Smooth Ride

HogWatch Makes It Easy to Get Your Motor Running

Writer / Angela Cornell
Photography / Provided

It was a busy workday for Paul Nicotra. His construction company was in the middle of a big project for a client, one which required extra supplies. So, he and some employees made a trip to the home improvement store and lumber mill. It was supposed to be a quick errand and it was — almost. After paying for the supplies, loading everything into the back of the work truck, and sending it ahead to the worksite, Paul realized that he didn’t have his keys for his own car. He had accidentally left them in the back of in the store. Frustrated and in a hurry to get to the worksite, he tromped back into the store wondering, “Why doesn’t someone put them in a freaking watch?”

And just like that, the idea was born. Almost immediately, Nicotra and his three daughters set to work on developing the idea into a product. Initially, he wanted to make a watch that would contain car key fobs. After years of working on the design and patent, he decided to focus his attention in a different direction.

“I stopped at Destination Daytona, one of the biggest Harley-Davidson dealerships,” Nicotra says. “I was walking around and noticed that they had a key fob hanging from the motorcycle. I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me! So, you don’t have a key anymore, you only have a key fob.’” By the time he got home, he had decided that the first prototype and application of his patented technology would be the HogWatch.

Nicotra’s ingenious idea was to make a high-quality, stylish, and lightweight Swiss movement watch that anyone riding a Harley-Davidson would be proud to wear. Available in five colors, durable, and water-resistant, they are definitely an accessory built for bikers.

Installation is simple: Pop open any Hog fob as though the battery needs to be changed. Have a look at iwc service cost on their website. Remove the circuit board and screw it into the appropriate HogWatch adapter with the provided screwdriver. Secure the adapter in the back of the HogWatch, and you’re ready to ride.

HogWatch users don’t have to worry about losing or misplacing their fob. “If you lose the fob and you can’t remember your PIN number, then you have to completely change the computer system out. It costs over $600, plus the inconvenience,” Nicotra says.

Since 2006, Harley-Davidson has used three different fob styles, all of which can be adapted for the HogWatch. “We suggest that you keep your existing fob shell. If you do trade your bike in, the only thing you have to do is take out your [circuit board] back out of the watch, put it back in your fob, close it up, and trade your bike in,” he says. “When you get your new bike, you open that fob up. If it’s a different size or shape, you just match it up to the correct adapter that you already have. No need to purchase anything additional.”

It takes more than a good product to make a successful business. It also takes financial backing. That need was met when Nicotra met Knox native Connie Bennett.

Growing up in Knox, Bennett was always working on the family farm. Even when she wasn’t working, she was outside. She was an avid runner, swimmer, cyclist, and spent her summers at Bass Lake. Since the lake life draws many motorcyclists, it didn’t take long before Bennett added Harley riding to her list of outdoor hobbies.

While living in Indiana, Bennett earned degrees in teaching and nursing. Later, she merged the two into a business that provided medical training for schools, daycares, doctors’ offices, and government contractors.

With the prolonged COVID closures of her clients’ businesses, Bennett realized her business revenue stream needed to diversify. Around that time, she hired Nicotra to do a construction project and they bonded over riding Harleys and business ownership. It didn’t take long for Bennett to realize that the HogWatch was the perfect opportunity to invest in a business she believed in.

Bennett’s involvement with the HogWatch has only increased with time. “She not only backed me financially, but helped me out with the whole business plan,” Nicotra says. “She knows what it’s like to have your own business and grow an idea. This is the American dream! You’re taking an idea and making it into a reality and a product and actually selling it and making a profit out of it.”

Nicotra’s three daughters have remained involved with the business. “They’ve not only been there with the support, but to believe in their father in all his madness. Their help has been beyond belief,” he says. “It’s a good little team, having my little minions. Then you add Connie into the mix, and it’s just like the perfect storm.”

As COVID regulations lightened, the HogWatch’s popularity surged. “Now that the world is opening back up, people are more excited than ever to be out riding,” Bennett says. “Our HogWatch makes riding easier and safer. I’m so excited to be a part of this business.”

As far as new businesses go, the HogWatch has been wildly successful. “It started blowing up. Next thing you know, we’re manufacturing these things, we’re selling them. We have the website going. We turned around and got Rusty Wallace, a NASCAR legend, to not only be our brand ambassador but also to partner with us,” Nicotra says. “Here we are, just doing events and driving all over the freaking country doing different events. It’s been a crazy ride.”

The HogWatch is quickly gaining notoriety as a Harley-Davidson accessory turned necessity. Almost everyone who has tried it has loved it. Customer testimonials have describe it as a “game changer,” “really cool,” and “impressive.”

Success by nature isn’t stagnate, and neither is the HogWatch’s business plan. Nicotra and Bennett continue to dream big. “As new as our company is, we’re always coming up with new, innovative ideas to help make the product better for the consumer,” Nicotra says. “We have some irons in the fire for different product lines as we grow.”

To order your HogWatch or to learn more about it, visit myhogwatch.com. Business owners who are interested in selling HogWatches at their establishment are also encouraged to go to the website and click on the dealer program tab.