Next Big Things

DC here. I've been coming to this trade show since 1977, which was back in the days when it was held in Cincinnati. I used to love coming here to collect stickers and all, then later on to see all of the new gear. Now, the show is just packed with cool stuff, from bikes to people to the prerequisite "spokesmodels." (Ours is named Brozik.) It's here at Indy that you find many of the next big things.
Okay, I knew this work of art was going to be unveiled by those eighties-loving, moto-driven brothers from Kokomo, IN, Robert and Matt Davis, better known as Throttle Jockey. Regardless, I was blown away when I actually saw their Johnny O'Mara-themed CRF250. The brothers always like to bring out something special for their homestate show, and this may have topped even the silver Elsinores of a few years back. There's literally a crowd around the bike at all times, bench-racing and talking about Johnny O and those boot gators. Salad days....
That's the man, Bob "Hurricane" Hannah, probably selling an airplane or something. Hannah is on hand with his longtime friend Eddie Cole of Six Six One. At one point, Mike Bell stopped by too, which meant that every supercross champion from 1977 through 1980 was standing there. Later on, I ran into Kenny Roberts and one other moto immortal: Malcolm Smith. More on that later.
How trick is this? Rim decals from Factory Effex. I have a feeling we will be seeing lots of these this summer, in all colors, for all brands.

The Cobra folks are very excited about this future world-beater. It's the brand new CX65, and it's a stunning little piece of motocross beauty. The bike was made in Michigan and features more gadgets than a Lear Jet.

Finally, I ran into Andy Stacy, the subject of last week's Where Are They Now? feature, and his wife Jackie (who just happens to be a marathon runner). That's the thing about the trade show: Old friends and bench racing... And the next big things.