A BIG Thank You from Tom, Dealer Principal of Liberty

Tom McTamney, Dealer Principal

I wanted to jump right on and post a big "Thank You" Saturday night, after our 15th Anniversary Bash.  I also wanted to post a "Thank You" on Sunday.  But the fact is, after seeing how our event went off, the reason I haven't posted is that, I'm speechless.

We've done a lot of events over 15 years, and all have gone off without a hitch (except for some rain).  But this last one, I have to say as the Dealer Principal, has raised the bar to a new level, a level which may be unsustainable.

Where do I start?

Well, the ribs by Famous Dave's were outstanding.  They delivered food for 700 plates, on time, perfectly cooked.  By our last count, we put out 650 platters - plus 250 hot dogs.  Kudos to Famous Dave's for not disappointing - and for filling our lot with the aroma of barbecue!

Next, I have to thank the City of Rahway.  We routinely host events in our lot, 1 or 2 per month during the riding season, and we do kinda take over Milton Ave., Broad Street, the parking lot - and it couldn't happen without the generous cooperation of the City of Rahway.  Our events would all be more difficult without the help of Rahway's Finest.  For this event, we had two off-duty police, but the event went so well that all they had to do was enjoy the day.

While we're thanking the City, we have to thank former Mayor Jim Kennedy for helping us pull the winning ticket, and Mayor Sam Steinman for his kind words.

The David Alen Band was crazy good - they filled the lot with their sounds with the help of Bob, the sound guy.  Thanks to Frank Provenzano from Pro Sound for the equipment!

Now, to the meat of the situation - special thanks to our outstanding, second-to-none Liberty HOG Chapter!  Our HOGs served 600+ plates of food, cake, and ice cream.  They volunteered to help with security, and a fine job they did.  And of course, very special thanks to the Liberty HOG Road Captains, without whom we could not have run the Demo Event.  Let me expand upon that - our Road Captains, ably led by Woz, provided security and safety for 7 Demo Groups - all riders with different experience levels, through city and highway riding, for 50+ test rides.  It's no small matter to keep 50+ novice riders safe, and they volunteered their time and their own bikes.

I'd also like to give a shout out to our honorary HOG member, Ray Mikell, for all his help with the food, and up on stage representing Rahway.

That brings us to the backbone of our event - our employees.  Events at our store generally fall squarely on the shoulders of Anthony and the Service Department crew.  Charged with setup, breakdown, cleanup, these are the guys you see running around, getting tables, ice, chairs, extension cords, and any other random thing we might need.  They handled the signups for the Demo Rides, the stage setup and breakdown, the Jumpstart, and everything in that lot that happened, happened with the help of our Service Crew.

Our General Merchandise crew also worked hard - inside and out - handling 10-20 times more customers than your average Saturday.  Parts kept the parts flying, and our Sales Team, led by Ryan, spent the afternoon mingling.

Before I run out of space, thanks to John and Patty for THREE Anniversary cakes, all beautifully decorated and as fresh and tasty as could be.  And last, thanks to Piece of Cake for providing the Ice Cream to go with the cake - next time you see Teddy or his son Jim, make sure you thank him!

And now a few words about my observations of the day.  I've been riding over 40 years - exclusively H-D for about 30.  What I see in our lot could not be reproduced anywhere in the word except by H-D.  If you were here, you'd have seen lots of clubs - several HOG clubs, lots of NYC MCs, LAMA, Trike Masters - people separated by club affiliation, ethnicity, race, age, gender - and everyone greeted each other like longtime friends.
 

---

The Harley-Davidson lifestyle has this magic that unifies people of vastly different backgrounds in their mutual love of riding.

---

Whether it's a bike night, open house, Patriot Guard Ride, Toy Run, or a ride for all the other causes Bikers ride for, no other brand brings us together like Harley-Davidson. 

What is the magic that of brand - the brand we love so much?  Why is it able to transcend something that would otherwise be very difficult to overcome, to unite very different people into one?  No one knows, we just know it is.  I, for one am glad to be a part of it for so long.

 I thank you for your continued support, and I hope we'll all be around for the next 15 years!