It was July 31, 2010, Chelsea Clinton was getting married down the road from me in Rhinebeck, NY. I secured Lexie in her seat and swung my leg over up my new to me motorcycle – a Honda St1300 and we were bound for Mystic, CT. Yes, the location of the famous Mystic Pizza movie, but far better known for it’s Harbor, Aquarium, and Historic Museum than a movie. I was on my way there to meet a friend I only knew from the motorcycle forums. He had designed a simple bracket to hold a GPS on the top of the dash of this particular motorcycle. After posting his design, he was flooded with requests to build it.
Back in New York, I was busy running my Handyman business and growing my Real Estate Brokerage along with a Property Management company I started a few years prior. To say my hands were full was an understatement, but something about this device intrigued me so I wanted to meet with him and discuss it.
The ride out past the crowds in Rhinebeck wanting to see Chelsea and then through some beautiful country roads before hitting the Merritt Parkway in Connecticut was perfect. One could not ask for a better day to be riding. I met up with my friend at a restaurant whose name evades my memory, but it was a nice place near the river. The coincidence was that this is the same town where I met the prior owner of my motorcycle, which I happened to buy sight unseen in Boise, ID about a year prior.
Over lunch we discussed his little invention and the overwhelming interest in having him make it. He was not interested in making it for people so I discussed options for starting a company and having it made. In the end, he opted for a Royalty rather than be involved. We drew up an agreement on a napkin – yes, a napkin, and so it began.
I began working on his design almost immediately, I made it thicker, realigned the holes, added more accessory attachment points and contracted with a machine shop to start producing them and a powder coating shop to paint them. I even gave it a name – RIBS for Ram Ball Installation System. Then on this day; August, 19, 2010 – I launched it.
I did not know it at the time, but that little bracket would become the beginning of Sport Touring Gear, LLC and I’d soon be selling it Worldwide along with other products, some which I made and others which I imported. Within the next two year, it generated enough income to cover the cost of the motorcycle and all the trips I would then take, plus some. RBIS was featured in an Iron Butt Magazine article, it withstood some unfortunate crashes and it went on to be a great asset to the motorcycle.
I sold the company shortly before I left Vermont for the open road in June of 2016. The new owner never did anything with it and it eventually just drifted away. The name, website and all that good will was gone within a year of me selling the company. I still get people reaching out to me to this day asking if they can buy one, but unfortunately, I can’t. Still, I look back at what an amazing opportunity was laid upon my feet and I just happened to bend over and pick it up.
Have you had opportunity present itself to you? How did you capitalize on it?
