Ups And Downs
UPS AND DOWNS
ROUNDUP
UP: To Burroughs Wellcome Company, the maker of Sudafed-brand nasal decongestant, for recognizing the errors of its ways. In reference to the firm’s television commercial portraying a motorcyclist and a car driver in a near collision, spokesperson Sharon Haggerty commented, via a letter to Cycle World,
“It was never the intent of Burroughs Wellcome to suggest that one group of motorists is less cautious than another. The company recognizes motorcycling as an important means of transportation, an exciting sport and a source of pleasant recreation. We wish motorcyclists everywhere happy and safe riding.”
UP: To Rick Cole, for including motorcycles on his “Gold” list. Cole, renowned classic-car guru whose company holds automobile
auctions in California, listed the 1966-67 Triumph Bonneville TT Special, the 1946-53 Indian Chief and the 1969 Honda CB750 as prime choices for collectors. Cole speculates that the asking prices for these models will double within the next three years. According to information published in AutoWeek, Cole feels that the instability of the collector-car market will make bikes hot items. Cole’s Gold list annually classifies the top 10 affordable cars that he thinks offer the best investment potential.
DOWN: To Jack Calof, president of Exotic Motorcycle Imports in Torrance, California, for allegedly skipping the country with as much as $240,000 in customer deposits.
Calof’s import business, featured in our “Giant Killers” issue {CW, September, 1990), has been closed, its phones disconnected, its locks changed and the space re-leased to another business. According to the sheriff’s department handling the case, potential charges against Calof include grand theft, forgery, fraud and various vehicle-registration violations. Most recently, Calof had been taking deposits on a variety of Japanese-spec motorcycles, including Honda’s as-yet-unreleased, ovalpiston NR750.
UP: To BMW, for producing its millionth motorcycle. A specially equipped K75RT, donated to the German Red Cross, rolled off the assembly line March 18, 1991. According to BMW, approximately 634,000 of the million Beemers were air-cooled flat-Twins, first built in 1923, while air-cooled Singles, produced from 1925 to 1966, numbered 230,000. The K-series, represented by the liquid-cooled threeand four-cylinder models introduced in 1983, accounts for the remaining 136,000 units. BMW estimates that 500,000 of these motorcycles are still on the road today.
UP: To Richard and Mopsa English, for penning their book. Full Circle. The 216-page book traces the couple’s four-year, 90,000-mile world tour aboard their Triumph Thunderbird and sidecar, portions of which were chronicled in the pages of Cycle World. Filled with tales of adventure and dozens of photographs from exotic locations, the hard-bound edition is priced at $30 and available from Motorbooks International, 729 Prospect, Osceola, WI 54020; 800/ 826-6600.
If you come across a motorcycle-related item that you think should be singled out for an UP or DOWN, send the information to CW Roundup, 853 W. 17th St., Costa Mesa, CA 92627.
