The Monterey Classic Bike Auction which runs each year during the US MotoGP weekend activities, will be postponed this year until 2008 due to the death of key partner Marcel Fortney.
Press release follows:
February 14, 2007 – Following two years of growth in establishing a new standard for the staging of a collectible motorcycle auction, the Monterey Classic Bike Auction team has made the difficult decision to postpone the next edition of the event until 2008. Dates of June 8-9, 2007 had been set, with a change of venue to the plush new Red Bull Media Center at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. However, the startling death last month of one of MCBA’s key organizers, Marcel Fortney, caused the rest of the group to take a step back and re-evaluate this year’s timetable.
“We are still working through the loss of Marcel on a personal level,” said MCBA partner Scott Cox. “Through his guidance we were able to raise our standards to a high level and gain the support of top experts like Guy Webster, Ron Mousouris, Rick Doughty and others. Marcel was more than just an integral part of our team; he was also a great friend and mentor, and his mantra was to always provide outstanding customer service and maintain excellence. Unfortunately without his daily interaction, we felt it best to regroup and plan for a fantastic third event in 2008 … one that Marcel would be very proud of.”
During its first two years, the Monterey Classic Bike Auction has already seen bids in the half-million-dollar range for such rarities as a KR Proton MotoGP and Loris Capirossi’s MotoGP-winning Ducati GP5. MCBA has also earned a reputation for finding and offering such “unobtainium” items as the X-1 Custom designed and built by Jesse Rooke that fetched $80,000 at MCBA ’06. Following in that tradition, the 2008 lineup will again feature the cream of the crop in vintage, rare and custom bikes, plus artwork and memorabilia, from the worlds of Roadracing, Motocross, Street and more. MCBA is powered by the nation’s leading powersport auction company, National Powersport Auctions ( www.npauctions.com). NPA has a sterling reputation for making the auction experience turnkey, trouble-free and enjoyable for both buyers and sellers whether they are onsite or online.