parts for that thing?" when I had my Combat. People were surprised that you could still get them brand new.
So maybe the best way to get new people interested is to keep out and about on them.

Click to expand...

This is true. In retrospect I probably shouldn't have bought my commando, but f it. A lot of my friends like it, and would love an old bike. With the economy this is no longer a reality. 75% of my friends around the country are unemployed or working crap minimum wage jobs. Some are going back to school and taking on loans because the media keeps saying education is the answer. You can't move to get a job because there are plenty of unemployed people there already. A modern bike or a classic bike which could take work and money is the last thing on young people's minds right now...
Anyways enough of my rant

This is complicated one, but I am sure things will move on with us. At 43 I am the second youngest member of our local NOC branch, and was the youngest for many years until recently. I also sell secondhand motorcycle magazines worldwide via the well known auction site, and I notice a big difference in what sells - any magazines up to about the end of the 60's hardly sell, 70 & 80's magazines and the classic ones of this time sell well and as for the 80's and 90's mags featuring Japanese bikes I can guarantee they will sell as it seems that this is what the majority now class as classic.
The only reason I bought a commando, was at the time it was a cheap way into old British bikes, as the flat and round tankers at the time were double the price, some of you may have noticed that prices of the more common older machines are now less than a Commando.
As a generation grows older there will become a time when the Commando is not even considered by them, they will view the Yamaha R1 and GSX as the classic they remember and will purchase, by which time most of us will be either to old to ride or departed the planet.
Commando ownership, is simple and if it was being sold to you today, the Japanese manufacturers would not be able to compete - simple and cheap to service, mile for mile they are just as reliable, parts availability is nigh on 100% - thanks ZFD, no waiting for 6 weeks or so for parts to arrive.
We can not expect the younger generation to come to us - we will need to go to them if the interest is to continue. The one manufacturer that has managed very well over time, like them or not is Lambretta, ridden by young and old alike.

maylar said:

tocino said:

So maybe the best way to get new people interested is to keep out and about on them.

Click to expand...

Keep on riding, brother!

I pulled into a parking lot one day and a young fella on a ricer pulled in behind me. Dressed in color coordinated leathers and helmet with all sorts of lightning bolts and whatnot per the current styling fad.

His comment on my Commando: "Dude! I could sooo rock that!"

I think it was a compliment...

Click to expand...

As a fifteen yearold, I can tell you that is a compliment. Haha, and you guys have at least one young Norton admirer here.

Sad but true, older folks seem to be the backbone of the antique MC hobby. I just volunteered to help the Perkiomen chapter of the AMCA mark the vendor spots for the April 29-May 30 national meet and was informed that at age 52, I will be the "junior" member of the crew.
Let's face it, the old MC hobby isn't inexpensive. Youth just don't have the disposable income and if they do they usually want instant gratification i.e. the pushbutton go fast mobile. Craigslist is filled to the gills every day with bargain basement '90's-'00's MC's that do just that.
The majority of people who own old MC's are my age and older as they can now afford them or aquired them when they were young and the MC's didn't command such high prices.
The AMCA encourages youth to participate and i hope that it takes hold.


Tom

I went to the Bristol show today (Sunday). I also noted the average was above mine, & I am 55.
I didn't feel the stallholders were a happy bunch either.
I do feel the older generation like their bikes but hardly ever ride them. Maybe to an MOT once a year & maybe 1 or 2 "classic" bike runs a year. Youngsters don't even have a clue what these older bikes are all about because they never see any on the road. They think they break down all the time.
I get extremely annoyed when I park my Norton up & get repeatedly asked "What's it worth mate?" I don't care!, I just want to own & ride it.
I get the impression the older riders are too clicky to speak & the younger riders aint got a clue.
Mind you, if I was in my 20's again, it would be an R1, Fireblade or S1000RR.

I personally think that the future for Norton ownership and classic bikes in general is rosy. Here in Hong Kong we have a young and enthusiastic group of guys who mainly ride older or retro Japanese machinery, one or two own Triumphs, BSAs and Nortons, but most don't have British bikes because of the difficulty in finding one in this part of the world these days, but they do recognise and respect the old British marques and some even have Matchless, BSA AJS logos on their Japanese machines. I do my best to demystify the experience of owning a classic by keeping my bike out and about and being always willing to spend time talking to them about it and helping any of the British bike owners with technical advice and assistance where possible, I've even let one or two that I know well have a ride on my bike. I think there is actually some likelyhood of our hobby getting more popular with the younger crowd in the near future and I think this is already being reflected in the relative scarcity and steadily rising price of our machines.

ZFD said:

As the owner of companies which deal with the classic Norton owner I am interested in the future for my companies (Andover Norton and Norton Motors). Judging from past experience, the interest in classic Nortons will not die with us but move on.
When I studied in England in 1979/80 I was a member of the Vincent Owners Club (as well as the Norton Owners Club), riding a Vincent twin besides a couple of Nortons. I was by far the youngest in the VOC in that region if not in England at the time, the typical Vincent owner then being between 50 and 70 years of age. I thought then that in another 10 to 20 years the Vincent scene was going to be stone dead. Now, 30 years on, this is definitely not the case. The Vincent scene is still alive, so is the VOC and its Spares Company.
Vincents stopped production in 1955, Norton stopped serious production in 1977. I have several youngsters in their twenties now who own and ride Commandos, including my son. I believe if we let the youngsters sample the joys of riding a motorcycle that works, looks and sounds like the archetypal motorcycle, i.e. a Commando, we can pass the bug on. The youngsters I know have owned/own modern bikes, but they still love to ride their Commandos.
As for absence of Norton goods at the Bristol Show, sorry, we don't do shows as a company, being primarily the Genuine Norton Factory Parts source for the Norton dealers. We do not want to pirate the individual Norton dealer's efforts. Should you not have a local, competent dealer to go to Andover Norton will serve you directly. But we prefer you to support the few remaining local outlets.

Click to expand...

By the way, wanted to express my appreciation for your company's effort to keep the original Commandos alive. My Commando is my only motorcycle. I likely would stop riding altogether if I couldn't keep it running.

+1 Thanks and keep up the great work.

I'm 58, borrowed to buy a '71 Commando when I was 18. I wore that bike out. Sold it and bought a '73 Ducati Sport. A few years later, I found my '73 750 Commando in Hollywood.

A week ago Sunday, I had two motorcycle "dates," first a memorial meet & ride in Malibu for one of my younger sportbike friends who passed away (his death was not MC related), and next the SoCal Norton Club's Ojai MC Museum ride. Since I was going on to the Norton ride, I rode the Commando Instead my usual for the sportbike guys - the Honda CBR1000RR - to the memorial ride.

Well, here's maybe 20 guys mostly in their 30s and 40's; maybe two of us in our 50's, and I'm the oldest, and I got compliments from almost all of them - on the great sound that she made coming up the road to the meeting spot, then about her classic looks, simple, black, gold, chrome, cadmium, & stainless, and lastly, after we went for our ride, how fast she was. Admittedly I had to lean on her hard to run with those late model 4 cylinder bikes but she did it. When we stopped, one guy says "How the hell can you go that fast on those skinny tires?"
One guy told me how when he was a child, he had a toy Commando; said he was 3 years old the year I bought her second hand.

So, yeah, get em out there, show em off.

Thanks to the internet and how it has really changed everything about how we can discover new interests and "find" a community of like-minded individuals, I believe there will always be fresh batches of "enthusiasts" for pretty much everything... Stupid internet...