winchester motosports closed?

[SteveRivet]

A buddy just stopped by Winchester Motosports and said they looked closed for good.  I hadn't been there in a while.  Anyone know what happened?  I always liked Carl and Mike quite a bit.

Steve

[stonelover]

Carl & Dana retired a couple of years ago, leaving only Mike to handle the business. My visits prior to the - 19 restrictions showed very few consignment bikes on the floor. Things appeared to be getting slower all of the time. A bad omen.  I just 'phoned the two numbers that I have for the shop and got a "Not in service" recording on both.

Bill H.

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

Whoever was running the shop was doing a poor job. A friend had a bike there on consignment and after months of hearing nothing and getting reports that the bike wasn't even on the showroom floor, went to investigate. He found the bike in the back, partially stripped - turns out some of the parts had been sold on ebay. The keys had been lost. He got the bike out of there, of course. He wasn't the only one - a few other people had the same experience and last I heard were suing.

From what I heard, Carl was supposed to be receiving rent on the building and never did, stock (parts and accessories) was sold off and he never received any of the proceeds from that either.

[HarveyMushman]

Yikes.  I rode my first Guzzi there, a V11 Sport.  Bought my first from Carl too, my first Stelvio. 

[Bulldog9]

Definitely a loss, I think they've been closed since January of this year.

[Italianmotofest]

I had dealings with WMS up until the very end. Mike seemed to have given up on the shop. He was never there. A real shame. They shop guys were turning wrenches and running parts and bike sales also. Actually, I thought they were doing a decent job of it. Towards the end I spoke with Carl a few times about the future. But I got the feeling that he was ready to pack it in.

Bill

www.italianmotofest .com

[SteveRivet]

I had dealings with WMS up until the very end. Mike seemed to have given up on the shop. He was never there. A real shame. They shop guys were turning wrenches and running parts and bike sales also. Actually, I thought they were doing a decent job of it. Towards the end I spoke with Carl a few times about the future. But I got the feeling that he was ready to pack it in.

Bill

www.italianmotofest .com

I dealt with Mike in 2018 for a while and he came across as a decent guy, competent mechanic, and legitimate bike nut, but was having a hard time figuring out how to run the business end of things.    As a customer since 1997, I'm sorry to see them close.

Steve

[Italianmotofest]

I agree with everything you said about Mike. AND.......he’s a good bike salesman too!

Bill

www.italianmotofest .com

[Lannis]

Whoever was running the shop was doing a poor job. A friend had a bike there on consignment and after months of hearing nothing and getting reports that the bike wasn't even on the showroom floor, went to investigate. He found the bike in the back, partially stripped - turns out some of the parts had been sold on ebay. The keys had been lost. He got the bike out of there, of course. He wasn't the only one - a few other people had the same experience and last I heard were suing.

From what I heard, Carl was supposed to be receiving rent on the building and never did, stock (parts and accessories) was sold off and he never received any of the proceeds from that either.

Well, sounds like there's a couple possible dimensions to this.

What you're describing above is known as fraud and larceny, and one can go to jail for that.   

There's a pretty dark black line between "I just borrowed this and intended to pay it back" and "I stole this."

Back in 1984 when Lynchburg, Virginia's Harley shop closed down, I was (as far as I know) the LAST new bike customer; the dude had one black and one red ElectraGlide, and I bought the black one.

About a month later, I put down $200 for some decorative bits, lights etc (as you do on a Harley) for the panniers and trunk.   That was on a Friday afternoon.   I stopped by for something else the next morning about 10:00 AM, and the shop was EMPTY.   NOTHING in it.   A crew must have worked all night, hard, to get all the parts and tools and fixtures loaded up on a truck and gone.   He KNEW he was taking my money and I was never getting any parts ....  How is that different from holding you up on the street and lifting it out of your wallet?

Lannis

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

Received this from my friend Avner:

Carl Lucci just told me that they are auctioning off everything that was left from Winchester Motorsports online, starting tonight or tomorrow.

The site is: https://gncantiques.com/

[Lannis]

Received this from my friend Avner:

Carl Lucci just told me that they are auctioning off everything that was left from Winchester Motorsports online, starting tonight or tomorrow.

The site is: https://gncantiques.com/

Went to the site but there's nothing that looks like a bike shop auction?   Maybe I just don't know how to find it and some smart guy can let us know ....

Lannis

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

Went to the site but there's nothing that looks like a bike shop auction?   Maybe I just don't know how to find it and some smart guy can let us know ....

Lannis

As Avner wrote: "starting tonight or tomorrow". I'm guessing it won't show up until then. Edit: It's live now:
https://gncantiques.hibid.com/catalog/246968/winchester-motosports-by-gnc-online-auction--427/

[Lannis]

Thanks!   I remember a lot of the signs and fixtures and stuff from 20 years of stopping by there every time I came up or down I-81 on my way north ....

Lannis

[Perazzimx14]

Other than a few sighs there doesn't look to be much meat to this auction.  I imagine many of the lots will not get any bids?

[Steve Scott]

Wow, that place was a fixture for so many years and seemed to be a meeting place for some of the wierdest most interesting and nicest motorcycle folks. Maybe it was just one of those things where certain people, places and times come together just right. I still have my (now 130,000 mile) Jackal that I bought there new in 2000. I remember stopping by one Saturday many years ago and Carl found out that the speedometer cable on my bike had broken. He insisted on taking my bike around back and having the cable replaced straight away... I don't think he even charged me. The bike was probably 3 years old and had 50,000 or 60,000 miles on it at the time! I only stopped by a few times when Mike was running it. 'Seemed a little slow, but I gotta believe that Carl's energy is hard to match. I do miss the 'tax-day' shows in the parking lot every spring.

Hey Bill. Thanks for the link, those were some awesome shows!

[SteveRivet]

As Avner wrote: "starting tonight or tomorrow". I'm guessing it won't show up until then. Edit: It's live now:
https://gncantiques.hibid.com/catalog/246968/winchester-motosports-by-gnc-online-auction--427/

I wonder what happens to all the bikes.  I was there in late 2018, got chatting with Mike in the back and they had to have 30-50 bikes in the back, with quite a few that he mentioned had been abandoned by owners, and he'd never done the title work to take them.  There was an 1100 Sport with the barrels off, a V50 Monza, and a lot of Japanese stuff. 

Doesn't look like they are selling off any of the floor inventory - clothes, helmets, accessories - either.

Steve

[Lannis]

I wonder what happens to all the bikes.  I was there in late 2018, got chatting with Mike in the back and they had to have 30-50 bikes in the back, with quite a few that he mentioned had been abandoned by owners, and he'd never done the title work to take them.  There was an 1100 Sport with the barrels off, a V50 Monza, and a lot of Japanese stuff. 

Doesn't look like they are selling off any of the floor inventory - clothes, helmets, accessories - either.

Steve

I'd guess that another dealer took all the salable stuff - Aprilia/Guzzi/Enfield parts inventory, bikes, etc.   Looks like just "furniture and fixtures".

Lots of good shelving and benches for someone with a big shop, but other than that .... ?

Lannis