VLOG Archives - Law Abiding Biker Podcast

Soundz Bagger Audio System-Harley Install Day

October 24, 2020 By Ryan Urlacher Leave a Comment

We filmed the install of a Sound Baggerz Audio amplifier and front fairing speakers in a 2014 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special. We will also be flashing the Boom Box system with a Techno Research Scan Tool afterward as required. We will be testing this entire system and the quality and let you know. We have no affiliation with Soundz Bagger Audio. We simply bought their products for install and real-world biker review.

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We also had a Road Glide on hand and in our tutorial video, we will show you the slight differences with the install process. Like all our videos, this tutorial will be very detailed and you can be assured you'll be able to install this audio system in your Harley right in your very own shop or garage.

You can keep checking back here to see when this install video is released. We also have other Harley audio system install videos such as the Harley Boom Box Stage 1 & 2 kit, Rockford Fosgate Power Harley-Davidson kit, J&M Rokker XX Extreme kit, Hogtunes kit, and Cycle Sounds kit.

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Surprise Visit to the Law Abiding Biker Motorcycle Store?

October 19, 2020 By Ryan Urlacher Leave a Comment

I spent the afternoon at the Law Abiding Biker Store facility in Richland, WA, which is about 1 hr east of the Law Abiding Biker Media Studio and Shop near Yakima, WA. As we expand our store, I figured it was time for a newer cutting edge security system and alarm.

I had some fun while I was there of course messing with Big Daddy and Goat, who run the store.

I wanted to quickly share what's going on in our online store and I announced some cool new products we're carrying for the biker community.

I want to sincerely thank each and every one of you that shops in the Law Abiding Biker Store. We simply could not continue to grow without your support.

We are continuing our mission to help, serve, educate, connect, and entertain as many bikes as we can worldwide!

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Sturgis 2020 Canceled? 80th Anniversary? COVID-19!

April 24, 2020 By Ryan Urlacher 2 Comments

Sturgis 2020, the 80th anniversary, may be canceled due to the COVID-19 virus. It's not official yet, but it's being discussed. (see video below)

The below information is taken directly from the City of Sturgis Facebook Page and it was released on April 23, 2020 at 2:03 pm.

April 23, 2020
STURGIS, SD – The Sturgis City Council has prepared a set of protocols that will be used when making the decision to hold or cancel the upcoming City of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally scheduled for August 7-16, 2020. This decision will be under consideration because of the wide-spread COVID-19 pandemic.

Considerations for the Rally in 2020
• Before hosting any event, the City must be reasonably ensured that it would not levy an undue burden on the health of our residents and our health care services.
• Nearly every corporation in America has greatly reduced travel and trade shows. If the Rally is held, there will likely be a great reduction in the number of major corporate exhibitors along with smaller vendors who also will be hesitant to travel.
• Beyond the additional revenue for 43% of our residents (broken down below), many of our businesses are heavily dependent upon Rally revenue, if the event is not held, we anticipate significant negative impacts up to and including foreclosures for our community’s restaurants, hotels, Main Street gift shops and hospitality industries (including pet services). Any closure will likely take years to be replaced by a new business. This is true in neighboring communities throughout the Black Hills.
• Many of the smaller vendors rely upon the City of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for the bulk of their annual profit. If the event is not held, they may not be able to make it to the next year.

Impact of the Rally
The City of Sturgis hosts the state’s single largest tourism event.
The 79th Annual Rally generated the following:
• $655,090,000 of direct spending by visitors
• $65,509,000 in additional indirect spending
• $615,116 in funding for local non-profit and charitable organizations
• $1,165,688 in net profit to the City of Sturgis
• In 2014, the City’s SIP resident survey indicated 15% of residents rent their homes, 6% rent their yards and 22% work a Rally job – 43% of our residents are a part of the Rally
This income is generally 5-15% of a household’s annual income

Metrics for Consideration
The City has determined that it will make a decision on holding the 2020 City of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally based upon empirical data. This will focus on whether the state is capable of hosting a larger number of visitors and if the areas where our visitors usually come from have a high probability of carrying the COVID-19 virus.

Resource Availability in the state:
• ICU beds available
• Ventilators available
Virus Case Growth
 Percentage weekly change in infections in South Dakota
Virus Case Growth in primary markets (represent 50.6% of attendees)
 Follow weekly growth in cases (infection curve) for MN, CO, NE, CA, WI, WY, WA, IA, KS and AZ

Timeline
There will be a series of calls to begin gauging the temperature of the industry leaders. This will be combined with the metrics to guide the Council’s decision regarding whether the City of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally should be canceled.

Week of May 11th – 15th – Set Up Calls
 Contact the following groups to see if they would like to be included in the decision:
– Governor – State Tourism – State Health – Senator Rounds – Senator Thune – Representative Johnson – Black Hills & Badlands – Monument Health
– Hotel/Motel group – Local Owners – Southern Hills – Rapid City – Spearfish
– Significant campground venues – Pappy Hoel – Buffalo Chip – Glenco – Lamphere – Steel Pony – Kick Stand – Rush No More – Sturgis RV – Days End
– Businesses – Main Street businesses – Sturgis Indian – Black Hills Harley Davidson – Sturgis Motorcycle Museum
– Sponsors
– Mayors & Chambers from throughout the hills

Week of May 18th place calls to:
 Hotel Motel Group
 Campground Group
 Sturgis Monument Health

Week of May 25th place calls to:
 Black Hills Businesses
 Chambers & Cities

Week of June 1st place calls to:
 Sponsors
 State and Federal Government Groups

June 8th
 Special Council Meeting – for discussion only

June 15th
 Regular Council meeting to vote if the Rally is canceled (7 ½ weeks before the start of the City of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally)

Questions related to the above information can be directed to Jerry Cole, Director of the City of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally 605-720-0800.

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Why I Still Do What I Do on YouTube After 7 Years | 100K Subscribers!

April 24, 2020 By Ryan Urlacher Leave a Comment

We started this YouTube channel and the Law Abiding Biker Podcast about 7 years ago. Our first podcast release was March 16, 2013. My mission was to educate, connect, entertain, and inspire bikers worldwide. Although the podcast was reaching many, I thought that we could also reach bikers with a YouTube channel. So, about two months after the first podcast aired, we released our first video on the channel, how to change the oil and perform routine maintenance on a Harley, and it got a ton of views. From there, we kept releasing content here on the channel and on the podcast, learning a lot along the way. I have put a ton of effort into Law Abiding Biker Media over time and have grown it to where it is today. We recently reached over 100K subscribers on the channel and YouTube sent me a 100K subscriber silver play award and I wanted to share it with you. We love the biker community and could not have done this without you. (see video below)

202o Meetup Events Mentioned:

STURGIS 2020 (PATRON MEMBER ONLY) RIDE AND MEETUP EVENT-SIGNUP AND REQUIREMENTS
STURGIS 2020 PUBLIC MEETUP AT BLACK HILLS HARLEY-DAVIDSON
- Tuesday, August 11, 2020
  - Rickrak Booth (11:00am-1:00pm)
  - Ciro 3D Booth (1:00pm-3:00pm)

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Harley-Davidson End Times! CEO Matthew Levatich Quits

March 9, 2020 By Ryan Urlacher 30 Comments

Matthew Levatich, the CEO of Harley-Davidson since 2015, stepped down recently. As he left, Levatich said, “I am proud of what we have achieved during my time as CEO, in one of the most challenging periods in our history.” (see video below)

It's well known that Harley has been struggling for some time and sales have been declining steadily year to year. There’s just not a big demand for the bigger expensive touring bikes that make up the core of its model line. The company’s loyal base of older customers, who drove a Harley revival during the 1980s and 1990s, is aging and purchasing fewer new motorcycles.

Because the company needed to do something quickly, they selected Levatich as CEO back in 2015 to try to save the company. Levatich joined the company back in 1994 and served as a chief operating officer from 2009 through 2015 prior to becoming CEO. So, he had a good background and knowledge within the company.

What former Harley CEO Levatich did in 5 years

Levatich authorized dozens of new models for both the U.S. and foreign markets. Harley certainly sees growth opportunities in the foreign markets and has clearly been targeting them. But that’s been tough because of competition from existing brands that are solid in those markets.

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Levatich expanded the output of motorcycles overseas, looking for more customers, especially in Asia. But, the smaller motorcycles aimed at those markets are less expensive than the bigger touring Harley models that they rely on in the U.S. and that has hurt the company's overall sales revenue.

He also tried to get the company into different markets such as the Adventure Riding with the Pan America, which is supposed to be released in 2020. And they created the Street Fighter to get into the sports bike market, but there’s no timeline on the release of that bike.

And of course, Harley created their first-ever electric motorcycle named “LiveWire.” However, it had some major issues after launch and a recall on it’s charging system that didn't help its reputation.

Additionally, Levatich attempted to offset declining sales with cost reductions. The company closed its Kansas City, Mo., assembly plant in 2019, Conducted several rounds of layoffs, and voluntary buyouts for employees. The company also shifted some of its productions overseas as well to avoid tarriff’s. And they took some consumer and political heat for doing such.

Levatich had a mission to attract new riders with their ridership classes, which are basically a driver’s ed class for new riders. These classes were not necessarily new, as these classes pre-dated Levatich, but the company just renewed its focus on promoting the classes.

Measuring progress toward the ridership goal created tension between Harley managers and its dealers and investors and this festered over time. Dealerships complained the learn-to-ride classes were expensive and didn’t bring enough new motorcycle buyers.

Tensions between dealerships and Levatich rose even more as he brought many new models, engines and made other attempts to revive sales, but they all failed. Harley also created a fleet of smaller, cheaper bikes such as the street series to attract new riders.

However, none of these things seem to have really moved the needle in attracting the younger generation.

Who is filling Levatich's position?

Harley’s board said that director Jochen Zeitz would serve as acting CEO and board chairman as it looks for a new permanent CEO. Zeitz’s background is in sporting goods and lifestyle products. He served as CEO of Puma SE from 1993 to 2011, where he led a turnaround of the company when it was near bankruptcy.

Areas where I believe Harley failed under CEO Levatich

First, customers are tired of paying the Harley tax on anything with a Harley logo as it's marked up excessively. I believe buyers are smarter these days and are not buying more expensive Harley stamped items such as coats, pants, shirts, gloves, helmets etc. They are buying aftermarket merchandise that is cheaper and better quality. I'm certain this has cut into Harley's overall profits.

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Second, the long time Boom Box Infotainment System debacle and all its problems that continue to this day and the lack of support customers have received has really hurt the company's reputation. This has been going on since 2014 now. Harley's silence about these well-known Boom Box issues has hurt them badly.

Third, the implementation of the new overly strict warranty voiding issues on the newer Milwaukee-Eight models. The company has forced the dealerships to void long time loyal customer's warranties for trivial items.

The biggest failure is their long time failure in proper up to date marketing. In the company's passion to attract new younger riders, they've left their current core customers (the ones with the money) behind. Many, once brand-loyal customers, are leaving because of it.

Instead of connecting with current core customers, Harley went after Hollywood actors and extreme sports athletes that don't even ride or live the biker lifestyle. That sort of outdated marketing continues to hurt Harley.

Harley has forgotten how they originally built their brand. It was more than just about a motorcycle, it was about a lifestyle and everything that surrounded it. It seems Harley has just abandoned its original brand values. It's now only about trying to attract a younger generation of riders. Yes, that's important, but they must not forget about their current customers.

Unlike other companies and industries, the Harley marketing team has not yet awoken to new-age techniques and practices where they could intimately connect with their core customers and even that younger generation they're after. Harley has failed to leverage current online influencer platforms to connect. These influencer platforms include YouTube, podcasts, online communities, and social media groups just to name a few.

These well-established platforms are where their largest customer base is hanging out and it's a very targeted audience. They could easily connect with these very large online communities, but they seem to be completely blind to it and are falling further behind every day. The days of Harley remaining silent and not talking directly to their customers are over and they better get on board quickly.

Harley owners and riders could care less about over-privileged Hollywood actors or athletes riding or being given free Harley's. This does not speak to current Harley owners or future owners in this day and age. Those are old outdated marketing techniques for the motorcycle industry.

Harley's current core customer and new younger future customers are watching more online videos than watching traditional TV and they are not listening to traditional radio that is dying. They are not reading or buying outdated magazines and print media. Instead, they are hanging out in large targeted online communities and Harley has done nothing to get involved in these places.

Most importantly, Harley needs to keep their current customers happy, because after all, they are the ones that will be introducing that younger generation of riders they're targeting, to motorcycling and Harley ownership in the future.

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New 2020 Harley-Davidson Models-The Good, The Bad, & The Softail Low Rider S?

September 4, 2019 By Ryan Urlacher 3 Comments

2020 Softail Low Rider S

Harley-Davidson just released their new line-up and models for 2020. The show steeler is the new Softail Low Rider S with the 114 Milwaukee-Eight engine. It's a light little bike, 650 lbs, with a powerful motor. It has an adjustable mono-shock in the rear with inverted front forks up front for added handling and performance. It also has dual front disc brakes. They reduced the rake by 2 degrees for added handling. (see video below)

They are also working on the new concept and future bikes. The Pan America will be their first adventure-style bike and the Streetfighter is a future sport style bike ready to carve up the streets.

In this video, I break down the 2020 Harley line-up and tell you what you need to know as a consumer.

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Check out my Harley-Davidson Police Motorcycle! | In-Depth Look

August 16, 2019 By Ryan Urlacher 6 Comments

In this video, I give you a very thorough look at how my 2018 Harley-Davidson Police Edition Electra Glide is equipped. These Harley Police models come from the factory with red and blue lights, siren, and special switches for operation such. When a particular law enforcement agency gets the Harley Police Model then it is up to them from there to set it up in a manner that best suits an officer’s needs. Computers, printers, modems, extra battery and more can be placed in the trunk. Rifles and other equipment can be placed in the saddlebag or on mounted on the outside of the Police Harley model.

Paint schemes and graphics also vary from police agency to police agency. The Police Harley Electra Glide is really a stripped-down version of a Street Glide. There is no stereo in the dash and just a storage box instead. We mount a police radio in that spot. Our police radios connect to our helmet microphone and speaker system via Bluetooth. I hope you enjoy this video and get a real in-depth understanding of how a Police Harley Electra Glide is equipped and functions.