2018
RIDE FOREVER
NEW ZEALAND
MOTORCYCLE SHOW
By Chris Ritchie
ew Zealand’s largest two-day show
dedicated entirely to motorcycles,
the 2018 Ride Forever New Zealand
Motorcycle Show, was held at the ASB
Showgrounds in Auckland over the weekend
of November 24-25.
The show brought together a variety of
motorcycle distributors, industry brands,
trade stands, and motorcycle collections all
under one roof. The event coincided with the
Monster Energy SX Open Supercross event at
Mount Smart Stadium, with many supercross
fans from around the country also making a
visit to the show during the weekend.
Judging by the size of this year’s show, with
many of the major motorcycle brands in
attendance, it felt as though the motorcycle
industry as a whole is in good shape, and
speaking to industry pundits, they have
a positive outlook overall, in the current
market.
Approaching the summer season with more
motorcyclists hitting the road, trails and
tracks around the country, it was the perfect
100 KIWI RIDER
opportunity for motorcycle enthusiasts to
explore the latest releases and offerings from
their favourite brands.
The big four Japanese manufacturers all had
a presence with Yamaha having by far the
biggest footprint with in excess of 40 models
from their range on display, from the PW50
for the kids to the brand new 2019 WR450F
on the off-road side. They also showcased
the all-new Niken which features two wheels
at the front. It was the first glimpse of the
R1 Superbike that will be piloted by top New
Zealand road racing talents Jake Lewis and
Alistair Hoogenboezem in the upcoming 2019
NZSBK Championship.
Suzuki debuted the new 2019 GSX-S 1000
Katana, an updated version of the 80s classic.
There was also an entire hall dedicated
to the Classic Bike of the Year awards with
categories from Vintage to Post Classic across
British, American, European and Japanese
marques, featuring more than 500 privately
owned machines.