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www.PowersportsBusiness.com Powersports Business • August 17, 2015 • 27 A weekend to remember Dealership hosts adventure touring overnight for riders BY KATE SWANSON ASSISTANT EDITOR Even motorcycle fanatics are never too old for sleepovers. Foothills Motorcycles in Lakewood, Colo., began offering overnight experiences for its adventure touring riders in June. McKenna Scott, marketing and events coordinator for Foothills Motorcycles, says the first overnight was part of a transition to becoming an adven- ture touring dealership. "We are actually starting to really direct our focus at Foothills into becoming an adventure touring store. In the last couple of months we've got in a great deal of gear and equipment and have started to build up the adventure realm," Scott said. Foothills, a BMW and Triumph dealer, plans to highlight its adventure touring capabilities by stocking up on anything a rider may need, from daypacks to survival gear. The industry has seen an increase in adventure touring as a whole with more customer interest and higher overall sales. "We have been selling more adventure bikes and more dual-sport bikes over the last couple months," Scott said. "We've also seen inter- est from customers — getting requests about doing these types of events, and each of the events has had a really good turnout." In addition to the overnight rides, Foothills will also offer training days and adventure rides to customers of all different levels. "We've started to give them opportunities by which they can go and use their bikes and gain train- ing and confidence on them," Scott said. The June overnight ride had a great deal of customer involvement and support; several customers volunteered their time to plan the route and take leadership roles on the ride. "The dealership did most everything other than plan the detailed route. We had one cus- tomer who planned the route and another that opened up his property for us to camp and ride on," Scott explained. A few customers acted as leaders and sweeps during the ride, making sure no one fell behind and that every indi- vidual riding level was catered to. Foothills also coordinated food and lodging for the partici- pants through a local company that provided tents and sleeping bags. "A few of our customers took us up on that, but most brought their own gear and setup. So on our end of things it was pretty much logis- tics and food," she said. During the weekend trip the group of 25 riders traveled more than 250 miles. "We told riders in the beginning that it was going to definitely be a technical route; there were dual- sport elements to it and would include on-road and off-road," said Scott. While the ride had no beginners because of the route's terrain, guides who rode along were able to ride with each smaller group's level of riding. "We didn't separate riders by any means, but riders were able to ride with others on their same level, and the guides were able to lead them better that way," Scott explained. Therefore, participants received walk- through training over the course of the week- end. The event elicited positive responses from the group. See Foothills, Page 28 PHOTO CREDIT: FOOTHILLS CUSTOMER STEVE GREEN In June, Foothills Motorcycles hosted an overnight adventure touring experience. During the weekend trip the group of 25 riders traveled more than 250 miles.