January 8, 2008

How ‘regular’ Canadians use their Yamahas

Two thumbs up (or down) on our newest TV ad .. you decide!

By Bryan Hudgin, marketing representative, Yamaha Motor Canada

I come to you today with a request… I want you to be a video critic!Most of the time, we get amazing footage of professionals riding some of the gnarliest tracks around, we splice it together, and voila – there’s our Yamaha ad for next year.This process works great for those customers with a “performance” mind set. But a lot of the time, that’s just not how regular Canadians use their Yamahas! So, when we developed our latest TV ad creative, we wanted to show off the variety of products that we sell, and the range of their real-world applications.

We’re hoping that you can identify with the “ordinary” Canadians in this ad – young or old, across all types of recreational activity.We came up with the title ‘This is My Yamaha. What Kind of Yamaha Are You?‘ concept. We didn’t use professional actors, just fellow employees, friends and family. (And we put it on youtube of course.) Part of being in marketing is that our work is constantly on display – whether it’s a print, TV or radio ad, the latest brochure, what you read on a website, or saw at an event. Thousands of people decide if we succeeded at our jobs in marketing! So we want to know ahead of time! Did we hit the nail on the head? Be honest, please! If we didn’t nail it with “This is My Yamaha. What Kind of Yamaha Are You? , at least we’ll know for next time…

…And here’s another for you sport bike fanatics. YMCA didn’t produce this one, but it gives you goosebumps when you watch it. Kudos to Yamaha Australia for a dandy video clip.

Thanks! -Huggie

January 3, 2008

Commuter stress, scooter style

Don’t give your fellow “scoommuters” a bad name!

By Aaron Dowden, Marketing, Yamaha Motor Canada

Living 17 km from my workplace – Yamaha Motor Canada in the northeast end of Toronto – definitely has its advantages, primarily that I’m able to ride my BW scooter to and from work every day. (They don’t call me BeeWeeMan for nothing!)

Not only does it save me money, scootering is also way more fun than my car to take to work. And with the increasing gas prices of late, I’ve noticed a steady increase of fellow scooter commuters (aka “scoommuters”) on the roads.

For those of you out there who are terrified of car and truck motorists (aka “cage drivers”) – don’t be. I have yet to have any serious problems with cars… Mind you, I play by the rules.

Every once and while I’ll see a fellow scooter rider weaving in and out of traffic, driving in the bicycle lanes, or cutting around cars at stop lights. Please don’t do this!! Not only are you putting yourself at risk, but you’re giving your fellow scoommuters a bad name!

Really, scooter commuters are environmentally-friendly, fun-loving, sensible folk on the whole. Automotive drivers tend to get very irritated when scooters don’t play by the rules… and for good reason.

It’s important to remember that scooters only have two wheels with a little bit of metal to hold them together. Most cars wouldn’t think twice about pulling in front of a scooter to prevent it from driving around them.

I don’t know about you, but I like having the use of all of my limbs!

I’d like to hear any experiences, or tips, that other scoommuters might have to help stay safe the cage-drivers world.

- Aaron

December 18, 2007

The saga of a “high riding” JT1 Mini-Enduro

What’s your creative re-use of vintage bikes?

By Tim Chelli, national manager for product compliance, Yamaha Motor Canada

My interest in motorcycles started with mini bikes – the Briggs and Stratton powered variety. The variety without suspension, transmission, clutches or brakes. Oh, they had brakes all right, a band wrapped around the rear rim hub that tightened as a lever was depressed when you stepped on the brake pedal!

That was around 1971, the same time Yamaha introduced the JT1, known as the Mini-Enduro (see ad here). Now, that was a real motorcycle! Not like the 1969 Z50 with its fold up handlebars… the JT1 was a miniature motorcycle! How cool was that!

I never did get one though… not until a generation later, when my son David was ready to ride. I retrieved it from a barn near Stratford, Ontario. Yes, a mouse had made a home in the airbox, and it needed a total restoration. Yamaha had all of the critical parts, though – even 20 years later.

David enjoyed that JT1, but eventually he outgrew it, so it ended up stored in the shed at our cottage for years.

Then, a couple of years ago my friend, Art (he has a background in the restaurant business where anything goes as far as décor) suggested I hang the JT1 minicycle from the ceiling of my cottage. That’s what I did, suspending it by chains from the rafters, so whenever I enter the cottage, it reminds of the joy it brought my son and my never-ending desire for one as a youth. (See photo, right.)

Btw, the JT1 seems to have a real cult following. The Indy driver, Roberto Moreno, also had one as a youth, and I ended up meeting him at the Toronto Indy. Roberto got free tickets for my son and I, in exchange for some of the old parts we removed from our JT1 bike when we restored it.

Oh, and just so you know, my ceiling-art JT1 is not for sale! Long may it hang in the rafters of my cottage!

Where do you store your vintage bike(s)? Is one doubling as your coffee table? I’d love it if you’d send in your photos of unique reuses for bikes!

December 13, 2007

Can the C3 scooter keep up with the BWs?

By Chris Anderson, service shop technician, Yamaha Motor Canada

It’s amazing how a preconceived notion – for example, that one thing is superior to another – can be shattered when one actually experiences it. The following is a case in point.

Twice in the past month, I’ve had to go downtown for appointments and deliveries. To save money, I like to sign out a scooter from my employer, Yamaha Motor Canada instead of taking my car. (In Toronto, scooters and bikes park for free at any meter, and in designated parking lots.)

My first trip downtown, I picked out the 2008 BWs scooter (aka the “BeeWee, right). It’s still a two-stroke unit, but this year it has a catalyzer built in to the exhaust to reduce emissions. It’s always been a favourite of mine because of…

• Performance: It’ll do almost 70 kph right out of the box.
• Cargo space: I can drop my full face helmet in the cargo under the seat, lock it and walk away.
• Fat tires: Perfect for negotiating streetcar tracks.
• Fun: You can’t ride this scooter without smiling!

My surprise came on my second trip downtown, which followed the same route as the BeeWee, but this time I chose the Yamaha 2008 XF50 scooter (right, also known as “C cubed” (C3). It’s new, still 50cc, but four-stroke, fuel-injected and liquid-cooled. It has the same fat tires and lots of cargo room, but I thought, “there’s no way it can keep up with the BeeWee!

Wrong.

What a rockin’ little beastie! The C3 generates the same smiles per km, but it tackles the big hills better than the two-stroke and for some reason, the C3 seat is more comfy than the Beewee, too.

The C3 never went below 53kph going up the same hills that slowed the BWs down to just under 50kph. (I know this sounds slow, but it’s rare to break 65 in downtown traffic.) I only found myself slower than the traffic flow twice, and I was usually able to pass dump trucks and buses no sweat.

Next trip downtown, I’m taking the “C cubed” scooter!

Chris

December 11, 2007

Welcome from Carolyn Hay

Hi, I’m Carolyn Hay (but you can call me Cal). I’ve been working in the marketing department of Yamaha Motor Canada since January 2004. My main focus at work is developing the creative behind the company’s brochures and point-of-sale materials.

I like working at Yamaha because I feel like I’m part of something I believe in. Not only do I get to work in the motorcycle industry, but it’s one of my treasured hobbies. I feel very fortunate that I have combined the two.

I recently rode my first bike home for the first time – my very own 2007 YZF-R6 (in dark-grey). I’ve wanted an R6 for seven years now!

Ever since I bought it, I’ve been wearing a grin ear to ear every day! Now I’m counting down the days until April when the roads clear and I can launch into my first full season season with my R6!

My hobbies include anything that burns gas. I grew up around classic muscle cars, the drag track and car shows. When I discovered motorcycles (in 2000), it was just an addition to my other moto-passions.

I am blogging in this space to share my personal stories of motorcycling, including great roads I’ve found and my bike “firsts.” I hope to hear back from you, about your own biking adventures! Cal

December 6, 2007

Growing up moto – but not with cycles

How I discovered bikes and never looked back

By Carolyn Hay, marketing representative, Yamaha Motor Canada

Growing up, I was always surrounded by classic muscle cars, rail dragsters, big blocks, and four-speed manual trannys. Not too often would you find a motorcycle among the crowd.

But then, one hot July night back in 2000, something changed all that. I was at work when some friends came by to coerce me to go to a superbike race over at Mosport the following day. At that time I was like, ‘what’s a Superbike?” I was reluctant, but with a little convincing, I went.

I found out that motorcycles are a whole other world! And that was just the beginning. That summer I put in plenty of seat time as a passenger. It was official… I was hooked!

Then I decided, why should I leave all the fun to someone else? I didn’t want to be the passenger any more. So I went and got my motorcycle license in 2003. The natural progression was to get my own set of wheels, and it was the Yamaha R6 that I had fallen in love with!

The first time I got to sit on an R6 was at the Toronto Motorcycle Show back in December 2003. (Yep, that’s me in the picture (right). Pretty funny, I know… the look of pure concentration on my face is good for a laugh!)

The very next day, I applied for a marketing position within Yamaha Motor Canada.

The last four years have been a blast… now I ride R6s – heck, R1s even! But the sweetest was yet to come…

October 17, 2007 was an extremely exciting day for me; you see, I rode home for the first time on my very own 2007 Yamaha R6!! (That’s me with my baby, right.)

No more begging for loaner bikes at work… no more Sunday mornings waking up and just WISHING I had my own bike!

The ride to work will never be the same… or to anywhere, for that matter!

What I want to know is, am I going nut’z or is this normal?

- Cal

November 27, 2007

Welcome from Aaron Dowden

Hi, I’m Aaron Dowden, known around the office as “BeeWee Man” because of how much I love my BW50 scooter! I’ve worked in marketing at Yamaha Canada for about a year; I’ve decided to start blogging so I can interact directly with customers and interested folks (you!)

Scooters are my favourite type of bike, overall, but I have ridden other kinds of bikes. My first bike was a Yamaha YZF600R, and my favourite model remains the V-Star 1300. My fav trip on a bike? To Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia (near Halifax).

When I’m not riding, I enjoy playing hockey and learning all that I can about a cool Web practice known as Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

I love talking about Yamaha products – but just as much, I’d like to know what you want to talk about… especially all you fellow scooter commuters and lovers of scooters in general! Aaron

November 20, 2007

Welcome from Andree Lamarche

Hi, I’m Andrée, and I’m the French translator for Yamaha Motor Canada. I started riding in mid-2005, about three years after I joined Yamaha… but these days, I hardly ever drive my car in the warm months. You’ll find me on a bike most weekdays as well as virtually every weekend!

I most often ride the V-Star 650 that I borrow from Yamaha. (My favourite bike, the V-Star 1100, is usually signed out by coworkers before I can get to it!)

Off the bike, I love to garden and to canoe/portage deep in Algonquin Park at least once every summer; I try to get any of my three kids (the youngest is 17) to go with me, if I can! In another life – predating kids – I used to enjoy scuba diving and parachuting.

My new big adventure? Blogging!! I’m trying it out because I want to keep in touch with customers – and keep up with the changing times. (I’m looking into getting a laptop so I can blog anywhere, anytime!) I’d really like to hear from some like minded ladies on my posts. Enjoy. Andrée

November 15, 2007

Riding doesn’t always go without a (trailer) hitch

Expect the unexpected!

By Andrée Lamarche, French translator, Yamaha Motor Canada

The sun was shining, the breeze was refreshing, the road was just too inviting to pass up… Sound familiar? Early one warm morning this past summer, I went out to enjoy a ride on a V-Star 650. No arm-twisting necessary!

The fact that a windshield had not yet been installed on the bike I was riding that day ended up contributing greatly to averting a serious accident. After almost two hours of riding and a good many long curves and winding roads, I found myself heading south on a rural highway. (Can you smell the fresh country air? Feel the freedom? Heaven on earth!)

Well, as usual, my helmet visor was up because I like to feel the wind on my face. (My contacts haven’t blown off yet!). Then grains of dirt began to disrupt my perfect world – and my vision. I thought maybe the pickup truck ahead of me had veered a bit off the asphalted surface and disturbed the soft stuff on the shoulder of the road.

Without a windshield and with my visor up, my face had no protection, so I lowered the visor. Bits of grit kept coming up through the bottom of my helmet. I increased the buffering distance between the pickup truck/old trailer unit and my V-Star, blinked a few times to wash my eyes of the bothersome grains.

All of a sudden, there was a sharp cracking noise… and I found myself watching the old trailer slowly moving away from the pickup truck. It took a few seconds for me to realize that this very unexpected scenario was really happening… in my lane, a short distance in front of me!!

Luckily, there were no vehicles in the oncoming lane to my left, so I whipped over and watched the trailer dance by me and auger crash into the ditch. There was a huge thump and an impressive cloud of dust.

Look ahead, plan ahead, keep a safe distance

By the time I stopped up ahead and walked back to the crash scene, the driver of the pickup and his passenger were looking at the heap of broken wood that used to be their trailer. We were all unharmed, just a little shaken up and very thankful! (Apparently, the safety chains had broken as well as the receiver.)

In the end, these few seconds taught me in a very real lesson – to look ahead, plan ahead, and keep a respectful safety zone around my bike, out of harm’s way of unexpected flying cigarette butts, gum wads, tire chunks… and runaway trailers!

Guess that’s what the motorcycle course instructors mean when they told us to expect the unexpected!!

Have you had any ‘close ones’ where you learned a lesson in safety?

Ride safe, Andrée

November 13, 2007

Welcome from Dave Shepherd

Hi, I’m Dave Shepherd; I’ve worked at Yamaha Canada for 11 years as a Motorsports Technical Specialist. Basically, I am the “go to” guy for anything to do with motorcycles, of a technical nature. I talk with the Yamaha factory service engineers for various reasons; such as to prepare new model training materials, or take care of any problems in the Canadian market.

I’ve been a professional bike mechanic for more than 30 years (including back home in the U.K. before I immigrated to Canada). I really like working for Yamaha because of their high-quality approach to its product.

In my position, I need to really “know” our whole spectrum of models. So I ride something different every chance I get, from the sportiest to the fastest to the coolest to the most fuel efficient. From the smallest scooter to the heavyweight 1900cc cruisers – if it has two wheels, I’m there!

My first bike was a Yamaha YG1, my first new bike was a Yamaha FS1E (aka “The Fizzy”). I personally don’t believe that a true motorcyclist has a favorite bike – every bike has something that stirs the passion, just in different ways.

When I’m not on a bike, I like to practice judo, go hunting, boating, and hang out with my family.

I’m blogging here so I can stay closer to the market (that means you folks!) and although I will be often blogging about mechanical and maintenance matters, I’ll dip into other subjects relating to bikes too … I don’t want any boundaries!

Dave