Times Change, or do they?

I'm tyring to figure it out. I know that in the mid-90's I always bought Harley's and owned them, even before I was a dealer. I put up a deposit, waited for months, then took the model/color etc. that the dealer offered me. Whenever the dealer got around to it he would offer me a bike and invariably I bought it. I used to pay $18,995 for a Softail Custom back in the early 90's. Good Times.

Kind of crazy but life goes on and times change. When I became a H-D dealer in 1998 there was a significant wait to buy a motorcycle, and people put up their deposits, waited for months, then took the color of the model they were offered (usually black) whenever the bike came in. Good Times.

Fast forward to late 20th Century, and there are motorcycles everywhere. H-D was building and shipping, building and shipping, building and shipping. Banks and financial services businesses would finance a H-D in a heartbeat due to the value of the asset. They eventually built more than they could sale and lenders tightened up credit. Good Times.

Recession.

Now H-D is working on a system called "Supply and Demand". Apparently this is a process whereby they build motorcycles based on what people want and when they want that motorcycle. Rather novel concept (if you never read a grade school economics book) but Harley-Davidson Motor Company seemingly believes it is a economic phenomen they can adapt.

It's the start of the 2011 Model year. Harley-Davidson can't meet the current dealer and/or customer demand for their new product. I'm not officially calling the recession over, but how would I know since I don't have enough product to sell. C'mon Harley, times are trying to improve, but you've got to do your part.