Custom Search

2008 International Motorcycle
and Scooter Show NEC, Birmingham

2003 Review | 2004 Review | 2004 Gallery | 2005 Review | 2005 Gallery | 2006 Review | 2006 Gallery | 2007 Gallery | 2008 Gallery

Revolutionary Eco-Friendly Electric Motorcycle Manufacturer Quantya to Display at the NEC Motorcycle and Scooter Show | Rieju Set To Attend NEC Motorcycle Show | Kawasaki Set To Display Entire 2010 Off-Road Range | Ride The UK's Largest Supercross Circuit | Kawasaki To Unveil Exciting New Learner Models at the NEC | Carole Nash Gives Away £30k Custom Bike at the 2009 International Motorcycle and Scooter Show | Ride The UK's Largest Supercross Circuit | Husky Set to Unveil New Machines at the Carole Nash International Motorcycle and Scooter Show | Supercross Champ Revved up for NEC Spectacular at Carole Nash International Motorcycle and Scooter Show | No show for Harley-Davidson and Buell UK | Show Organisers Confirm Price Freeze For The Carole Nash International Motorcycle and Scooter Show 2009 | Arai Take Sponsorship of the Carole Nash International Motorcycle and Scooter Show Entertainment Zone Until 2011 | Supercross Spectacular and Off-Road Zone Add Dirt to the International Motorcycle and Scooter Show

Fans Treated to an Exciting Climax at the 2008 Carole Nash International Motorcycle and Scooter Show

James Toseland's band CrashVisitors to the final day of the 2008 Carole Nash International Motorcycle and Scooter Show at the NEC were treated to the sight of a unique custom bike-build finished before their eyes whilst Moto GP star James Toseland performed live sets to an appreciative crowd! Despite a bleak economic backdrop, show exhibitors reported phenomenal interest in new models and impressive levels of retail activity.

The Carole Nash Construct project team fought against the clock to get their custom built bike finished in time. With minutes to spare, the starter button finally fired the beast into life just before the show closed at 6pm. The gaze of thousands of show visitors intensified pressure on the team and an ill-fitting fuel tank tested their powers of improvisation. After 11 days and nearly 400 man hours the guys unleashed the impressive 1450cc Revtech engine clothed in a unique masterpiece of motorcycle design.

Over the last 11 days the Show has played host to some of the finest international biking talent. MotoGP star and admired musician, James Toseland played solo piano performances and several gigs with his band Crash on the Yamaha truck to thousands of adoring fans. Three of Britain’s most promising racing talents received much attention, including Scott Redding who became the youngest ever GP winner at 15 years old, and fellow 125 Moto GP stars Bradley Smith and Danny Webb.
The three youngsters also took time out from their busy schedules to battle it out for Show bragging rights on the Mini Moto circuit.

Celebrity chef and massive bike fan Gordon Ramsay snuck out of the Good Food Show for a whirlwind tour of the show during the first weekend and Charley Boorman was a regular visitor flitting between BMW, Touratech and the Batman Batpod stand.

Eurosport brought an exciting new partnership to the show giving fans a sneak taster in ten Show Special screenings throughout the duration of the show helping keep the show’s momentum moving forward.

Other popular new editions to this year’s show included the BMW Low Seat Demo Zone where novices could try out BMW’s range of low suspension bikes whilst Suzuki brought the great outdoors to the NEC for the first time with their dirt and inflatable off-road track. The Quad Magazine Quad Zone debuted at the show this year and proved just how popular these four wheeled machines are. As ever the Mini-Moto, Go-Karting, BSM Training Zone, Outdoor Off-Road Zone, Wall of Death and The Thunderdome Games Arena were all crowd favourites.

A host of new race announcements were made during the show; new additions to the British Superbike Series included the KTM RC8 Cup and the new Harley-Davidson XR1200 series. Paul Bird Motorsport announced they are entering a World Superbike team and the Isle of Man TT launched a brand new championship system for 2009.

Finlay McAllan, Managing Director of MCI Exhibitions commented; “We are over the moon with the exhibitor feedback from the Show, especially in such a difficult economic climate. Both Exhibitors and ourselves are thinking more than ever about the best ways to entertain and impress our customers and I think this is apparent in the comments we’ve received from visitors.”

Rebecca Donohue, Head of Marketing for Carole Nash added; “We’re proud to have completed our first of four years of Show title sponsorship and to have had such great feedback and support from the biking public.

Carole Nash Construct has been a massive draw and allowed us to talk face to face with bikers, which is so important. I’d also like to thank the Hawg Haven guys who have spent 11 days trapped in a glass box making the bike and the thousands of entrants to Britain’s Got Biking Talent who really proved the passion of bike enthusiasts!”

Greg Willis, Marketing Manager Harley-Davidson; “We’ve had an extremely successful 2008 Show with a 10% increase in Harley-Davidson sales leads and have doubled those for Buell Motorcycles. The XR1200 British Superbike race series has generated massive interest so overall we’ve probably had our best show to date!”

Henry Rivers-Fletcher from Oxford Products the Show’s biggest aftermarket supplier confirmed; “This has been our best show ever, sales reported by our retailers are significantly up on last year and it seems the current format of the show is a great success.”