Rediscover this day: It's been 3 years!


Philip

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Lake Havasu City, AZ
Google just reminded me this morning about something very important. Three years ago today was the first time I swang my leg over an Alta Redshift MX!

February 11, 2017 there was an Alta Demo Day at the Hollister Hills SVRA in the Northern California. I drove over there, but instead of riding the demo bike I met @Butch and @Alta05, and ended up riding the Butch's 2017 Alta Redshift MX bike most of the day. Which was great because we took these bikes to various trails, and I was also able to run a few laps at the motocross track. Awesome! Thank you, @Butch! That was a great day.

This is what planted the seed in my brain. And later that year I had my very own 2017 Alta Redshift MX!

Here is @Butch
IMG_20170211_1258174.jpg

My happy face!
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My happy face #2
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@Butch's MX
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My happy face #3
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Alta's Carolyn, @Alta05 behind her, and a few of potential Alta owners checking out the bikes
IMG_20170211_1343129.jpg
 

C5tor

Chief Comedic Instigator
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San Ramon, CA
It was Bell Ride day, I think... Philip rode Troll Trail with us.
and yeah, before I got the kickstand option...
At first I thought it was a toilet brush. I'm like, well, it's probably good for getting between the spokes and under the fenders... but the bike will tip over if you try to use the brush!
 

F451

Well-known member
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WA State, USA
Alta demo day got me too. Was leaving the riding area, bike and gear all packed up, sales guy talked me into taking a quick spin. SOLD! Lol.

IMG_2342-M.jpg
 

TCMB371

The Silent Assassin
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Temecula, CA
Nice story, Philip!

My first time riding some MX's at a demo day at Milestone was September 7, 2017. My commentary speaks for itself. I was HOOKED! My first time switching the bike into Map 4 and I wasn't ready for the immediate snap of torque and lost it in a corner hahaha

http://instagr.am/p/BY2dHdoAUER/
http://instagr.am/p/BY3eA4jgk2t/
@Mark911 was the first person (outside of Alta demos) I ever saw with an Alta. We were at an Old Timers MX race at Cahuilla on 05-Dec-2017 and he was there with his MX. I was drooling over the bike. It was the first time i met Mark, too. Probably talked his ear off that morning :LOL:. He even had Cone Valves and Trax shock back then!

http://instagr.am/p/BcU7XX0lrqr/
Fast forward 10 months, i bought my MXR! Little did i know that 2 months later, Alta would close its doors.

http://instagr.am/p/BnANn0shI5P/
 

C5tor

Chief Comedic Instigator
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1,694
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San Ramon, CA
There's no question, for most of us here, it was love at first sight.

I was hooked before I even rode one, just walked into the dealership and said take my money!!
Same here. Had never even seen an Alta or even an electric motorcycle in person. I was elbow deep in yet another carb rebuild due to stupid-ass ethynol-blend gas. I put the bike back together, tried to kickstart the damn internal non-combustion beast, and the fickle bitch refused to start (Ok, it helps if you reconnect the spark plug, but my ineptitude at basic mechanical checklists had no direct bearing on my decision that day.)

I had had enough. I stormed into the house, told my wife that I had had enough. She said to do something about it. I sat down at the googling machine and researched all the alternatives and decided this Alta thing was the best alternative out there. It checked all the boxes for low maintenance, fun, turn-it-on-and-go joy. I was about to pull the trigger, when I found out Alta had gone under. Well crap!

I pondered for a few months, but the conviction that it was the right bike grew. How could YouTube reviews be wrong? I finally decided that finding the joy in riding again instead of constantly repairing my gas bike was worth the gamble. I could wait for something else to come along until I was too old to ride, or I could buy this cool bike now. With a cry of “YOLO!” I was on the hunt.

I then proceeded to locate the most expensive bike I could find, not negotiate, and then buy it. And I did. I didn’t even ride the bike until after I signed the paperwork. Rode it for 5 min in the parking lot before I loaded it in the truck. Then I wrote a funny story about it.
 

Butch

Poseur
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Location
San Jose, California
“Rode it for 5 min in the parking lot before I loaded it in the truck. Then I wrote a funny story about it.”

well, linky to funny story here is required.
And we must ride. I’ve been meaning to make it over to Carnegie to see if they did anything good with the down time.
 

TriumphTwins

Well-known member
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66
Location
Milan IL USA!!
Great Stories! I had followed the whole Alta story for a few years and new I wanted one 'Someday'. At the time I was riding a 2017 KTM 450 SXF and decided it was time to make the switch.

Early October the year they closed I had sold the KTM and one of my Triumph Bonneville's to make room and $$ to buy an Alta on my birthday which was on October 22. The week before my birthday tragedy happened at Alta...... I was crushed to say the least.

Not knowing what to do next I almost went back out and bought another new 450 KTM then found new a 2019 MXR (#0484) for sale on here from B's Moto lab. I figured it was now or never so I drove the 6 hours and bought the bike having never even seen one and without any warranty (which drove the wife NUTS!!).

Just this morning riding it to work (Illinois DMV allowed me to plate it!!) it turned over 1600 miles. Love the thing ad would do it all over again!
 

VINSANITY

Well-known member
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397
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Texas
I was following Alta since the beginning and when I saw Josh Hill at straight rhythm I was convinced and had to get one eventually.

Bought my EXR Christmas Day 2018 off eBay from SLM Motorsport in Texas - nobody else put a bid on it - they actually had another one and in hind sight should have scooped that one up too. Todd at SLM was great to work with.

First few rides I was afraid of the thing due to the instant torque - now I can’t ride anything else, really don’t like the noise, shifting etc of gas bikes now that I’m used to the Alta

It’s so boring now as there is no new bikes in development to get excited about other than the Sur Ron which is promising.
 

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