asyriders’ V-Twin Expo held in early February at Cincinnati really turned the corner this year. What started a few years ago as an alternative to Dealernews’ Indy show for those in the V-Twin custom market, is now here to stay. Attendance was up over 50% from just a year ago, taking many exhibitors totally by surprise. More than one exhibitor reported to me that they ran completely out of catalogs and other materials.      This wasn’t news to me as I watched our Drag Specialties Magazine racks run dry before the show was over. That sure beats hauling them back home!
     There were some interesting products at the show. Avon and Metzeler continue to up the ante with wide rear tires now in the 300 range. But perhaps the biggest news at the show was Dunlop quietly showing off a wide tire of its own, a 250. The maker from Buffalo took its time to get into the “tire wars” of the custom market, and now it’s a three-horse race.
While it was easy to get fixated on the many hot-looking custom Harleys fitted with the Evo motors, there were also some really good looking V-Rods at the show too. And that is really good news for Harley-Davidson. I think everyone knows that to market a motorcycle in the years to come, a manufacturer has to comply with the current and upcoming DOT emissions regulations. And the V-Rod is the platform that Harley-Davidson’s future is built around. But let’s be honest, in stock form it’s just not as sleek as the old air-cooled models, and is really a challenge for the custom builders to make them look cool. But a few people did just that.
     Something beyond just the products that caught my attention at the show was how young a large number of people with both exhibitor and attendee badges were. The next generation of the Harley custom market has arrived. Yes, veterans of the sport like Arlen Ness and PM’s Perry Sands were there. But their sons Cory Ness and Roland Sands were too. Seasoned customizers like Donnie Smith, Dave Perowitz and Tom Hotop were on hand, alongside rising stars like Billy Lane, Randy Simpson and Jesse Jurrens.
     It seems right now that the appeal of the V-Twin custom market is that it has no limits. With a wide variety of engines, frames, forks, seats, gas tanks, pipes, wheels and more, builders are limited only by their imaginations. And this new generation will undoubtedly break some new ground in style and designs in the years ahead.
     This issue of Drag Specialties Magazine features a range of product offerings, from the hot custom bike on the cover built by John Covington’s Surgical Steeds that makes good use of an Avon 300 rear tire, to veteran Dave Perowitz’s custom Bagger built with products from the Drag Specialties FatBook. And be sure to check out our pictorial from the V-Twin Expo in the News & Events section.