Another Great
Day, Another Great Open House!
A
few showers kept the crowd down a bit from last year, but more
than 500 motorcycle enthusiasts turned out for our annual spring
open house. They were rewarded with a full day of fun, terrific
music from Dixie Power Trio, a free bbq chicken lunch prepared
by Art's Barbecue, a wide range or door prizes, and much more.
One customer even saved $800 on his motorcycle insurance by talking
to agents who were here as vendors!
Under
the watchful eye of Nate Kern's image on our race bike trailer,
early demo riders start preparing for the first ride of the day.
The
demo fleet included just about everything BMW makes, from G650s
to K1200LTs, R1200GS Adventures to a K1200S.
Tom
Bartlett (left) of Western Power Sports talks Gaerne boots with
a customer.
Volunteer
Scott Mersiowsky (left) discusses used bikes with an attendee.
While
volunteers Patrick Callahan and Rich Phillips register customers,
Morton's BMW owner Jeff Massey chats with a guest.
Old
friends catch up with "Million Mile Man" David Swisher
(center).
Recording
artists Dixie Power Trio -- yes, there are four of them -- kept
the audience entertained through the mid-day with their unique
blend of music.
Ask
the man who owns one -- a current K1200LT owner (center) tells
prospective customers the virtues of the moddel.
Jane
Schluter (left) of BMW Motorrad USA talks gloves with Kathryn
Sinclair and Roger Sinclair.
BMWBMW
stalwarts (from left) Bill Shaw, Brian Horais, Ted Verrill, and
Angelo Gravagna compare notes.
Art
Crow's team did their usual great job with lunch, this time featuring
bbq chicken.
Some
of the crowd enjoys lunch in the shade of our dining tent.
The
young ladies from Rita's handed out free Italian ice desserts
to all comers.
Demo
ride staffer Jack Heric (left) talks to friends from southwest
Virginia nest to his new R1200GS Adventure.
Don't Knock
It 'Til You've Trialed It!
Dewey
Keeton, one of our certified master technicians, is also an experienced
trials competitor, and he put on an amazing show of control and
agility.
Actually,
several shows -- he performed four times during the day, so everyone
had a chance to see him.
Before
each show, Dewey would work the crowd by performing wheelies
and stoppies throughout the parking lot.
As
he began each show, Dewey would explain the history of observed
trials, the scoring system, and the types of motorcycles used.
Dewey
laid out a course through some drainage areas and sections of
berm, then added logs, rocks, and other obstacles to keep it
interesting.
 
Up
and over! It's a lot harder than Dewey made it look!
 
No
matter what he had to do -- pull a stoppie to swing the back
of the bike around a 90 degree turn or climb over a concrete
fixture -- Dewey was in complete control.
For
some brands, "colors" means a leather jacket with gang
names -- the BMW crowd is a little more laid back, using t-shirts
to ID their model preference.
Morton's
BMW owner Jeff Massey (right) talks to the Robertson brothers
about motorcycles and Virginia Tech -- two shared interests.
BMW
veteran Jim Post heads home on his R1100RT trike.
Bruce
Seger, Executive Director of Greater Fredericksburg Habitat for
Humanity, talks to the crowd about their benefit Poker Run, sponsored
by Morton's BMW.
Before
the door prize drawing, Jeff Massey thanks the crowd.
Tim
Davidson, a Nationwide Insurance agent from Richmond, presents
Tricia Taylor with a cooler bag.
Next,
Davidson awarded a Nationwide backpack to Butch Eskey.
For
his final donated prize, Davidson gave a $150 Morton's BMW gift
card to Mike Redding.
Bowing
to his benefactor, Mike Kramer accepts a Scorpion helmet case
from Jeff Massey.
Mark
Brunson shows off his $75 coupon for Gaerne boots.
Anna
Swinfen accepts a GX Air jacket from Massey.
Lisa
Barnhill -- remember that last name, you'll hear it again soon
-- won a BMW Silver Function shirt.
Jeff
presents a pair of BMW Pro Summer gloves to Jim Westindorf.
Patrick
Moon, celebrated his first Morton's open house by winning a pair
of BMW Sneeker IIIs.
Steve
Barnhill -- you met his wife earlier -- won the grand prize,
a BMW Tourance II jacket, to cap off his day.
Special
thanks to everyone who came, our staff, and the other folks who
made it happen!
VOLUNTEERS
| Patrick
Callahan |
Glenn
Chavez |
| George
Clotfelter |
Jack
Heric |
| Scott
Mersiowsky |
Allison
Mullins |
| Scott
Olsen |
Tom
Overman |
| Rich
Phillips |
Jennifer
Talken-Spaulding |
| Kirsten
Talken-Spaulding |
Nancy
Teeters |
VENDORS
|
Tom
Bartlett |
Western
Power Sports |
|
Kim
Boyette & Tim Davidson |
Nationwide
Insurance |
|
Matt
Brown |
Helmet
House |
|
Jane
Schluter |
BMW
Motorrad USA |
|
Neita
White |
Scorpion
Helmets |
|
