IMS Motorcycle Choice Award
Seen it all before? Well, with that in mind, we set out to bring you only the very best–or should we say the “Ultimate” from the 28th annual International Motorcycle Show (IMS).
Yes, we have shifted through the has been and the obvious in order to serve up to you, our discerning readers, the interesting and what’s really hot from the 13-city motorcycle extravaganza.
Our choice award in the category of "Custom" goes to the 2009 BMW Custom Concept (BCC). BMW Motorcycles unveiled a configurable sporty roadster to a crowd of hard to please journalists who were left with nothing but fascination.
Low slung styling packed with a muscular high-torque 105hp flat twin boxer engine and wide handlebars, the BCC is really something to see. But what actually sets this apart from other slick looking customs is that for the first time, the customer gets to choose.
Yes, you choose: high or low exhaust, streetfighter or classic styled headlight, with or without aluminum trim on the tank, wheel wings in black or chrome, four paint choices on the tank, three paint choices on the engine cases, a seat for one, a seat for two or seat with aluminum perch. If my combinatorial calculation is working properly, that is an incredible 31,824 possible customer permutations!
Test my logic in Excel: =COMBIN(2+2+2+2+4+3+3, 7).
Weighing in at just 418 lbs. with 17-inch wheels, 6-piston brake calipers and an upside-down fork, the BCC has the right stuff to win the title fight. With classic styling and modern flair, BMW has found the right forward-thinking look without being offensive.
If and when this prize is released, that will be the day when bolting-on a simple off-the-shelf accessory starts its obsolescence. The MSRP for the BCC has not yet been set.
