Lauren Swanson has been around motorcycles since she was a baby before eventually buying her own bike in her twenties. Today, she serves as Marketing Manager, Americas and Global PR Manager for Cardo Systems, where she helps lead regional marketing, product launches, PR efforts and industry partnerships across the motorcycle space.
In this episode, Lauren talks with host Heather Wilson Schiltz about how her riding journey evolved from street bikes to adventure riding, dual sport and single-track. She talks about learning off-road skills on a Harley-Davidson Pan America, finding confidence on smaller dirtbikes, getting involved with Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders and helping make the sport more welcoming for newer riders.
Lauren also reflects on her time at Harley-Davidson, where she worked in experiential marketing and helped introduce new riders, women riders and community groups to motorcycling. She and Heather discuss the importance of rider retention, creating authentic motorcycle marketing, riding communities and why communication systems can be especially valuable.
🎧 What You’ll Hear in This Episode:
- How Lauren’s motorcycle story started with her dad’s Heritage Softail
- What she learned riding the Harley-Davidson Pan America off-road
- Why bike setup and suspension matter, especially for smaller riders
- How Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders is working to welcome newer and younger riders
- The role community plays in keeping people engaged in motorcycling
- Lauren’s path from nonprofit marketing to Harley-Davidson and Cardo Systems
- How Cardo is expanding into integrated helmet communication systems
- Why communication can be so useful in all segments of riding
- How women’s riding communities and industry networking continue to grow
📲 Connect with Lauren Swanson on Instagram or LinkedIn
📲 Follow Cardo Systems on Instagram, Facebook or YouTube
🌐 Learn more at CardoSystems.com
SPONSORED CONTENT: If you're a motorsports event organizer who wants more participants or attendees, your marketing and operations may be in need of a revamp. I help evaluate where you're at, develop a customized strategy, implement the tasks and assess the results. So if you're serious about getting more support, let's work together. Visit HighGearSuccess.com to get started.
SPONSORED CONTENT: If you're a racer looking to show sponsors how you can bring value to their company, visit HighGearSuccess.com to view services offered by High Gear Success for racers.
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(00:05):
Welcome to Momentum, a motorsports podcast powered by High Gear Success.
I'm your host, Heather Wilson Schiltz.
Here we share the stories and strategies that keep the world of motorsports movingforward.
Today's guest is Lauren Swanson, Marketing Manager, Americas and global PR manager forCardo Systems.
So thank you for joining me.
(00:25):
Thanks, Heather.
Let's kind of take a step back and see when motorcycles first became a part of your life,'cause I'm curious when that started for you.
Sure.
Well, actually it started when I was two months old, technically.
My dad, I don't know, of course, I'm like a little baby and he probably went crazy anddecided to buy a motorcycle and brought it home for my and my mom was probably like,
(00:49):
What's happening?
But I was two months old.
Um, so he bought a ninety two Heritage Soft Tail and he still has it.
And so it's this like really nostalgic thing for me because I've been around it my wholeentire life and just riding on the back.
with him growing up and then I started riding on my own when I was twenty.
As soon as I could buy a motorcycle by myself.
(01:10):
Kinda wish I was one of those dirtbike kids 'cause then I would be way better at riding amotorcycle now, but take what I can guess.
That's cool that your dad still has that bike.
Yeah, it's pretty awesome.
And actually I try I've been trying to ride that bike.
Like when I started riding, I would try to ride it and he has this like really stiffclutch on it and I couldn't do it.
(01:31):
And then like two summers ago I tried again and it was like completely fine and I justrode it like it was any other motorcycle and it felt so good to just be on that bike and
it means so much to me just having it been part of my whole life.
SoYeah, it's pretty nice that he still has it.
And he has that bike and a couple of others and me and my dad ride a lot together.
So it's pretty great.
(01:52):
When you started riding in your twenties, were you starting on the street or did you starton the dirt side of things?
Yeah, so I started on the street.
So I did that whole take a motorcycle class.
I probably took a class when I was like seventeen or eighteen, couldn't afford a bike, wasin college and all of that.
and then I would like borrow random people's bikes.
(02:13):
Like my boyfriend in college had a bike and then I would try to ride it and then didn'treally know what I was doing.
Cause you know, in the class you ride in a parking lot and then you basically have tofigure it out yourself.
But eventually I bought my own and I bought a little Honda CBR500 So started on thestreet.
I just started riding dirt like four or five years ago, so I'm still relatively new todirt.
(02:36):
What was your motivation for wanting to try dirt after all these years?
So I worked for Harley Davidson Before this Cardo job, which I'm sure we'll talk about.
But when I was at Harley, I was kind of part of the Pan America team and riding off roadwas something that like we were all starting to get into and Harley was getting into it
and I felt like I was part of that whole journey and then I was riding the Pan Am off roadand I'm like, I've had to need a dirtbike to make my life easier.
(03:02):
And so I bought a dirtbike, well a dual sport bike, and then I started on doing that andnow I've gone through four dirt bikes since then.
Apparently that's what happens when you get into motorcycling.
You just keep buying more.
And I would imagine a pan am I haven't ridden one.
I've I've seen them in person, obviously, but that is a pretty big dirtbike, adventurebike to like start on, to start riding off-road versus something small.
(03:28):
So Yeah.
I definitely it actually kind of almost helped to start on that, but then 'cause it it hasso much torque and power, like it kinda rides itself sometimes.
But then on the harder stuff, you're like, I kind of need a small bike, or at least needto learn about a small bike so you can maneuver the big bike.
But I rode the Pan America so much when I worked at Harley, like probably fifty thousandmiles.
(03:49):
And I was just like that girl that was like the tiny, tiny girl.
I'm only five foot three on a big bike.
And I was so accustomed to it and used to it and riding it around everywhere and then likesome more easy off road stuff, but like adventures or BDR stuff and that was really fun.
And now I do more single track dirtbike things.
I find it's it's like easier sometimes if you've been riding a bigger bike to transitionto like the smaller one.
(04:18):
It feels like so crazy light and just like easy to maneuver.
I find that like I 690 KTM Enduro and I'll like riding that for a long time and then I'llswitch to my KTM 250 dirtbike for like a dual sport or something, and then it feels kind
of like a toy almost in comparison.
It does.
(04:38):
And then you go back to the big bike after you haven't ridden it in a while and you'relike, no, this actually is big.
But it's fine.
How is the um seat on that Pan America?
Is it like scooped pretty low or is it still pretty high and and difficult to touch?
Actually like probably the lowest in the market ish.
So it's like thirty one point nine or something like stock, but then I have a reach seaton mine, so mine comes even lower, like an inch lower than that.
(05:04):
And then the adaptive ride height on the Pan America lowers.
So when I come to a stop, I'm like almost flat, which is really nice.
W of course when you're off road, you're not almost flat because there's a big divot inthe in the gravel.
But regardless, it's pretty low and I canUsually maneuver it pretty well.
If unless I have to back backwards up a hill, then not happening.
(05:25):
No.
No.
So you mentioned having multiple dirt bikes over the last couple of years.
What were some of those bikes and what motivated you to to kind of swap out or keep buyingmore?
Yeah, so I started on a CRF 250L, which I actually think is like the perfect starter bike.
(05:47):
It's it's just like a like you can't go wrong.
It just like is great.
I made it all like customized to me, which was really fun.
And that was like a really good starter bike.
And then I started realizing I'm like, I don't feel like I'm gonna improve here with thislike really heavy bike.
Obviously it's heavy, not heavier compared to the Pan Am, but heavy for a dirtbike.
And I'm like, I think I want to try something like a little bit lighter so I can pick itup on myself because my friends were getting really tired of picking up my my motorcycle
(06:13):
every time I fell over.
So I ended up getting a Sherco SEF 300, which nobody in the United States knows what thatis.
It feels like every time I go somewhere, they're like, What's that?
Um, it's a French bike, but it's a four-stroke and it's a 300, which is like kind of inthis weird range um versus all the other KTMs and huskies and stuff.
And that bike has been really great.
(06:33):
And then I'm like, I kinda wanna get into a two-stroke because I want to feel like powerband and like have like power like when you need it, but and then I've wanted it to be
like more mellow in the like slow stuff.
Um, so I bought this KTM 125, which is not mellow, zero percent mellow.
Uh, but it got it really cheap, but I wanted to learn how to do the two-stroke thing.
(06:57):
This bike.
not working for me.
Like it's definitely a motocross bike and I do not ride motocross.
I only ride trails.
And so I tried to make it work and I'm like, this is just a struggle.
So I ended up just recently, like two months ago, buying an X trainer and I love it.
It's great.
Everything about it is great.
It's lightweight.
(07:17):
It's like mellow, but it has power when I need it.
And it's I think it's actually gonna make me like super confident on all that like superhard stuff.
And it's been really fun to like try to figure it out.
So that's been real and I can pick it up.
And I can touch the ground.
Well the X trainer, a lot of people make the comparison from the X trainer to my KTM 250freeride.
(07:37):
because it's kind of that same really lightweight kind of trials based dirtbike.
and KTM doesn't import the freeride anymore.
So mine's kind of getting to be an antique.
So if people are gonna buy a similar bike for that type of thing, um a lot of women ridersI know they end up getting the X trainer and they love it.
So Yeah, hilariously.
(07:57):
I rode the X Trainer four years ago at an event called Over N Out and I hated it.
I don't know why.
I like just could not with the two-stroke thing.
And then now I think when you grow as a rider, like everything then like years later itjust becomes easier, which is kind of nice.
And so I'm like, I actually really like this bike.
Um and if you have a bike that's suspension is made for you and the springs are sprung toyour weight, it makes like a world of difference.
(08:21):
I've been riding bikes made formen that are a hundred and whatever the standard is hundred and eighty five pounds for the
last five years and when you change it to you, it actually helps.
I'm very spoiled in that regard because my husband is a suspension mechanic.
Oh so um yes, I've definitely had that perk every time that I get a bike that I can be setup and and lowered or, you know, whatever it needs.
(08:47):
So I had been like avoiding it.
I'm like, this is so much money to be able to do this and nobody like you have to know theright guy.
So you clearly know the right guy.
But I think that's something like they people talk about it like on forums or on on onlineand stuff.
They say like you should do your suspension.
You really should do it because it actually really, really helps.
(09:09):
SoWell, and thinking that whole like lineup of bikes that you gave, you started from, like I
said, like the pretty big adventure bike all the way down to like a pretty small trialsbased dirtbike.
Like you've you've run the whole gamut and I think it's great to explore those differentthings.
there's just so much variety in riding between street, adventure, dual sport.
(09:35):
Trail, like whatever it's gonna be, each bike does something like a little bit better foryou know certain applications.
So riding that CRF250L in like single track stuff, like while I can do it, it's still apretty big and heavy dual sport bike versus like a more trail focused bike, like the X
(09:57):
trainer.
So yeah.
Kinda that's why you always need N plus one.
Just keep buying more.
you're also the secretary for Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders.
And I told you pre-call that I love those guys because I used to um work with John Newtonback in my AMA days.
He was like one of my AMA volunteers, my most prized volunteers, because he was just sosweet.
(10:20):
And I love being able to see him and his wife.
They come to Columbus every year for the Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
And that's like right in my backyard.
So I always get to say hi to him andI know he's been trying to quit and step back for it's probably been at least five years
now and nobody is like stepping up to fill his role.
(10:41):
but I just saw something the other day that he's like, No guys, I'm I'm serious, likesomebody please take my position in district 16 recreation.
So I'm sure you've had the pleasure of working with John.
Yeah.
John's great.
And the club is great.
And it's one of those things, it's like this club has been around for since John started.
It's probably, I think it's been 19 years or 18, something like that.
(11:03):
Crazy.
And all of the guys who are in it are like getting older.
They love riding still.
And like they made this club so they can all ride on the weekends.
But I started going to their events and then I'm like, There's no women here.
There's no young people here.
And I'm like, I want this to be accessible so we can keep growing the sport becauseTo me, as someone who one works in the industry and someone who rides, it's like we all
have a responsibility to keep growing ridership.
(11:30):
And so for me, I saw this like, if I get involved, then I'm gonna like do the whole thingright.
Like have to do everything and like get super passionate about it and like full send intoit.
Cause that's what I do when I want to help with something.
Um, and so they noticed that I was like starting to likeshow up all the time or like go to meetings and they're like, hey, maybe you should think
(11:52):
about being the secretary.
I'm like, I'm not even a member of this club yet.
They're like, we don't care.
You're always here, blah, blah, blah.
And so I got roped into that and trying to help them like keep it going, communicate tonew people, like trying to use like the people that I know, grow sponsorship and kind of
make it more accessible to the people who haven't been riding for their entire lives.
(12:14):
LikeI don't think people who l ride their entire lives even think about like how it was when
you started.
Like you have to like rein it way back.
Be like, hey, you can't just like go on every single trail and just like be completelyfine and ride a hundred and eighty miles on a weekend.
Like that's not normal.
So I'm trying to get them to like help with that new newer people or like moreintermediate riders that haven't been riding for their entire lives.
(12:40):
And it's been really fun.
Like now we do this event, you get to likejoin the club and you go on a trail work weekend and you work on the trails for half a day
and then you ride all the trails that are there, which is really fun.
And so I've been doing that and like kind of rating the trails to be like, hey, this oneis actually really accessible.
You should try it.
Or this one is like maybe a challenge if you want to challenge yourself.
(13:02):
Or this one is like really hard.
Let's like if you can't do these ones, don't do this one yet.
And I think that's really helpful to the people who are coming to those events.
SoI had the pleasure of riding their fall event in 2018.
I had to look back at my Facebook albums yesterday before we were chatting today to figureout what year it was, but it was 2018.
ah pretty far drive for me, uh, because that is like northern Wisconsin.
(13:26):
Yeah.
so from Ohio, it was it was a pretty far drive.
but very pretty up there.
Of course, everybody very welcoming.
what I remember and like hard.
Hard, I say in quotation marks, is like so subjective too, right?
So there were certain sections where they're like, ah, I don't know if you want to ridethat.
That might be like really hard.
(13:48):
And then I I was kind of getting myself like psyched out about it, like, oh, maybe Ishouldn't ride it or whatever.
But then when you come from Ohio, like hard is different here than there.
And so I would, I like rode that section.
I'm like, that wasn't that bad.
Like we'veWe've had worse things in Ohio.
So it really kind of depends, you know, if it's somebody that's only ridden in that areatoo, or if they've ridden other states, like what it's gonna look like.
(14:14):
But I do remember certain trails just being like littered with boulders is basically whatI would call them.
Like it wasn't just like little rocks.
It was just like giant boulders protruding out of the trail for like the entire length ofthe trail.
Which really surprised me for that area, butYeah, they're definitely really big rocks and then you look at them and you don't want to
(14:36):
go over them and then eventually you have to go over them.
And if you just had gone over them in the first place, it would have been way easier.
I say this even though every single time I stop and I look at them and I'm like, I don'tknow.
I don't know about these.
It's so much worse when we like stop and stare at it and like overthink it than just likeblazing through it.
(14:59):
Because I do that to myself sometimes too.
Like you'll stop and you're like looking down the hill and you're like, my gosh, like Ishould have just gone for it because now I'm completely like freaked out to do it.
Yeah, freaked out and you're set up badly and all that.
And I say this all, but every single time I like do something silly like that.
And my friends are like, Would you stop doing that?
Just keep momentum and go.
(15:21):
Which is the correct advice.
But your brain, it can't do it.
But it's funny.
And then I'll go over it and I'm like, that was actually really easy.
And they're like, It's very frustrating that you're saying that.
But we all do it.
We're all we're all growing.
For people that may not be familiar with Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders, can you kinda givean overview of the types of rides that they do and they're both charity rides, correct?
(15:47):
just the spring ride is a charity ride.
So the spring there's two rides every year.
Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders is based in Wabeno, Wisconsin, which is like three and a halfhours north of Milwaukee or so.
And basically the mission is just to like encourage ridership, hang out with people whoare similar minded and like just have fun.
And the spring ride is called Ride for Research and it raises money for the CarboneCenter.
(16:11):
um for cancers, cancer research.
So we've raised uh this year we raised $17,000 for them at the spring event, which isactually in June.
So not really spring, but you know, it is.
And then the fall ride is called Big Woods 200.
And both events are two days long with camping, with food and hanging out.
and then there's basically like a hundred and eighty miles over the course of those twodays of trails.
(16:34):
and then there's hero sections is what we call them in Wisconsin.
So they you're going on the main routeSome of it is road because there's a lot of road in Wisconsin, sadly.
It is what it is.
So we're on the road, then we're on some two track or gravel fire roads.
And then you go into like a hero section, which is like an optional harder single track.
And it's all single track on mostly on private property.
(16:54):
We have a lot of really awesome landowners in Wisconsin who donate their land for us toride on.
And we get to have fun for the day and then come back and eat steak and hang out.
I do remember like Is there another organization that like cooks the meals that likepartners with you guys?
I feel like they'rewe have like the Lions Club I think does it some of our food and then John also makes lots
(17:20):
of a lot of our food.
Actually a very good cook.
Yeah, the Lions Club helps with our dinners and stuff, so yeah.
I remember like coolers of steaks when we were there.
Yeah.
It's a very like local friendly, community oriented thing.
We donate money to like the local schools to help kids and like all of that.
So it's really great to be a part of something that's like really community oriented.
(17:42):
And honestly, all of motorcycling is so much about community and like how important thatis.
If I recall too, I think there was a pretty big raffle that took place.
Yeah.
I don't know if you guys are still doing that.
Yeah, definitely raffle.
So they do like raffle sales and a lot of sponsors donate things that you can win.
So that's always always fun as well.
(18:38):
you also you mentioned earlier you spent several years working at Harley Davidson.
So how did that role come about?
How did you jump into the working in the industry?
So I used to work just in communications and marketing for a nonprofit.
And I decided I did that after like going to undergrad and I studied linguistics andSpanish totally random and then fell into communications and marketing.
(19:02):
And then I was like, I should go back to school and like have like a formal education inmarketing.
So I went to grad school at Northwestern.
And when I was in grad school, uh the CMO of Harley at the time, Heather Malenshek, wasspeaking at one of our events.
And I'm emailing my professors like, hey, I need to meether.
Like I need to be able to talk to her.
He's like, why?
I'm like, because I've been riding my whole life and that's like the coolest thing ever.
(19:24):
And I just want to meet her and get to know her and all of that.
And so he set up like a coffee that I could go to with her and just meet her.
And of course we have coffee and like network and it was really great.
And then she's like, if you're interested in a job, like send me your resume.
Of course I like pull it out.
Of course I have it with course I have it with me.
Um and so she ended uplike after the networking and meeting and greeting and all of that and she like tried to
find a role that would make sense for me and I was trying to get into experientialmarketing.
(19:52):
So I got a role at as a product project manager for Harley Davidson events team.
And I started doing all their new rider stuff or like non rider, like getting into thesport, which I'm super passionate about, like helping young riders or new riders get into
it.
So we went tocollege campuses, we went to like Spartan races and trying to find people who are like
adventure-y and like to like get out and try new things.
(20:17):
Um so that was really fun and getting a lot of people up on motorcycles and we did likefun classes where you can like ride just like in a straight line for a hundred feet, kind
of like the MIC does now.
Um so a lot of really fun things to like get new people into the sport.
And then I shifted into doing like community outreach events.
So I was responsible forAll of our women's ridership initiatives, all of our like uh diversity initiatives, so
(20:38):
like so much really awesome com community based work that was really fun to do.
So that was my role at Harley.
Those sound like super fun roles.
Like I would love to do those roles.
Yeah, it was it's just really awesome to be around people who share similar things to youand like all the the core piece of it all is motorcycling, but like everybody is just so
(21:06):
awesome in this community and like meeting new people and trying to like support all ofwhat everybody is doing in the world is really cool.
Were there any common like themes that stood out to you as to how people like becameinspired to get into motorcycling?
Cause you were talking about going to some events and getting into some communities wherethey weren't necessarily motorcycling focused, but adventure focused.
(21:30):
And so how did you inspire or entice those people to get into motorcycling?
And do you feel like those efforts were successful?
Yeah, I think a lot of people kind of need that one person in their life who's like kindof a spark and it could be a stranger, but generally it's someone you know.
But I like notice all the people who would come to those events, like we would be at aSpartan race with a motorcycle on like a little treadmill jump start thing we call it's
(21:56):
called a jump start and it's basically a motorcycle on a treadmill so you can get on itand it'll the back wheel will roll so you can like shift and do the whole thing, but it
didn't move.
And people the people who wanted to do that were always someone like, oh, I knew this guywho like rode a motorcycle and I've kind of always been like sort of interested.
And whenever I met someone who like had that spark, I would give them a riding academypass so they could learn.
(22:21):
And so like Harley was awesome about that and tried to encourage people to learn for free.
And so we did a whole big outreach about getting people into riding academy and just atleast trying, take the class and then see where it goes.
And I thinkWe knew that like if you went to a motorcycle event, like once you already knew how to
ride, like things like the women's events, like once you went and you met other people whorode, you were like way more likely to keep doing it.
(22:46):
So like that community piece is super important.
And like I mentioned before, everyone, all of us in the industry need to keep encouragingpeople to just get out and ride with other people because that's why people keep riding.
Like if they're in a silo, they're not gonna keep doing it.
It's not easy.
Like you have to like Try.
I feel like that engagement piece is so critical.
(23:09):
And I'd be curious.
I haven't really looked up any stats, but my gut is telling me that we had this like hugeboom from the pandemic, right?
Where the industry sold a bunch of motorcycles.
But I was always worried about like how are we going to keep these people engaged inriding when life goes, you know, back back to whatever we call this normal, you know,
(23:31):
several years later.
do they have a community?
Have they met people?
Are they at events?
is it just been sitting in their garage and eventually like they're selling theirmotorcycle and we didn't really retain them?
Like I haven't looked at any data to see what the retention is.
Yeah.
It is definitely important to keep people engaged.
Like you have to bring somewhere or like have them meet someone or whatever.
(23:56):
So I think like that could be done in so many ways, but everybody has to keep doing it.
Otherwise, yeah, it's gonna keep going down, which would be really sad 'cause then wewouldn't have motorcycles to ride.
And there are like so many interconnected parts of the industry too, where like Harley waskind of doing that experiential marketing as a manufacturer, but also there's so many
private event organizers like Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders that are also doing their partin the industry that aren't necessarily affiliated with manufacturers and actually selling
(24:26):
machines.
Definitely.
so kind of transitioning from Harley, then you went to work for Cardo, where you're atnow.
And you've got some some big titles, it sounds like a lot a lot of roles combined intoone.
So marketing manager for the Americas.
I'm assuming that's like Canada, United States.
(24:49):
Canada, the US and all of Latin America.
Yeah, that's a huge territory.
And then global PR manager.
So kinda walk us through uh what maybe a typical week or some typical activities thatyou're doing in those roles.
Yeah.
So on the America's marketing side I have like supporting dealers with like any salesinitiatives or like displays that they need or like social media support.
(25:14):
And then we work with like tons of amazing content creators that we work with at Cardo whoare all like part of our Cardo fam.
So we work with them on like putting out content, talking about like what's coming up, allof that.
And then on the global PR side is like kind of where I'm like the big product launchstuff.
So we'vejust released actually two products this summer, um two helmets, which is really big for
(25:39):
Cardo.
So we are transitioning from like the aftermarket helmet solution where you put it on anyhelmet, which still great.
But now we're launching our own helmets, which is a big deal for us.
So um basically I'm responsible for having press events, doing any media outreach topeople, planning all of that from like strategy to execution.
(25:59):
So like how we want to launch this, what are the embargoes look like?
How do we plan this event for all the press to come to?
And then I also do it globally.
So I'm like in the US.
And then last week I was in the UK doing it for our new dirtbike helmet in at ABR Festivalin Europe, which was super awesome.
So kind of a mix of both.
It depends on the day.
(26:19):
But yeah, we have a big year with all these product launches.
So it's been a lot of that.
I haven't read like the full details of the releases on the helmet, but I did see thatcome across my social feed recently.
And I was curious if you guys had like partnered with a specific helmet manufacturer todevelop your own helmets or if it was like truly your own brand of helmet.
(26:42):
So the dirtbike Helmet, which is called Venture, which we just released or like announcedon June twenty third, is a collaboration with Leatt.
So the Leatt 8.5 helmet is the base of this helmet.
And we did that because they're an awesome partner and we wanted to like have thatauthenticity in the dirt space to work with Leatt and then integrate comms into it.
And it's the first fully integrated helmet.
(27:05):
And a lot of people who ride dirt don't ride with comms, whichis interesting because we're huge in the street world and then growing in dirt.
And I actually think that it's more useful in dirt to have communication because you cantalk to people and be like, hey, we're turning right up here.
Or hey, there's like a massive mud pit or like this giant rock in the way.
Like be careful or hey, there's a log.
(27:25):
Make sure you keep momentum.
So like all of that on a dirt side for communications is super helpful.
On the street side you're like just it helps you enjoy the time more and get to talk tothe people you're riding with, which is also like really valuable.
but so on the dirt side we worked with Leatt.
On the street side, we're we're coming out with the Beyond helmet.
And that one that we've been working on for six years, and it's a completely owned byCardo initiative.
(27:49):
And so it's been like a lot of research.
And the reason that we're doing it on our own for this one is because the active noisecancellation that's going to be in it is built or it's like a speaker box with the active
noise cancellation, and the helmet had to be built around it because you can't just shovein
speakers into any helmet because the active noise cancellation needs like really bigspeakers to be able to counteract the amount of wind noise that's coming into a helmet.
(28:14):
And so that's the reason why we have developed the whole thing around that system.
So that's why it's all on our own.
So the feedback so far has been really great.
We're hoping to bring it to market later this year.
It's been really fun to work on.
Yeah, I love that insight.
I mean, I grew up in the dirt world of things.
And then like now we do more adventure riding as well.
(28:36):
And I don't know how many years I have a Cardo system now.
I couldn't even tell you which one.
but I was hesitant to get a comms system for a lot of years because also I'm a motorcyclesafety instructor and we talk about like distractions and things like that.
And I was kind of worried that it would bemore distracting than helpful.
Um, but I started wearing it with like my husband when we would go on rides and I found itto be helpful to like point out different things.
(29:03):
I'm not a person that listens to music while I ride because I do like to just like take inthe scenery and
the sounds and sights and smells and all that kind of thing.
My husband is very much um one who likes to listen to the radio when he's riding.
So that's that's his jam.
and for a lot of years it was just in our adventure helmets.
(29:25):
And then we tried it in our dirt helmets for the LBL National Dual Sport down inTennessee, which is also a client of mine.
And it was pretty helpful for that as well.
More so likeHey, like wait up for me or like, you know, that that sort of thing.
just to be able to say, like, hey, I need to pull over, I need a break, like don't keepriding.
(29:48):
Yeah.
So yes.
Yeah.
Uh next on our list is to get the ones that are a little bit like I said, ours are severalyears old now and the range isn't as long as I want it to be in the woods.
So I know you guys have kind of upgradedthat as well on some of the devices.
So that's probably going to be our our next purchase.
(30:10):
Yeah, it's pretty helpful.
'Cause even if they like make a turn, like it should be line of sight, but it's like Idon't know, it's pretty good around corners and stuff.
And if they're like a little far into the woods, if you're like within a mile or so youcan hear them.
And so you might lose them for like a second if they go around like a really big thing,but then they'll come back.
So it'sthen my dad's um off road club, they have a national dual sport and some adventure rides
and a lot of the guys have been wearing them for like trail layout to communicate witheach other.
(30:38):
So my dad just started asking me.
He's like, Hey, um, I'm thinking about getting a cardo soGood.
Yeah.
I actually noticed like the the growing in the dirt space.
Like at the Wisconsin dual sport events, I look like one year I couldn't do it because Iwas injured and so I like helped with check in and like watch them all like pull out and
I'm like, wow, so many of these people have Cardos.
(30:59):
I'm like maybe we are getting there in the dirt space.
And 'cause I think trail riding is really where it's useful.
Like less so on motocross, but it's really helpful for coaching.
But when you're trail riding and like you just want to talk to other people just aboutwhat's coming up or
Like, hey, you don't have to stop as much and it's really great.
So I saw that it's growing in the dual sport and dirt by space.
(31:19):
So it's pretty cool.
In your particular role, maybe this isn't your role or maybe it is, do you work with OEMmanufacturers and other industry partners kind of now you've come out with your own
helmet, but before like integrating that into their helmets?
Or is there somebody else on the team that kind of handles more of that?
Uh, it's like a kind of a team collective thing.
(31:40):
We have a person who is based at our headquarters who does like OEM partnerships, but thenonce it's done, the partnership is signed and we're working with someone, like it comes to
the region.
So in the US, like, hey, we have Harley now and like I know everyone at Harley 'cause Iused to work there and so it's like uh I work with them now on doing things with them
'cause we want them to be successful.
So now Harley has a Cardo unit that's branded Harley Davidson.
(32:05):
And we help them at their show like so at Sturgis we'll show up at their booth and do likea demo day for them to try out Cardos.
And so like anybody who goes to ride a car a Harley Davidson demo bike can then also ridewith a Cardo.
So we do stuff like that with them or we go to dealerships and help train them.
So there's a lot of like ongoing stuff with OEMs.
Like we work with probably all almost all of them at this point.
(32:29):
Like in some way, shape or form.
Like Triumph will need comms to help lead their group rides orHonda want like needs something and we like are super supportive of everybody and so it's
really fun to work with like basically the whole industry, which is different than when Iwas at Harley, which I had such a like Harley is so focused, like V twin only, and then
the Pan Am thing was kinda fun because it was different, a new group.
(32:51):
But now at Cardo I can r anybody who rides a motorcycle can can wear a Cardo, right?
Any motorcycle.
Or any side by side or any or skiing.
Like we also have ski products.
So it'scool to be able to like interact with more different people, but we all still ha share the
same interests.
Well, and like you said, and I've even noticed just from being in the industry and being arider is that Cardo does a lot of really great collaborations with creators throughout the
(33:21):
year on different campaigns and like really like user generated content that is reallyhelpful where it's not just coming from like corporate Cardo.
It's like people out there and using it and so that's pretty cool.
Yeah, we do a lot of that.
We have like I said, really like thousand, I think like over a thousand people who likeare part of our creator Cardo fam.
(33:44):
And it's just so awesome to have all these people like authentically loving it and talkingabout it, which is a really great thing to have and be a part of and get to hang out with
them at events and all of that.
going back a little bit too, you talked about like helping support and encourage womenriders.
you've mentioned going to some women's events.
Like what kind of progress have you seen over the last several years as far as like thewomen riding segment?
(34:10):
I think it's still like growing hugely.
So like I've been I guess part of it since I was started at Harley.
So like since twenty nineteen.
And like babes ride out.
Um I did with Cardo I did over and out and like get to see all these new events.
Um I mean we just did in ah in Illinois, did you see the world record ride?
I'm sure you've probably talked to Ellie.
(34:31):
I thinkDid it was a street thing, right?
Yeah, so Ellie Rains, who runs um get your groove on Midwest Women Riders, which is superlocal to me.
So I like feel like she lives like, I don't know, an hour from me maybe.
And she just did a world record ride with one thousand four hundred and thirty threewomen, all at the same place riding, which is crazy and super awesome.
(34:54):
So I've been like I've known her for years and like awesome to see that happen.
So I feel like we're all like doing really cool things in all of the little nooks of likethe
US I guess and doing things.
Actually the World Women Relay is also happening this year, which is cool.
And so I feel like there's new things happening all the time to like encourage women toride and get together and it's just really great to see.
(35:16):
Uh I also really like going to like networking events with other women in the industry andmeeting them.
Because like we're a small group and like I feel like we all know each other.
Like you're like, I know this person, who knows this person?
And it's great to see that.
But then also we're growing and getting more people who work in the industry as well.
So that's been great.
I feel like we're all kind of spread out all over the country too, which makes it achallenge sometimes to like do meetups in person as far as like women working in the
(35:43):
industry.
And I was at AIMExpo earlier this year and they had like a women's luncheon and that wasactually like really cool to see and like have everybody actually together in the same
room.
Yeah, I was there also.
Yeah, we probably passed each other.
We probably there was actually a lot of women there at this one.
The one at the previous one was less, so it does show that it's growing.
(36:05):
But I also was in California this time, which helps.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I took extended vacation.
I was in California for quite a while, so it was nice.
I do that too when I go to California for work.
I'm like, I'm just gonna stay.
Soak up that weather.
For a bit.
Then you come home to the Midwest and you're like, What what?
I love visiting California.
(36:27):
like as I told you before this call, I lived there for a year.
I don't want to live there, but I love visiting, soYeah, same.
I don't think I could live there either.
Um, kind of to wrap up, we talked about all those motorcycles that you've had.
Are those still all in your garage or have you gotten rid of motorcycles as you'veacquired new ones?
(36:48):
Uh right now I have four, so I still have three dirt bikes.
One I'm trying to get I'm trying to get rid of the KTM 125 Um apparently it's really hardto sell motorcycles.
I don't know why, but I still have my Pan America, I still have my Sherco, and then the Xtrainer.
Um I sold my Triumph Street Triple last year.
Uh so I was riding that as a street bike.
But the Pan America is equally as good as a street bike as it is an adventure off-roadbike.
(37:11):
So that one's like my multi-purpose motorcycle.
And so I think I have a goodarray right now.
I could get one rid of one probably.
I also really want a little one.
I want a little like one twenty five or like 100 or 110 to teach people how to ride.
Because the hard part about teaching people how to ride on a dirtbike that's tall is thatthey can't women, a lot a lot of my new friends that want to learn how to ride are like
(37:38):
tiny and they can't touch the ground.
And I'm like, well I can't touch the ground either, but I'm used to it at this point.
When you're s when you're teaching someone newTouching the ground is kind of important.
Yeah, there's definitely a difference in once you've been riding that you can compensate alittle bit for not being able to always touch.
But I'm totally with you on teaching new riders that it's so much easier if they cantouch.
(38:03):
Exactly.
So I wanna get something like that so I can do some of the teaching 'cause I really I loveteaching new people how to ride.
It's super fun.
I've actually wanted to become a rider coach, but my schedule you have to do it like youhave to go to the class and it's like two specific weeks or something or three specific
weekends and it just never works out.
That's what happens when you work in the motorcycling industry.
(38:25):
You work on the weekends of the summer becauseThat's when motorcycling is happening.
So it's hard to do the personal stuff that you want to do.
But someday I would like to become a rider coach.
Yeah.
so I'm a a motorcycle safety instructor here in Ohio for street and then I got certifiedin the dirtbike school as well.
but I go to a safety conference every year and there are some guys there from Wisconsinthat run their t their street bikes out of the safety program that are like super nice.
(38:54):
So whenever you decide, whenever you can get the time, I I have the introduction for that.
No, I ha I have like all these emails like they approved me to do the class and everythingand they're like you would be great and I had like the dealership locally like the because
you have to get sponsored to like be able to go to the class.
I have all of that dialed and have for like the last three years.
But like the scheduling wise it just that only three week window that you can go and youhave to be available all three weekends just hasn't worked out.
(39:21):
Some day I get that.
Or I can be like some of my other friends who get trained in Arizona or something duringthe winter and then they can come back and teach.
So that's an option maybe.
Yeah.
Well, um, tell people where they can connect with you or follow Cardo online.
So you can follow Cardo Online at Cardo Systems on Instagram or Facebook or LinkedIn.
(39:45):
and you can find me on LinkedIn, Lauren Swanson, or on Instagram at@booksbikesandbrewcity.
Even though I never drink beer.
Well, thank you for joining me and thanks to everybody for tuning in to Momentum.
This has been a production of High Gear success.
(40:05):
If you want to connect or recommend a guest, head to Momentum Motorsports Podcast.com.
Until next time, keep the momentum rolling.
Welcome to Momentum, a motorsports podcast powered by High Gear Success.
I'm your host, Heather Wilson Schiltz.
Here we share the stories and strategies that keep the world of motorsports movingforward.
Today's guest is Lauren Swanson, Marketing Manager, Americas and global PR manager forCardo Systems.
So thank you for joining me.
(00:25):
Thanks, Heather.
Let's kind of take a step back and see when motorcycles first became a part of your life,'cause I'm curious when that started for you.
Sure.
Well, actually it started when I was two months old, technically.
My dad, I don't know, of course, I'm like a little baby and he probably went crazy anddecided to buy a motorcycle and brought it home for my and my mom was probably like,
(00:49):
What's happening?
But I was two months old.
Um, so he bought a ninety two Heritage Soft Tail and he still has it.
And so it's this like really nostalgic thing for me because I've been around it my wholeentire life and just riding on the back.
with him growing up and then I started riding on my own when I was twenty.
As soon as I could buy a motorcycle by myself.
(01:10):
Kinda wish I was one of those dirtbike kids 'cause then I would be way better at riding amotorcycle now, but take what I can guess.
That's cool that your dad still has that bike.
Yeah, it's pretty awesome.
And actually I try I've been trying to ride that bike.
Like when I started riding, I would try to ride it and he has this like really stiffclutch on it and I couldn't do it.
(01:31):
And then like two summers ago I tried again and it was like completely fine and I justrode it like it was any other motorcycle and it felt so good to just be on that bike and
it means so much to me just having it been part of my whole life.
SoYeah, it's pretty nice that he still has it.
And he has that bike and a couple of others and me and my dad ride a lot together.
So it's pretty great.
(01:52):
When you started riding in your twenties, were you starting on the street or did you starton the dirt side of things?
Yeah, so I started on the street.
So I did that whole take a motorcycle class.
I probably took a class when I was like seventeen or eighteen, couldn't afford a bike, wasin college and all of that.
and then I would like borrow random people's bikes.
(02:13):
Like my boyfriend in college had a bike and then I would try to ride it and then didn'treally know what I was doing.
Cause you know, in the class you ride in a parking lot and then you basically have tofigure it out yourself.
But eventually I bought my own and I bought a little Honda CBR500 So started on thestreet.
I just started riding dirt like four or five years ago, so I'm still relatively new todirt.
(02:36):
What was your motivation for wanting to try dirt after all these years?
So I worked for Harley Davidson Before this Cardo job, which I'm sure we'll talk about.
But when I was at Harley, I was kind of part of the Pan America team and riding off roadwas something that like we were all starting to get into and Harley was getting into it
and I felt like I was part of that whole journey and then I was riding the Pan Am off roadand I'm like, I've had to need a dirtbike to make my life easier.
(03:02):
And so I bought a dirtbike, well a dual sport bike, and then I started on doing that andnow I've gone through four dirt bikes since then.
Apparently that's what happens when you get into motorcycling.
You just keep buying more.
And I would imagine a pan am I haven't ridden one.
I've I've seen them in person, obviously, but that is a pretty big dirtbike, adventurebike to like start on, to start riding off-road versus something small.
(03:28):
So Yeah.
I definitely it actually kind of almost helped to start on that, but then 'cause it it hasso much torque and power, like it kinda rides itself sometimes.
But then on the harder stuff, you're like, I kind of need a small bike, or at least needto learn about a small bike so you can maneuver the big bike.
But I rode the Pan America so much when I worked at Harley, like probably fifty thousandmiles.
(03:49):
And I was just like that girl that was like the tiny, tiny girl.
I'm only five foot three on a big bike.
And I was so accustomed to it and used to it and riding it around everywhere and then likesome more easy off road stuff, but like adventures or BDR stuff and that was really fun.
And now I do more single track dirtbike things.
I find it's it's like easier sometimes if you've been riding a bigger bike to transitionto like the smaller one.
(04:18):
It feels like so crazy light and just like easy to maneuver.
I find that like I 690 KTM Enduro and I'll like riding that for a long time and then I'llswitch to my KTM 250 dirtbike for like a dual sport or something, and then it feels kind
of like a toy almost in comparison.
It does.
(04:38):
And then you go back to the big bike after you haven't ridden it in a while and you'relike, no, this actually is big.
But it's fine.
How is the um seat on that Pan America?
Is it like scooped pretty low or is it still pretty high and and difficult to touch?
Actually like probably the lowest in the market ish.
So it's like thirty one point nine or something like stock, but then I have a reach seaton mine, so mine comes even lower, like an inch lower than that.
(05:04):
And then the adaptive ride height on the Pan America lowers.
So when I come to a stop, I'm like almost flat, which is really nice.
W of course when you're off road, you're not almost flat because there's a big divot inthe in the gravel.
But regardless, it's pretty low and I canUsually maneuver it pretty well.
If unless I have to back backwards up a hill, then not happening.
(05:25):
No.
No.
So you mentioned having multiple dirt bikes over the last couple of years.
What were some of those bikes and what motivated you to to kind of swap out or keep buyingmore?
Yeah, so I started on a CRF 250L, which I actually think is like the perfect starter bike.
(05:47):
It's it's just like a like you can't go wrong.
It just like is great.
I made it all like customized to me, which was really fun.
And that was like a really good starter bike.
And then I started realizing I'm like, I don't feel like I'm gonna improve here with thislike really heavy bike.
Obviously it's heavy, not heavier compared to the Pan Am, but heavy for a dirtbike.
And I'm like, I think I want to try something like a little bit lighter so I can pick itup on myself because my friends were getting really tired of picking up my my motorcycle
(06:13):
every time I fell over.
So I ended up getting a Sherco SEF 300, which nobody in the United States knows what thatis.
It feels like every time I go somewhere, they're like, What's that?
Um, it's a French bike, but it's a four-stroke and it's a 300, which is like kind of inthis weird range um versus all the other KTMs and huskies and stuff.
And that bike has been really great.
(06:33):
And then I'm like, I kinda wanna get into a two-stroke because I want to feel like powerband and like have like power like when you need it, but and then I've wanted it to be
like more mellow in the like slow stuff.
Um, so I bought this KTM 125, which is not mellow, zero percent mellow.
Uh, but it got it really cheap, but I wanted to learn how to do the two-stroke thing.
(06:57):
This bike.
not working for me.
Like it's definitely a motocross bike and I do not ride motocross.
I only ride trails.
And so I tried to make it work and I'm like, this is just a struggle.
So I ended up just recently, like two months ago, buying an X trainer and I love it.
It's great.
Everything about it is great.
It's lightweight.
(07:17):
It's like mellow, but it has power when I need it.
And it's I think it's actually gonna make me like super confident on all that like superhard stuff.
And it's been really fun to like try to figure it out.
So that's been real and I can pick it up.
And I can touch the ground.
Well the X trainer, a lot of people make the comparison from the X trainer to my KTM 250freeride.
(07:37):
because it's kind of that same really lightweight kind of trials based dirtbike.
and KTM doesn't import the freeride anymore.
So mine's kind of getting to be an antique.
So if people are gonna buy a similar bike for that type of thing, um a lot of women ridersI know they end up getting the X trainer and they love it.
So Yeah, hilariously.
(07:57):
I rode the X Trainer four years ago at an event called Over N Out and I hated it.
I don't know why.
I like just could not with the two-stroke thing.
And then now I think when you grow as a rider, like everything then like years later itjust becomes easier, which is kind of nice.
And so I'm like, I actually really like this bike.
Um and if you have a bike that's suspension is made for you and the springs are sprung toyour weight, it makes like a world of difference.
(08:21):
I've been riding bikes made formen that are a hundred and whatever the standard is hundred and eighty five pounds for the
last five years and when you change it to you, it actually helps.
I'm very spoiled in that regard because my husband is a suspension mechanic.
Oh so um yes, I've definitely had that perk every time that I get a bike that I can be setup and and lowered or, you know, whatever it needs.
(08:47):
So I had been like avoiding it.
I'm like, this is so much money to be able to do this and nobody like you have to know theright guy.
So you clearly know the right guy.
But I think that's something like they people talk about it like on forums or on on onlineand stuff.
They say like you should do your suspension.
You really should do it because it actually really, really helps.
(09:09):
SoWell, and thinking that whole like lineup of bikes that you gave, you started from, like I
said, like the pretty big adventure bike all the way down to like a pretty small trialsbased dirtbike.
Like you've you've run the whole gamut and I think it's great to explore those differentthings.
there's just so much variety in riding between street, adventure, dual sport.
(09:35):
Trail, like whatever it's gonna be, each bike does something like a little bit better foryou know certain applications.
So riding that CRF250L in like single track stuff, like while I can do it, it's still apretty big and heavy dual sport bike versus like a more trail focused bike, like the X
(09:57):
trainer.
So yeah.
Kinda that's why you always need N plus one.
Just keep buying more.
you're also the secretary for Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders.
And I told you pre-call that I love those guys because I used to um work with John Newtonback in my AMA days.
He was like one of my AMA volunteers, my most prized volunteers, because he was just sosweet.
(10:20):
And I love being able to see him and his wife.
They come to Columbus every year for the Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
And that's like right in my backyard.
So I always get to say hi to him andI know he's been trying to quit and step back for it's probably been at least five years
now and nobody is like stepping up to fill his role.
(10:41):
but I just saw something the other day that he's like, No guys, I'm I'm serious, likesomebody please take my position in district 16 recreation.
So I'm sure you've had the pleasure of working with John.
Yeah.
John's great.
And the club is great.
And it's one of those things, it's like this club has been around for since John started.
It's probably, I think it's been 19 years or 18, something like that.
(11:03):
Crazy.
And all of the guys who are in it are like getting older.
They love riding still.
And like they made this club so they can all ride on the weekends.
But I started going to their events and then I'm like, There's no women here.
There's no young people here.
And I'm like, I want this to be accessible so we can keep growing the sport becauseTo me, as someone who one works in the industry and someone who rides, it's like we all
have a responsibility to keep growing ridership.
(11:30):
And so for me, I saw this like, if I get involved, then I'm gonna like do the whole thingright.
Like have to do everything and like get super passionate about it and like full send intoit.
Cause that's what I do when I want to help with something.
Um, and so they noticed that I was like starting to likeshow up all the time or like go to meetings and they're like, hey, maybe you should think
(11:52):
about being the secretary.
I'm like, I'm not even a member of this club yet.
They're like, we don't care.
You're always here, blah, blah, blah.
And so I got roped into that and trying to help them like keep it going, communicate tonew people, like trying to use like the people that I know, grow sponsorship and kind of
make it more accessible to the people who haven't been riding for their entire lives.
(12:14):
LikeI don't think people who l ride their entire lives even think about like how it was when
you started.
Like you have to like rein it way back.
Be like, hey, you can't just like go on every single trail and just like be completelyfine and ride a hundred and eighty miles on a weekend.
Like that's not normal.
So I'm trying to get them to like help with that new newer people or like moreintermediate riders that haven't been riding for their entire lives.
(12:40):
And it's been really fun.
Like now we do this event, you get to likejoin the club and you go on a trail work weekend and you work on the trails for half a day
and then you ride all the trails that are there, which is really fun.
And so I've been doing that and like kind of rating the trails to be like, hey, this oneis actually really accessible.
You should try it.
Or this one is like maybe a challenge if you want to challenge yourself.
(13:02):
Or this one is like really hard.
Let's like if you can't do these ones, don't do this one yet.
And I think that's really helpful to the people who are coming to those events.
SoI had the pleasure of riding their fall event in 2018.
I had to look back at my Facebook albums yesterday before we were chatting today to figureout what year it was, but it was 2018.
ah pretty far drive for me, uh, because that is like northern Wisconsin.
(13:26):
Yeah.
so from Ohio, it was it was a pretty far drive.
but very pretty up there.
Of course, everybody very welcoming.
what I remember and like hard.
Hard, I say in quotation marks, is like so subjective too, right?
So there were certain sections where they're like, ah, I don't know if you want to ridethat.
That might be like really hard.
(13:48):
And then I I was kind of getting myself like psyched out about it, like, oh, maybe Ishouldn't ride it or whatever.
But then when you come from Ohio, like hard is different here than there.
And so I would, I like rode that section.
I'm like, that wasn't that bad.
Like we'veWe've had worse things in Ohio.
So it really kind of depends, you know, if it's somebody that's only ridden in that areatoo, or if they've ridden other states, like what it's gonna look like.
(14:14):
But I do remember certain trails just being like littered with boulders is basically whatI would call them.
Like it wasn't just like little rocks.
It was just like giant boulders protruding out of the trail for like the entire length ofthe trail.
Which really surprised me for that area, butYeah, they're definitely really big rocks and then you look at them and you don't want to
(14:36):
go over them and then eventually you have to go over them.
And if you just had gone over them in the first place, it would have been way easier.
I say this even though every single time I stop and I look at them and I'm like, I don'tknow.
I don't know about these.
It's so much worse when we like stop and stare at it and like overthink it than just likeblazing through it.
(14:59):
Because I do that to myself sometimes too.
Like you'll stop and you're like looking down the hill and you're like, my gosh, like Ishould have just gone for it because now I'm completely like freaked out to do it.
Yeah, freaked out and you're set up badly and all that.
And I say this all, but every single time I like do something silly like that.
And my friends are like, Would you stop doing that?
Just keep momentum and go.
(15:21):
Which is the correct advice.
But your brain, it can't do it.
But it's funny.
And then I'll go over it and I'm like, that was actually really easy.
And they're like, It's very frustrating that you're saying that.
But we all do it.
We're all we're all growing.
For people that may not be familiar with Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders, can you kinda givean overview of the types of rides that they do and they're both charity rides, correct?
(15:47):
just the spring ride is a charity ride.
So the spring there's two rides every year.
Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders is based in Wabeno, Wisconsin, which is like three and a halfhours north of Milwaukee or so.
And basically the mission is just to like encourage ridership, hang out with people whoare similar minded and like just have fun.
And the spring ride is called Ride for Research and it raises money for the CarboneCenter.
(16:11):
um for cancers, cancer research.
So we've raised uh this year we raised $17,000 for them at the spring event, which isactually in June.
So not really spring, but you know, it is.
And then the fall ride is called Big Woods 200.
And both events are two days long with camping, with food and hanging out.
and then there's basically like a hundred and eighty miles over the course of those twodays of trails.
(16:34):
and then there's hero sections is what we call them in Wisconsin.
So they you're going on the main routeSome of it is road because there's a lot of road in Wisconsin, sadly.
It is what it is.
So we're on the road, then we're on some two track or gravel fire roads.
And then you go into like a hero section, which is like an optional harder single track.
And it's all single track on mostly on private property.
(16:54):
We have a lot of really awesome landowners in Wisconsin who donate their land for us toride on.
And we get to have fun for the day and then come back and eat steak and hang out.
I do remember like Is there another organization that like cooks the meals that likepartners with you guys?
I feel like they'rewe have like the Lions Club I think does it some of our food and then John also makes lots
(17:20):
of a lot of our food.
Actually a very good cook.
Yeah, the Lions Club helps with our dinners and stuff, so yeah.
I remember like coolers of steaks when we were there.
Yeah.
It's a very like local friendly, community oriented thing.
We donate money to like the local schools to help kids and like all of that.
So it's really great to be a part of something that's like really community oriented.
(17:42):
And honestly, all of motorcycling is so much about community and like how important thatis.
If I recall too, I think there was a pretty big raffle that took place.
Yeah.
I don't know if you guys are still doing that.
Yeah, definitely raffle.
So they do like raffle sales and a lot of sponsors donate things that you can win.
So that's always always fun as well.
(18:38):
you also you mentioned earlier you spent several years working at Harley Davidson.
So how did that role come about?
How did you jump into the working in the industry?
So I used to work just in communications and marketing for a nonprofit.
And I decided I did that after like going to undergrad and I studied linguistics andSpanish totally random and then fell into communications and marketing.
(19:02):
And then I was like, I should go back to school and like have like a formal education inmarketing.
So I went to grad school at Northwestern.
And when I was in grad school, uh the CMO of Harley at the time, Heather Malenshek, wasspeaking at one of our events.
And I'm emailing my professors like, hey, I need to meether.
Like I need to be able to talk to her.
He's like, why?
I'm like, because I've been riding my whole life and that's like the coolest thing ever.
(19:24):
And I just want to meet her and get to know her and all of that.
And so he set up like a coffee that I could go to with her and just meet her.
And of course we have coffee and like network and it was really great.
And then she's like, if you're interested in a job, like send me your resume.
Of course I like pull it out.
Of course I have it with course I have it with me.
Um and so she ended uplike after the networking and meeting and greeting and all of that and she like tried to
find a role that would make sense for me and I was trying to get into experientialmarketing.
(19:52):
So I got a role at as a product project manager for Harley Davidson events team.
And I started doing all their new rider stuff or like non rider, like getting into thesport, which I'm super passionate about, like helping young riders or new riders get into
it.
So we went tocollege campuses, we went to like Spartan races and trying to find people who are like
adventure-y and like to like get out and try new things.
(20:17):
Um so that was really fun and getting a lot of people up on motorcycles and we did likefun classes where you can like ride just like in a straight line for a hundred feet, kind
of like the MIC does now.
Um so a lot of really fun things to like get new people into the sport.
And then I shifted into doing like community outreach events.
So I was responsible forAll of our women's ridership initiatives, all of our like uh diversity initiatives, so
(20:38):
like so much really awesome com community based work that was really fun to do.
So that was my role at Harley.
Those sound like super fun roles.
Like I would love to do those roles.
Yeah, it was it's just really awesome to be around people who share similar things to youand like all the the core piece of it all is motorcycling, but like everybody is just so
(21:06):
awesome in this community and like meeting new people and trying to like support all ofwhat everybody is doing in the world is really cool.
Were there any common like themes that stood out to you as to how people like becameinspired to get into motorcycling?
Cause you were talking about going to some events and getting into some communities wherethey weren't necessarily motorcycling focused, but adventure focused.
(21:30):
And so how did you inspire or entice those people to get into motorcycling?
And do you feel like those efforts were successful?
Yeah, I think a lot of people kind of need that one person in their life who's like kindof a spark and it could be a stranger, but generally it's someone you know.
But I like notice all the people who would come to those events, like we would be at aSpartan race with a motorcycle on like a little treadmill jump start thing we call it's
(21:56):
called a jump start and it's basically a motorcycle on a treadmill so you can get on itand it'll the back wheel will roll so you can like shift and do the whole thing, but it
didn't move.
And people the people who wanted to do that were always someone like, oh, I knew this guywho like rode a motorcycle and I've kind of always been like sort of interested.
And whenever I met someone who like had that spark, I would give them a riding academypass so they could learn.
(22:21):
And so like Harley was awesome about that and tried to encourage people to learn for free.
And so we did a whole big outreach about getting people into riding academy and just atleast trying, take the class and then see where it goes.
And I thinkWe knew that like if you went to a motorcycle event, like once you already knew how to
ride, like things like the women's events, like once you went and you met other people whorode, you were like way more likely to keep doing it.
(22:46):
So like that community piece is super important.
And like I mentioned before, everyone, all of us in the industry need to keep encouragingpeople to just get out and ride with other people because that's why people keep riding.
Like if they're in a silo, they're not gonna keep doing it.
It's not easy.
Like you have to like Try.
I feel like that engagement piece is so critical.
(23:09):
And I'd be curious.
I haven't really looked up any stats, but my gut is telling me that we had this like hugeboom from the pandemic, right?
Where the industry sold a bunch of motorcycles.
But I was always worried about like how are we going to keep these people engaged inriding when life goes, you know, back back to whatever we call this normal, you know,
(23:31):
several years later.
do they have a community?
Have they met people?
Are they at events?
is it just been sitting in their garage and eventually like they're selling theirmotorcycle and we didn't really retain them?
Like I haven't looked at any data to see what the retention is.
Yeah.
It is definitely important to keep people engaged.
Like you have to bring somewhere or like have them meet someone or whatever.
(23:56):
So I think like that could be done in so many ways, but everybody has to keep doing it.
Otherwise, yeah, it's gonna keep going down, which would be really sad 'cause then wewouldn't have motorcycles to ride.
And there are like so many interconnected parts of the industry too, where like Harley waskind of doing that experiential marketing as a manufacturer, but also there's so many
private event organizers like Wisconsin Dual Sport Riders that are also doing their partin the industry that aren't necessarily affiliated with manufacturers and actually selling
(24:26):
machines.
Definitely.
so kind of transitioning from Harley, then you went to work for Cardo, where you're atnow.
And you've got some some big titles, it sounds like a lot a lot of roles combined intoone.
So marketing manager for the Americas.
I'm assuming that's like Canada, United States.
(24:49):
Canada, the US and all of Latin America.
Yeah, that's a huge territory.
And then global PR manager.
So kinda walk us through uh what maybe a typical week or some typical activities thatyou're doing in those roles.
Yeah.
So on the America's marketing side I have like supporting dealers with like any salesinitiatives or like displays that they need or like social media support.
(25:14):
And then we work with like tons of amazing content creators that we work with at Cardo whoare all like part of our Cardo fam.
So we work with them on like putting out content, talking about like what's coming up, allof that.
And then on the global PR side is like kind of where I'm like the big product launchstuff.
So we'vejust released actually two products this summer, um two helmets, which is really big for
(25:39):
Cardo.
So we are transitioning from like the aftermarket helmet solution where you put it on anyhelmet, which still great.
But now we're launching our own helmets, which is a big deal for us.
So um basically I'm responsible for having press events, doing any media outreach topeople, planning all of that from like strategy to execution.
(25:59):
So like how we want to launch this, what are the embargoes look like?
How do we plan this event for all the press to come to?
And then I also do it globally.
So I'm like in the US.
And then last week I was in the UK doing it for our new dirtbike helmet in at ABR Festivalin Europe, which was super awesome.
So kind of a mix of both.
It depends on the day.
(26:19):
But yeah, we have a big year with all these product launches.
So it's been a lot of that.
I haven't read like the full details of the releases on the helmet, but I did see thatcome across my social feed recently.
And I was curious if you guys had like partnered with a specific helmet manufacturer todevelop your own helmets or if it was like truly your own brand of helmet.
(26:42):
So the dirtbike Helmet, which is called Venture, which we just released or like announcedon June twenty third, is a collaboration with Leatt.
So the Leatt 8.5 helmet is the base of this helmet.
And we did that because they're an awesome partner and we wanted to like have thatauthenticity in the dirt space to work with Leatt and then integrate comms into it.
And it's the first fully integrated helmet.
(27:05):
And a lot of people who ride dirt don't ride with comms, whichis interesting because we're huge in the street world and then growing in dirt.
And I actually think that it's more useful in dirt to have communication because you cantalk to people and be like, hey, we're turning right up here.
Or hey, there's like a massive mud pit or like this giant rock in the way.
Like be careful or hey, there's a log.
(27:25):
Make sure you keep momentum.
So like all of that on a dirt side for communications is super helpful.
On the street side you're like just it helps you enjoy the time more and get to talk tothe people you're riding with, which is also like really valuable.
but so on the dirt side we worked with Leatt.
On the street side, we're we're coming out with the Beyond helmet.
And that one that we've been working on for six years, and it's a completely owned byCardo initiative.
(27:49):
And so it's been like a lot of research.
And the reason that we're doing it on our own for this one is because the active noisecancellation that's going to be in it is built or it's like a speaker box with the active
noise cancellation, and the helmet had to be built around it because you can't just shovein
speakers into any helmet because the active noise cancellation needs like really bigspeakers to be able to counteract the amount of wind noise that's coming into a helmet.
(28:14):
And so that's the reason why we have developed the whole thing around that system.
So that's why it's all on our own.
So the feedback so far has been really great.
We're hoping to bring it to market later this year.
It's been really fun to work on.
Yeah, I love that insight.
I mean, I grew up in the dirt world of things.
And then like now we do more adventure riding as well.
(28:36):
And I don't know how many years I have a Cardo system now.
I couldn't even tell you which one.
but I was hesitant to get a comms system for a lot of years because also I'm a motorcyclesafety instructor and we talk about like distractions and things like that.
And I was kind of worried that it would bemore distracting than helpful.
Um, but I started wearing it with like my husband when we would go on rides and I found itto be helpful to like point out different things.
(29:03):
I'm not a person that listens to music while I ride because I do like to just like take inthe scenery and
the sounds and sights and smells and all that kind of thing.
My husband is very much um one who likes to listen to the radio when he's riding.
So that's that's his jam.
and for a lot of years it was just in our adventure helmets.
(29:25):
And then we tried it in our dirt helmets for the LBL National Dual Sport down inTennessee, which is also a client of mine.
And it was pretty helpful for that as well.
More so likeHey, like wait up for me or like, you know, that that sort of thing.
just to be able to say, like, hey, I need to pull over, I need a break, like don't keepriding.
(29:48):
Yeah.
So yes.
Yeah.
Uh next on our list is to get the ones that are a little bit like I said, ours are severalyears old now and the range isn't as long as I want it to be in the woods.
So I know you guys have kind of upgradedthat as well on some of the devices.
So that's probably going to be our our next purchase.
(30:10):
Yeah, it's pretty helpful.
'Cause even if they like make a turn, like it should be line of sight, but it's like Idon't know, it's pretty good around corners and stuff.
And if they're like a little far into the woods, if you're like within a mile or so youcan hear them.
And so you might lose them for like a second if they go around like a really big thing,but then they'll come back.
So it'sthen my dad's um off road club, they have a national dual sport and some adventure rides
and a lot of the guys have been wearing them for like trail layout to communicate witheach other.
(30:38):
So my dad just started asking me.
He's like, Hey, um, I'm thinking about getting a cardo soGood.
Yeah.
I actually noticed like the the growing in the dirt space.
Like at the Wisconsin dual sport events, I look like one year I couldn't do it because Iwas injured and so I like helped with check in and like watch them all like pull out and
I'm like, wow, so many of these people have Cardos.
(30:59):
I'm like maybe we are getting there in the dirt space.
And 'cause I think trail riding is really where it's useful.
Like less so on motocross, but it's really helpful for coaching.
But when you're trail riding and like you just want to talk to other people just aboutwhat's coming up or
Like, hey, you don't have to stop as much and it's really great.
So I saw that it's growing in the dual sport and dirt by space.
(31:19):
So it's pretty cool.
In your particular role, maybe this isn't your role or maybe it is, do you work with OEMmanufacturers and other industry partners kind of now you've come out with your own
helmet, but before like integrating that into their helmets?
Or is there somebody else on the team that kind of handles more of that?
Uh, it's like a kind of a team collective thing.
(31:40):
We have a person who is based at our headquarters who does like OEM partnerships, but thenonce it's done, the partnership is signed and we're working with someone, like it comes to
the region.
So in the US, like, hey, we have Harley now and like I know everyone at Harley 'cause Iused to work there and so it's like uh I work with them now on doing things with them
'cause we want them to be successful.
So now Harley has a Cardo unit that's branded Harley Davidson.
(32:05):
And we help them at their show like so at Sturgis we'll show up at their booth and do likea demo day for them to try out Cardos.
And so like anybody who goes to ride a car a Harley Davidson demo bike can then also ridewith a Cardo.
So we do stuff like that with them or we go to dealerships and help train them.
So there's a lot of like ongoing stuff with OEMs.
Like we work with probably all almost all of them at this point.
(32:29):
Like in some way, shape or form.
Like Triumph will need comms to help lead their group rides orHonda want like needs something and we like are super supportive of everybody and so it's
really fun to work with like basically the whole industry, which is different than when Iwas at Harley, which I had such a like Harley is so focused, like V twin only, and then
the Pan Am thing was kinda fun because it was different, a new group.
(32:51):
But now at Cardo I can r anybody who rides a motorcycle can can wear a Cardo, right?
Any motorcycle.
Or any side by side or any or skiing.
Like we also have ski products.
So it'scool to be able to like interact with more different people, but we all still ha share the
same interests.
Well, and like you said, and I've even noticed just from being in the industry and being arider is that Cardo does a lot of really great collaborations with creators throughout the
(33:21):
year on different campaigns and like really like user generated content that is reallyhelpful where it's not just coming from like corporate Cardo.
It's like people out there and using it and so that's pretty cool.
Yeah, we do a lot of that.
We have like I said, really like thousand, I think like over a thousand people who likeare part of our creator Cardo fam.
(33:44):
And it's just so awesome to have all these people like authentically loving it and talkingabout it, which is a really great thing to have and be a part of and get to hang out with
them at events and all of that.
going back a little bit too, you talked about like helping support and encourage womenriders.
you've mentioned going to some women's events.
Like what kind of progress have you seen over the last several years as far as like thewomen riding segment?
(34:10):
I think it's still like growing hugely.
So like I've been I guess part of it since I was started at Harley.
So like since twenty nineteen.
And like babes ride out.
Um I did with Cardo I did over and out and like get to see all these new events.
Um I mean we just did in ah in Illinois, did you see the world record ride?
I'm sure you've probably talked to Ellie.
(34:31):
I thinkDid it was a street thing, right?
Yeah, so Ellie Rains, who runs um get your groove on Midwest Women Riders, which is superlocal to me.
So I like feel like she lives like, I don't know, an hour from me maybe.
And she just did a world record ride with one thousand four hundred and thirty threewomen, all at the same place riding, which is crazy and super awesome.
(34:54):
So I've been like I've known her for years and like awesome to see that happen.
So I feel like we're all like doing really cool things in all of the little nooks of likethe
US I guess and doing things.
Actually the World Women Relay is also happening this year, which is cool.
And so I feel like there's new things happening all the time to like encourage women toride and get together and it's just really great to see.
(35:16):
Uh I also really like going to like networking events with other women in the industry andmeeting them.
Because like we're a small group and like I feel like we all know each other.
Like you're like, I know this person, who knows this person?
And it's great to see that.
But then also we're growing and getting more people who work in the industry as well.
So that's been great.
I feel like we're all kind of spread out all over the country too, which makes it achallenge sometimes to like do meetups in person as far as like women working in the
(35:43):
industry.
And I was at AIMExpo earlier this year and they had like a women's luncheon and that wasactually like really cool to see and like have everybody actually together in the same
room.
Yeah, I was there also.
Yeah, we probably passed each other.
We probably there was actually a lot of women there at this one.
The one at the previous one was less, so it does show that it's growing.
(36:05):
But I also was in California this time, which helps.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I took extended vacation.
I was in California for quite a while, so it was nice.
I do that too when I go to California for work.
I'm like, I'm just gonna stay.
Soak up that weather.
For a bit.
Then you come home to the Midwest and you're like, What what?
I love visiting California.
(36:27):
like as I told you before this call, I lived there for a year.
I don't want to live there, but I love visiting, soYeah, same.
I don't think I could live there either.
Um, kind of to wrap up, we talked about all those motorcycles that you've had.
Are those still all in your garage or have you gotten rid of motorcycles as you'veacquired new ones?
(36:48):
Uh right now I have four, so I still have three dirt bikes.
One I'm trying to get I'm trying to get rid of the KTM 125 Um apparently it's really hardto sell motorcycles.
I don't know why, but I still have my Pan America, I still have my Sherco, and then the Xtrainer.
Um I sold my Triumph Street Triple last year.
Uh so I was riding that as a street bike.
But the Pan America is equally as good as a street bike as it is an adventure off-roadbike.
(37:11):
So that one's like my multi-purpose motorcycle.
And so I think I have a goodarray right now.
I could get one rid of one probably.
I also really want a little one.
I want a little like one twenty five or like 100 or 110 to teach people how to ride.
Because the hard part about teaching people how to ride on a dirtbike that's tall is thatthey can't women, a lot a lot of my new friends that want to learn how to ride are like
(37:38):
tiny and they can't touch the ground.
And I'm like, well I can't touch the ground either, but I'm used to it at this point.
When you're s when you're teaching someone newTouching the ground is kind of important.
Yeah, there's definitely a difference in once you've been riding that you can compensate alittle bit for not being able to always touch.
But I'm totally with you on teaching new riders that it's so much easier if they cantouch.
(38:03):
Exactly.
So I wanna get something like that so I can do some of the teaching 'cause I really I loveteaching new people how to ride.
It's super fun.
I've actually wanted to become a rider coach, but my schedule you have to do it like youhave to go to the class and it's like two specific weeks or something or three specific
weekends and it just never works out.
That's what happens when you work in the motorcycling industry.
(38:25):
You work on the weekends of the summer becauseThat's when motorcycling is happening.
So it's hard to do the personal stuff that you want to do.
But someday I would like to become a rider coach.
Yeah.
so I'm a a motorcycle safety instructor here in Ohio for street and then I got certifiedin the dirtbike school as well.
but I go to a safety conference every year and there are some guys there from Wisconsinthat run their t their street bikes out of the safety program that are like super nice.
(38:54):
So whenever you decide, whenever you can get the time, I I have the introduction for that.
No, I ha I have like all these emails like they approved me to do the class and everythingand they're like you would be great and I had like the dealership locally like the because
you have to get sponsored to like be able to go to the class.
I have all of that dialed and have for like the last three years.
But like the scheduling wise it just that only three week window that you can go and youhave to be available all three weekends just hasn't worked out.
(39:21):
Some day I get that.
Or I can be like some of my other friends who get trained in Arizona or something duringthe winter and then they can come back and teach.
So that's an option maybe.
Yeah.
Well, um, tell people where they can connect with you or follow Cardo online.
So you can follow Cardo Online at Cardo Systems on Instagram or Facebook or LinkedIn.
(39:45):
and you can find me on LinkedIn, Lauren Swanson, or on Instagram at@booksbikesandbrewcity.
Even though I never drink beer.
Well, thank you for joining me and thanks to everybody for tuning in to Momentum.
This has been a production of High Gear success.
(40:05):
If you want to connect or recommend a guest, head to Momentum Motorsports Podcast.com.
Until next time, keep the momentum rolling.
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