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When you picture motorcycles on a golf course, the first thing that comes to mind is probably something like this video: a rider ripping up the green, wreaking more than a bit of havoc. But in the near future, golfers might be seeing a lot more two-wheeled vehicles on the links.

At the PGA Demo Show Day earlier this year, a number of motorized single-rider scooters made their big debut, gaining a lot of traction for their potential to infuse some much-needed speed and sense of adventure into a historically slow-moving sport. Here’s a quick primer on the rise of scooters and motorbike-style rides in the world of golf.

Two-wheelers hitting the links

Golf carts are typically designed to zip around the course at between 12 and 14 mph maximum speed. The slow speed and overall inefficiency of “hole to hole” transport has been holding back the golfing community for ages, leading to plenty of complaints on the green—and even more “DIY” approaches for making existing golf carts go faster, legally. (Why legally? Because every state has a different law for just how golf carts can be modified, and how fast they can go.)

Simply put, sharing a ride with another golfer, and potentially having to zig-zag around the course because of it, is pretty inefficient. It’s even led some to claim that the golf carts of the past will soon go the way of the dinosaur. Why? Because electric scooters and motorcycles are delivering more speed, more efficiency and a better pace-of-play overall.

One of the most talked-about electric golf cart alternatives is the FinnCycle, the brainchild of Sun Mountain Sports, the same company that brought the golf world built-in legs on golf bags. The FinnCycle electric scooter claims to shave an hour off a round of golf by getting players from one hole to the next faster. Although it tops out at 15 mph, the scooter allows for much more agile maneuvering than four-wheeled golf carts, with the major advantage of each golfer going solo to his or her ball. And where do the clubs go? They attach right to the front of the scooter.

For golfers who have never operated a scooter before, let alone a motorcycle, the creators have lessened the learning curve. Golfers can control the pedal-free scooter with a thumb throttle and hand brakes. At 80 pounds, the ride uses low-pressure tires—the back tires have turf tread—to deliver the desired traction without damaging the green.

Although the FinnCycle might make golf course transportation look and feel easy, Sun Mountain Sports’ CEO said creating it was anything but. They started out with a three-wheel tilt scooter but couldn’t get the suspension quite right. After building out a complete prototype for a four-wheel standup scooter, they realized two wheels was the way to go.

Meanwhile, the Phat Scooter—named for its fat, cruiser-style tires—is also hitting the green. But unlike the FinnCycle, this ride is actually street-ready (if you stick to the bike lane). Topping out at 20 mph, the Phat Scooter rides like a bike-scooter hybrid. Complete with a USB charger, a built-in cooler, a place in the back for your golf bag and a spot especially for keeping balls, tees and scorecards, the Phat Scooter is designed to meet the unique needs of golfers.

But does all that make for a comfortable ride? Just ask PGA Pro Pat Perez, who says using the Phat Scooter is “like riding a couch.”

Over in Sweden, Eduard Gray has launched the Ellwee, a four-wheel ATV-inspired golf course vehicle with specialized features like a downhill brake. It claims to increase the speed of completing a round by 25% while delivering the lowest rate of wear and tear.

But are they really ‘motorcycle-style?’

As these golf cart alternatives appear more frequently on the green, there’s been talk of them delivering “fairway freedom.” One article even said the FinnCycle “lets you channel your inner Steve McQueen,” pairing the headline with an image of someone from Sun Motor Sports ‘popping a wheelie’ on the scooter. But although riders can relate to the thrill of the open road, it’s impossible to compare these golf course scooters to motorcycles themselves. (And as some forums share, these rides also remove the barrier between golfer and the elements, which might be an undesirable reality of riding that many golfers aren’t quite ready to embrace just yet.)

Will there soon come a day when the icon Caddyshack-style golf carts disappear from greens altogether? And will these golf cart alternatives continue to evolve from their current scooter-esque functionality and get closer to delivering the experience we know so well as riders?

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Why I’m Sharing My Entrepreneur Story

For years, I’ve been asked a question that business owners hear a lot: What made you start your company? I’ve told the simplified story at local Entrepreneurs’ Organization events here in Orange County and have shared it with customers from time to time. But I have never publicized what really started it all.  I guess I didn’t value my journey at a young age as much as I do now.  Recently, I was compelled to share the story more widely in a series of articles published on Medium.

Whether you’re interested in how a farm kid from Idaho started a motorcycle business in Southern California or are a rider who can relate to a dramatic crash story, I hope you’ll walk away from these articles with the feeling that you know me, and our philosophy here at Motorcycle Shippers, just a little bit better.

The first article in that series, which I aptly named “It All Started With a Crash,” tells the story of the motorcycle accident that indirectly led me to start Motorcycle Shippers more than 25 years ago. (That article was published today on Medium; you can read it here.) In Parts 2 and 3 , I dive deeper into how I started Motorcycle Shippers and my approach to running the business amid the changes in the motorcycle industry.

And if you happen to be an entrepreneur yourself, I hope it compels you to share the ups and downs of growing your company. Running a business isn’t easy. But just like riders, entrepreneurs always manage to get through the bumps in the road—even if they’re as serious as the crash I had 25 years ago.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

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Where the Trump-Harley Feud Stands Now

Summer may feel like ages ago, but the feud that President Trump ignited with Harley-Davidson in June is still smoldering. Although the president has shifted his Twitter focus away from Harley (at least for now), the repercussions of the scuffle, the trade war and the motorcycle market dynamics have created a perfect storm for Harley-Davidson. (It’s a situation so stark that a recent Fortune Magazine headline reads, “Harley-Davidson Profit Wiped Out by Trump Tariffs.”)

Where does the Trump-Harley feud stand, and has the iconic motorcycle brand’s bottom line really been decimated by the dispute? Here’s the latest on Harley’s position in the motorcycle world and what factors are contributing to it.

(Need a quick refresh on the Trump-Harley feud? Check out our article.)

How the Trump war is hitting Harley

In September, Harley-Davidson celebrated its 115^th anniversary with an event that drew 150,000 bikers to Milwaukee. The President had recently recommended that riders boycott the iconic brand, and unsurprisingly, reporters were in attendance to gauge the Trump-Harley fallout. One reporter summed it up this way: Although the riders were indifferent about Harley’s response to the feud, they loved Trump.

That same month, bikers halfway across the country shared a much different sentiment with USA Today, pledging their loyalty to an iconic American brand. And in September, just months after Trump called a Harley boycott a “great idea,” the U.S. Secret Service put in an order for new Harleys with sidecars. Their justification? Secret Service mechanics already know how to service Harley-Davidsons; despite the political perceptions, the switch wasn’t worth the time or money.

Meanwhile, a key Harley competitor, Indian, saw a 4% surge in sales this fall. Following Harley’s decision to move some production overseas, Indian dealers reported a significant uptick in HOG trade-ins. Where does all this leave Harley-Davidson?

It’s impossible to fully gauge the biker community’s response to the Trump-Harley feud that exploded over the summer. But where the market is concerned, the impact has been crystal clear. Harley’s retail sales dropped 10% in the final three months of 2018. The company barely broke even in its most recently posted earnings

report. With eight quarters of consecutive declining sales, Harley’s shares tumbled by 9.5% to finish out a tough 2018.

Mainstream media headlines were quick to cite the impact of the Trump tariffs. “Once Lauded by Trump, Harley-Davidson is Now Sputtering,” read one CBS News piece from last month.

What’s really to blame?

Are the Trump tariffs the only reason for the brand’s decline? You can easily point to the lack of enthusiasm among Millennial riders, and you wouldn’t be out of line to cite the rise in electric motorcycles as a threat to the Harleys of the past. Harley’s LiveWire electric motorcycle hits stores in August, with a cool $30K price tag.) Although it’s not the only factor making Harley sputter, the Trump tariffs have undoubtedly worsened the situation. The company told the SEC that the new EU tariffs added $2,000 to the cost of each motorcycle.

Keep in mind that it’s not all doom and gloom for the motorcycle market. Recent research shows that women riders have hit record numbers; they now account for 19% of the total U.S. rider population. And innovations like the ones from CES are becoming more prevalent in the motorcycles hitting dealerships, which could help entice more Millennials to embrace the ride. Still, Harley’s executives predict 2019 will be another tough year for the brand.

Harley estimates that it will ship between 217,000 and 220,000 bikes to the U.S. this year—one of Harley’s lowest shipment rates since 2010. Between already-declining sales and the continuing trade war, the situation begs the question: Will extravagant anniversary bike rallies in Milwaukee soon be a thing of the past?

Where do you stand on the Trump-Harley feud? How important is it for your motorcycle (and its parts) to be manufactured in the U.S.?

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In a motorcycle market where competition is more heated than ever, brand loyalty is the Holy Grail. And perhaps no group has been more unwavering in its brand loyalty than American law enforcement. Since Harley-Davidson delivered its first police motorcycle to the Detroit Police Department in 1908, Harley has been a fixture among the nation’s police force—helping officers arrive at the scene quickly, maneuver with ease and go where four wheels simply won’t allow.

But now, as the CHiPS era fades from our memory, a new kid on the block is changing the police motorcycle game. Enter Zero. If there’s any indication that electric motorcycles are gaining mainstream appeal, look no further than police departments, which are embracing Zero bikes in record numbers.

A shifting police motorcycle landscape

Since the first motorcycle police unit was launched in Berkeley, California in 1911, motorcycles have been a fixture for forces across America. Harley-Davidson plays an undeniable leading role in that long history. It shipped 20,000 bikes overseas during World War I to help soldiers dispatch wartime messages faster. When the war ended, a surplus in motorcycles made their wider adoption on police forces a no-brainer. By the 1920s, more than 3,000 police departments were using Harleys.

Fast-forward to 2019, and police departments still swear by motorcycles to help them go where cars can’t, accelerate more powerfully than four-wheeled vehicles and weave through traffic with ease. Although a lack of storage can make them unsuitable for certain tasks and hours of riding can bring the inevitable discomfort, motorcycles are being used for much more than traffic stops and parade details.

Nearly 80% of today’s police motorcycles are Harleys. But as the needs of the modern police force change, so has its ride of choice. More than 100 law enforcement agencies have begun using Zero electric motorcycles, and signs show the trend isn’t slowing down any time soon.

Why Zero? As one officer explains, the fuel-free bike lets officers accomplish things that traditional gas cruisers don’t. The Zero model used by the Clovis PD, the Zero DSP, can handle on- and off-road terrain with ease, is exhaust-free and needs virtually no maintenance. An added bonus? Its whisper-quiet system lets officers sneak up on suspects a lot more efficiently than the rumbling models of the past.

Three years since tackling the police market with force, the Santa Cruz-based Zero is adding about two new law enforcement agencies per month. It’s now becoming the more agile ride of choice for units in both the United States and our neighbor to the north, Canada.

Still, the electric motorcycle has its drawbacks. A 90 mph highway chase, for example, will run down the Zero DSRP battery in just 60 miles. That’s just one reason why the Michigan State Police Precision Driving Unit told Fast Company that its highway patrols will stick with their current rides. The result is that rather than replace Harleys on a force, the Zero is finding a niche as another tool—one that falls somewhere between a Harley and a bicycle.

More electric motorcycles on the horizon

In the exceedingly crowded electric motorcycle landscape, Zero is an undeniable leader. Although niche—the brand only sells between 2,000 and 10,000 bikes per year internationally, compared to Harley’s 168,240 in the U.S. alone—Zero has maintained an impressive 40% YOY growth rate. That matches the overall forecasted growth for the electric motorcycle space, which one leading market research firm puts at around 41% by 2021.

Zero’s extensive 2019 lineup demonstrates that it’s continuing to invest big in the electric motorcycle space. The Zero S and DS models are getting a 35% power boost and a top speed increase of 8%. But while Zero is building on its initial success, other motorcycle companies are snapping at its heels—including Harley itself.

Harley-Davidson’s LiveWire, coming with the promise that “the loudest sound you hear will be your heart racing,” launches this year. Brutus is now offering a law enforcement option of its full-size Brutus V9 bike. And in the dirt bike arena, Swedish brand Cake is marketing an electric bike about half as heavy as a typical motocross bike, with a 15kW motor, a 52-volt battery and three “power modes” aimed to satisfy beginners and experienced riders alike.

It’s yet to be seen what technologies motorcycle brands like Yamaha and BMW showcase at the annual Consumer Electronics Show next week. But one thing is for sure: in an increasingly techie motorcycle landscape, electric motorcycles are developing a niche all their own.

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This week, more than 182,000 tech enthusiasts from around the globe flocked to Las Vegas for CES, the world’s most important tech show. Motorcycle Shippers was right there with them, trekking the conference’s 2.7 million square feet of exhibits, interactive displays and other experiences in search of the latest and greatest in motorcycle innovation.

Given that LiveWire preorders are now open, it’s no surprise that Harley-Davidson had its first all-electric motorcycle front and center at CES—even if its two other electric bike concepts were actually a lot more exciting. Meanwhile, the helicopter company Bell dominated the showroom floor—literally!—with its massive Nexus air taxi. And while self-driving cars were an unavoidable trend at the show, there’s no denying the excitement surrounding flying cars, Hyundai’s walking car and electric scooters at CES 2019.

Here are a few standout motorcycle technologies from the 2019 Consumer Electronics Show—some available now, and one that hasn’t hit shelves just yet.

AR is coming to your motorcycle helmet

Head-up AR display options have already been gaining steam in the auto industry, and one startup is now taking a bold step toward bringing a similar experience to motorcycle riders everywhere. Dubbed the “first AR motorcycle helmet,” LiveMap’s prototype projects a virtual image 20 meters ahead, directly from a small screen on your visor. The idea, the startup told us from the CES showroom floor, is to let riders see navigation and driving indicators in front of them while keeping their eyes on the road—not looking down at a navigation panel.

With a built-in camera light sensor, headphones and optics mic, the LiveMap helmet is applying the best of AR and integration to the world of rider safety and navigation. Other features worth noting? Customizable alerts and calls, a built-in camera, robust audio and voice controls, and visibility technology that keeps the helmet’s image looking crisp no matter what Mother Nature has in store for your ride.

This one might not be ready to hit shelves just yet, and the price tag is estimated to be a hefty $1999. Still, the LiveMap moto helmet could be a significant sign of what’s to come in the world of motorcycle accessories. (: BMW and Skully both reportedly have augmented reality helmets in the works.)

Hovercrafts and motorcycles collide

 Another awe-inducing model on the showroom floor was the Hoversurf Hoverbike. As its name implies, it’s essentially a motorcycle that hovers or flies. Hoversurf wasn’t permitted to fly the Hoverbike S3 2019 indoors during the conference—no surprise there—but it did do a mini demo showing just how powerfully its flying motorcycle booted up.

At more than 250 pounds, the single-seater can fly up to 16 feet above ground level at speeds up to 6 mph. But keep in mind that, much like electric motorcycles, the Hoverbike is no match for the duration that a traditional motorcycle allows. Depending on the weight of the driver, the model can only be airborne for 10 to 25 minutes at a time.

If the Hoverbike seems lightyears from reality, think again: Last year, the Dubai Police Force tested out hover-motorcycles to help its officers arrive to the scene without suffering in traffic. But then again, this is the same police force that has pledged to replace 25% of its officers with robots by 2030.

The Hoverbike S3 2019 is fully launched and could be yours for a cool $150,000.

The Niken steals the show, again

It’s no surprise that a brand selling 5.4 million motorcycles annually had a supersized presence at CES. Fitting in right among the most tech-forward companies of the era (think: Google and Microsoft), Yamaha Motors took the opportunity to showcase eye-catching innovation: its widely lauded three-wheel Niken motorcycle and the Tritown three-wheel scooter concept, plus demos of its unmanned helicopter and AI technologies.

You may have heard that Yamaha acquired Brudeli, a three-wheel motorcycle manufacturer, last year. Given that news, and the buzz surrounding the Niken ever since its debuts at the Tokyo Motor Show and Europe’s EICMA, it’s no surprise that Yamaha made the Niken the centerpiece of its sizable CES booth. Joining it was the Tritown scooter, which employs the same three-wheel system to let the rider, as the brand puts it, “just glide.”

Check out the full Niken specs here, and watch this Tritown demo from the CES showroom floor.

What motorcycle technology are you most excited about in 2019? Do you think technology is enhancing or taking away from the experience of the ride?