Manchester Motorcycle Show 2012 Review by Guest Blogger Ben Tillbrook, Aged 15

When you turn 16 everyone gets the opportunity to gain that little bit of independence and no I’m not talking about a job and earning your own money, I’m talking about a scooter. Ok fair enough why not wait a year and buy a 125 instead with it’s added power and ability to use motorways it’s certainly a more appealing idea, but with all the scooters on offer these days and the range of prices it’s well worth considering the option. As I myself am fast approaching the age it seemed only right that I start to look at those on offer and the Manchester motorbike show seemed a logical place to start. Therefore on the opening day of the show me and my Dad (whose blog you can also read) set out on our Aprilia in what can only be described as perfect conditions, to arrive at Manchester Central. It was certainly hard to drag ourselves away from admiring the bikes in the parking area and needless to say I was certainly impressed by the range of bikes and paintjobs on view there and this was without even getting inside!
 

 
Collecting our tickets was a breeze and we were soon into the main area where I immediately wanted to visit the Ducati stand as the new 1199 Panigale was on display and I was eager to see the real thing after reading Motorcycle News article all about it, it certainly sounded brilliant. And what a sight it was! As cliched as it sounds the bike resembled a sculpture more than a machine but don’t think it’s soft because of it, oh no, the bike simply radiated brute force yet looked sleek and controlled with it; in the way a panther is when on the hunt. The headlights certainly give this comparison more weight and as I heard one rider say “It just looks menacing, I can’t wait to get one”. Another highlight of the day would be the fact that I got to meet TT rider Ian Hutchinson and get a signed copy of a Yamaha brochure (all I had at the time!) although I had to blink at the moment the photo was done. Typical.

 
 
But anyway on with the talk about scooters after my brief obsession. As I said before I’m only about four months away from turning 16 so the main reason I came was to see the scooters on offer and there was certainly a wide range on show, my only dissappointment was the lack of an aprillia stall- hopefully they’ll turn up next year. For me scooters are important for two important reasons: one I can buy one at 16 and two it will mean I’ll no longer have to take the bus and be forced to sit next to someone who may or may not have questionable body odour. But what really is on offer to a boy (or girl for that matter) of 16? Most popular motorbike companies have some form of scooter: Aprilia, Gilera, Piaggio, Suzuki, Yamaha, Vespa and many others offer scooters or “powered down” versions of bikes they already offer.

What really matters though to a sixteen year old is looks and price. Although I certainly don’t think looks will be a problem judging by the bikes on show, price is possibly the more important of the two especially if like me you do plan on getting a 125 as soon as you can. However the only problem was that most of the scooters on show were around £3000 which is excessive if you’re only going to use it for a year then sell it but certainly worth it if you kept it for life, it would also be nice of me to point out that these are the highest spec scooters on offer so it’s no wonder they don’t come cheap. Being at the show has definitely given me a lot to think about in these next four months concerning my own bike and has also been an incredibly enjoyable experience and something I would certainly recommend to any who could go to make sure they do, even if it is just for the stunt shows. One quick last note- check out the gallery of photos as then you’ll be able to actually see half the stuff I’ve talked about and thanks to Swinton Insurance for providing the tickets. Oh and thanks for reading!