Confessions Of A Customer® By Eric Anderson
SLIDING INTO NEW MARKETS
How About A “Taste Test” For New Riding Niches?
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oyal Enfield does not make the most sophisticated machines, but it certainly has put together a creative and different plan to put “butts on seats” with its new Slide School and BTR (Build Train Race) campaigns aimed at attracting new and female riders to the brand. Flat tracking had always been a dream sport to me since watching the movie On Any Sunday as a kid, but I never imagined anyone would ever offer to give me lessons for $250. Sure enough, Royal Enfield is the first OEM to offer lessons on a national circuit for anyone who wants to enroll. I will not be entering any pro flat track competitions soon, but like Richard Petty offering a taste of the NASCAR Experience, I was able to spend 3 1/2 hours with professional rider, Johnny Lewis, scooting around a specially prepared track at the Texas Motor Speedway after watching the AFT pros qualifying the day before. The pros may have been rained out the night before, but Slide School happened on schedule the next morning. No, I was not “schooled” on the half mile, but a much smaller track where Coach Johnny could closely analyze and correct our bad (motocross) habits to smooth out our style. Motocross used to be “my thing” and now it is vintage motocross, ADV or single-track dirt riding. A Royal Enfield Himalayan fits into one of those three categories, so it made sense for me to try riding a prepped FT411 on an oval track — why not? It certainly got me more excited than any OEM
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“Demo Ride” where one queues up behind 15 “baby ducks” following a high-viz vest-clad Momma Duck and sweep rider around a few city blocks. The “Learn To Ride” events or MSF courses are too basic for a veteran motorcyclist like me. Yamaha Track Days of the past looked fun but were not part of my DNA at the time since I had never raced street machines before — that pavement looked hard and I treasured my kneecaps too much. Slide School was different enough, affordable, short and super convenient — I had to try it. Some OEMs have their beginner riding events or training centers for newcomers, but they all seem to be subscribing to the same “expo demo recipe” when their 18-wheeler trucks follow each other from show to show and bike week to bike week. Reading about Slide School for a modest price available regionally prompted me to think out of the box and try something new. It wasn’t about the bike anyway — it was about learning how to flat track. Having the positive experience on an RE was what was in it for them… while the pro lessons were what I paid my $250 for. Win-win. This makes me wonder if other OEMs and dealers could begin thinking differently to offer veteran riders a new mini-experience on one of their motorcycles, e-bicycles, UTVs or watercraft? Insurance for such experiences is a challenge, of course, but is the ROI worth satisfying riders’ hunger to walk away with a huge smile on their face thinking about a new and different steed in the garage?
