As told by
The Iron Cowboy “Riding a motorcycle on today’s highways, you have to ride in a very defensive manner. You have to be a good rider and you have to have both hands and both feet on the controls at all times.” - Evel Knievel 1938-2007 The Thunder Roads Lodge The New Home Office of TRO Thunder Roads Ohio and Iron Cowboy Productions, LLC have completed the move into their new home – The Thunder Roads Lodge. Located in scenic Burton, Ohio – The Lodge offers TRO the ability to grow in a a variety of ways by expanding the team and allowing us to effectively host ride stops, as well as meetings for motorcycle organizations. It hadn’t been our intention to undertake a move during the coldest period within the last 30 years, but that’s the way it turned out. Despite the frigid weather, the move is complete and we are working towards opening our doors to the public. With any luck, we will host our first LODGE EVENT in late April. Keep an eye out for updates on our facebook page – www.facebook.com/ThunderRoadsOhio. The new home office will allow us to host ride stops throughout the riding season for charitable runs coming through Geauga County. Our first scheduled ride event is on May 3rd – The Geauga County Annual Spring “Drive / Ride It Yourself Tour”. Thunder Roads Ohio has teamed up with the Geauga County Tourism Council to help develop a motorcycle aspect to this fun event that they have developed over the past few years. It’s a fun ride across the Northeast Ohio county with plenty of interesting stops. For more information visit www.TourGeauga.com Email us for information on bringing your ride by the TRO Home Office at ThunderRoadsOhio@gmail.com. We offer special incentives and promotional support for non-profit rides and appreciate the opportunity to meet more riders as they travel through our area.
Vintage Gallery
This month TRO introduces a new feature, The Vintage Gallery. Found on pages 44-45 this month, it showcases photos and ads from past eras submitted by our Contributors. We believe that it’s important that we recognize and appreciate the heritage of our sport, and what better way then by presenting a glimpse into the past through these historic images. If you have photos featuring vintage bikes in their heyday – we would love to see them, especially if there’s a story behind them. Please consider sharing them with us and other readers, by emailing them to ThunderRoadsOhio@gmail.com Menneto Recognized as Industry Leader Steve Menneto, Vice-President of the Polaris Motorcycles division overseeing both the Victory motorcycles and the Indian Motorcycle Brand receives “Industry Leader of the Year” award. Ever since the first V-Twin Expo was held in 2001, V-Twin industry leaders have been acknowledged in a special awards ceremony held 6
during the Expo weekend. This year marked the 14th annual V-Twin Expo Awards, at which Steve Menneto, Vice-President, Motorcycles at Polaris Industries was recognized as the Industry Leader of the Year. Menneto was nominated for the award because of the vision and leadership demonstrated in the creation of the 2014 Indian Motorcycle brand re-launch. The styling and build quality of the Indian Chief motorcycles spoke volumes to the motorcycle fraternity. “Steve did an excellent job leading his team in the re-launch of Indian Motorcycle,” says Paisano Publications Editor Dave Nichols. “The Indian brand has been beaten up in the past, so lots of people held their breath as the new models were introduced. It was clear right away that Polaris was committed to Indian Motorcycle and managed by a visionary leader.” In his acceptance speech Menneto mentioned the momentum and excitement in the entire motorcycle industry. “2013 was an incredible year for American V-Twin motorcycles. Victory celebrated fifteen years, our friends in Milwaukee revealed their work from the past few years and the Indian team launched the exciting new line-up of Indian Motorcycles in Sturgis. 2014 in going to be a great year for all of us, and I genuinely appreciate this award and receive it on behalf of both teams at Victory and Indian Motorcycle.” Courtesy Indian Motorcycle Co.
Piqua BikeFest – 100 Years Later! Have you heard any ‘rumbling’ about an exciting new event that is coming to Piqua? Mark your calendars now because “Piqua BikeFest – One Hundred Years Later” is coming to town! On Friday and Saturday, September 19 and 20th the Piqua community will welcome motorcycle enthusiasts from local communities and beyond for a two day celebration of motorcycling, community, history and fun. The timing and initial incentive for this event is based on a historic motorcycling event that occurred in Piqua on a sunny September morning in 1914. On that date, one hundred years ago, Hemm Brothers Harley-Davidson was located on N. Main St. where Piqua Granite now operates. A picnic with food, games and a ride around the local countryside was hosted by the Harley shop. A commemorative picture was taken in front of the store with all of the participants and their motorcycles. Piqua BikeFest will be the modern day equivalent to that historic event, only better! The planning of BikeFest is well underway and the details are still being developed but some things are certain. The original picture will be recreated in modern day on Saturday the 20th with riders posing on the exact site of the original picture. There will also be bands, food, vendors, a bike show, stunt riders and much more! This event will be packed with energy and entertainment and will offer something for everyone, not just motorcycle riders, but people of all ages. Potential vendors will include artisans, crafts, food, apparel and more. The venues for this event will include historic downtown Piqua and Gover Harley-Davidson on U.S. Route 36 just east of I-75. Activities will kick off mid-day on Friday, September 19th and continue through Saturday night, September 20th.
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