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The Carolinas’ Full Throttle Magazine
Biketoberfest At Thunder Tower
By: WildThing It was indeed a pleasure to visit Thunder Tower Harley-Davidson in Columbia, South Carolina on Saturday, October 13th for the first day of their two-day Biketoberfest. The showroom was filled with beautiful, gleaming, new and used motorcycles and the sales staff busy showing them off to inquiring customers. There was a party spirit affecting the whole dealership from the balloons in the showroom to the big-top tents outdoors. Picking up a schedule, one noted the variety bands listed to entertain the crowd all day as well as a variety of other activities. There were two group rides each day sponsored by the Thunder Riders H.O.G. Chapter who also had a canopy set up on the patio outside the front door for members to relax in the shade and possibly sign up new members. The Thunder Riders posed for a group shot with their trophy from the SC HOG Rally in the afternoon. Meanwhile the Buffalo Soldiers were in the side lot registering motorcycles and classic cars vying for trophies to be awarded in the afternoon. Deputy Trey Wade and Deputy Chris Wells from the Charleston County Sheriff’s Department put on a safety skills demonstration at 1pm. They had set up cones and were executing tight turns and figure eights around the cones and dragging their footboards, as the speed and angle of the turns were so sharp. Trey announced that this was a demonstration of the versatility of Harleys as well as showcasing skills to keep riders safe on the roads. Of course, these guys ride for work, so they have to hone their skills to stay alive when bad things or inclement weather involves them while on shift. They demonstrated a “140º pull out” to show how to get out of a tight parking spot. It behooves all motorcycle riders to practice good riding skills every time they ride and that is the reason these deputies go around demonstrating the right way to do it. They also demonstrated the proper way to pick up a motorcycle that is tipped over on the engine guards and without injuring yourself. All the while there were bands performing on the stage
under a shade tent and there were food vendors enticing folks with wonderful aromas of wings and BBQ! Tables and chairs were set up under an adjoining tent in front of the stage to relax, have a bite to eat, and enjoy the music. In the yard next to the service department side of the building there was a giant slide, bounce house, and also a rock-climbing wall that attracted the younger generation and was busy all afternoon. Also on that side of the building the service department had a tent set up and were offering parts and accessories for sale and they had a lift set up for minor service. Back to Rider’s Edge practice lot on the other side of the building, which was by now parked full of motorcycles and show bikes and cars, the stunt team of Leah Petersen and Aaron Twite were revving their engines and attracted a huge crowd as they took turns and performed several stunts including burnouts and stoppies. At each round they would come barreling down toward the spectators and at the last second swerve, screech the tire and stop on a dime! Everyone was busy watching and trying to catch them with cameras and phones. Late in the afternoon, Gene Preston and his son, Chris, owners of Thunder Tower took to the stage at a band break to call everyone over to award the trophies. In the bike show, 3rd Place went to Tunita Dome for her unique green trike, 2nd went to Terry Roe for his ‘blue pearl’, and 1st Place went to Odell Jenkins for his ‘Godfather’ theme bike. In the car show, 3rd Place was awarded to Gary Davis for his Hall of Fame Edition Dale Earnhardt Camaro, 2nd to Ray Montoya for his vintage gold fastback Mustang, and 1st to Jay Britton’s 69 Camaro. The big daddy 5’ tall Best of Show trophy was awarded to Scott Ward from Greenwood, SC for his one-of-akind custom dresser. Apparently it is ridden daily, but it didn’t have a speck on it! Scott, after posing for pictures with his trophy showing off the custom paint job, wowed the crowd by starting it up and shooting fire out of the tailpipe! It was a great day and was sure to be repeated on Sunday. Gene Preston and his family and staff sure do know how to entertain and look after the needs of a large crowd. From the food, cold beverages, music, vendors, and entertainment, all came together to make for a very successful day. Thunder Tower Harley-Davidson located at 190 Pontiac Business Center Drive in Elgin, SC just off of I-20 at Exit 82 (Spear Creek Church Rd.) on the east side of Columbia, SC is surely a destination you want to put on your list to visit. Check them out at ThunderTowerHarley.com. BTW, all the photos Of Thunder Tower Biketoberfest will be posted on www. FullThrottleMagazine.com for your viewing pleasure and you can download them for free!
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