or have a lower seat. Marketing contest In 2010 Victory marketing manager Josh Kurcinka announced a contest in which ten people won a lease on one of the two new Victory touring bikes: Cross Country or Cross Roads. The entrants had submitted a 90-second video explaining why they deserved a lease on a new bike and what they had planned for the summer. Contestants were asked to outline four different and do-able road trips. Victory judged the entries based on plausibility of trips, content and originality. Submissions were taken online and at Industry Trade Shows like the New York International Motorcycle Show. Beginning in May 2010, winning riders began taking a series of road trips each month through August 2010 from two to five days each. Riders documented their experiences through blogs, videos and photos sharing both their reviews of the bikes and the sites they visit along the way. Owners clubs The Victory Motorcycle Club is an independent, not-for-profit group of Victory motorcycle owners and enthusiasts that began in 1998 as a Yahoo online chat site by several owners of Victory Motorcycles. The club has grown from a small group of enthusiasts to an international club with more than 2,700 paid members and 11,000 guests in the United States, Canada, Great Britain and Germany. there are 107 local chapters. Winding down On 9 January 2017, parent company Polaris Industries issued a press release announcing that they would immediately begin winding down operations of Victory Motorcycles due to struggles in establishing market share and limited profitability. The brand itself would also be discontinued. Dealers were to liquidate inventories, while spare parts would be made available for ten years. Dealers were to continue offering service and warranty coverage to owners. With Victory, Polaris objectively created high quality, American-made cruisers, baggers and touring bikes. However, subjectively, Victory could not capture the legacy and emotion Harley-Davidson enjoys from its owners. Polaris solved this problem by purchasing and reviving the Indian Motorcycle brand in 2011. Once it became clear that Indian could better compete with Harley-Davidson on an emotional level, Polaris decided its production capacity and resources would be better devoted to its Indian brand. References External links Motorcycles of the United States Motorcycles by brand Motorcycle manufacturers of the United States Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1997 1997 establishments in the United States Defunct manufacturing companies based in Iowa