mileageslaves Let’s Go Shopping! By David Cwi #28490
LET’S TALK SHOP- ping. I know what you’re thinking: “Does Dave really want to talk about shopping? Surely he’s got some trick up his sleeve.” Nope,
not kidding. I’ve got shopping on the brain because of a recent episode at my dealer. Maybe you can relate. I bet your dealer can. For starters, and not to change the
subject, I’ve had my share of wacky shopping events over the last 24 months. They include the always exasperating, self-flagellating, grit the teeth and swear off credit cards “what-the heck-was-I thinking” buy- er’s regret kind of episode. And what was my regret you ask?
Molded ear plugs. Yep. I wanted to be cool just like you. I wanted to be one of the hip guys with ear plugs just like a rock star’s. No longer would I rely on those old fashioned, “throw them out only when they get so dirty even a cheapskate like you can’t stand to use them” silicone ear plugs. I love my old fashioned silicone ear
plugs so much I once thought about doing an entire article with pictures showing them go from wonderful white to horrible gray and having my readers guess how many rides that took. But no. Instead I found myself sitting there with strings and cotton in my ears, and the next thing I knew I not only had plain, molded ear plugs…watch this now…but Dave also bought
stereo ear plugs. Yep. I
was getting ready to take full advan- tage of my high end Bluetooth helmet headset which had a female input for a standard stereo ear bud. So I laid out good money, anticipating the day when I could hear a recorded pin
90 BMW OWNERS NEWS October 2015
drop, no matter the wind noise or the nuance of a voice on the phone. And that’s my other buyer’s regret. That
Bluetooth helmet headset. If you know about them, you know I am not talking small change, but serious dollars of buyer’s regret. I am so ashamed. And now that you
know, I know you will not let me ever for- get about it, which makes it even worse. (Well, can’t you at least try not to be mean about it? Ya, right. I get it. I am going to have to spend the fall and winter lathering on the skin thickener, but I’ll be ready for you.) At any rate, my regret when it comes to
the molded ear plugs is twofold. I will never use the stereo plugs, as I discovered I was just fine with the speaker install that comes with the comm unit. And I will never use the plain jane, regular plugs because they hurt my ears. Everyone says this is a matter of getting used to them, putting them in correctly, even dropping on them a spot of lubricant used with hearing aids. Nah. Or maybe, but not yet. They are not as conve- nient, comfortable, or as effective as my old approach. But that’s me, the reality of how I ride, and the fact that plugs are in my ears hours at a time. And how, you ask, does this tie into my
dealer and what he knows and does not know about my shopping? Well, I am reminded of it because I’m at my dealer to get a new comm system, having watched my old comm system case split into two after my helmet fell to the ground at the MOA National in Billings, $270 or so down the drain. I then did what any rider would do: I vis-
ited the usual internet sites to get a price. I bought the original unit from my dealer, so I expect to buy the replacement from my dealer. Well, before telling you what I found, let’s talk about my relationship with my dealer. I spent a bit of pre-purchase time picking
his brain about that comm unit. Why that model? And he knew about my molded earplugs, noting that the recommended unit allowed me to plug in the stereo ear plugs. The unit I ended up buying also allowed me to talk to other brands of comm systems, and it had all sorts of bells and whistles that an always ahead-of-the-curve, cool guy like me would appreciate. I support my local dealer. If he sells me a
product and it fails, I can depend on him to handle that for me. I trust him to have quality stuff there for me to buy that meets my coolest aspirations and needs. I depend on him to know more about this stuff than I do so I don’t have to spend my time researching everything for him. For the most part, each of the check boxes above gets checked. And I can guarantee you that if he sells it he will stand by it, whoever makes it. I am the sort of customer who puts a
dealer in his happy place. For example, when I drop the bike off for service, I tell the Service Manager in effect, “Here is my credit card. If it needs it, do it.” Now, I expect to get a call obviously before they “do it” if they find something other than what I brought it in for. But I trust them without question. And I get some love from them in return, being as how I’m so loveable. I am not a once-in-a-while visitor. I spend lots there, if only for tires and regu- lar service. So I might get cut a deal on price once in a while, but they will do that for all regular customers as they are not fools and it’s a groupon/coupon internet world. Nothing says love like a “deal.” And even though I am spending a smidge more and know it, I also know what I am getting out of this relationship. I need him to suc- ceed. He in turn needs folks like me. Now, truth be told, I am a bit of a cheap
skate. You know about the dollar shave club? I’m a Sam’s Club throw away razor, 52 for $29 kind of guy (56 cents a shave). Meaning I am not spending money if I
lifestyle
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