Roeder Harley Davidson - Sandusky, OH - Motorcycle Sales/Service Sites on Waymarking.com

From the Roeder Harley Davidson web site:
The names Roeder and Harley-Davidson will forever be linked in the record books. Some say the corporate bond is just as strong. George Roeder started racing back in 1949 when he was just 12 years old. He started by going with his older brother to the races. But, before too long, Roeder had come into his own as a racer.

Harley-Davidson took notice of Roeder and began to sponsor him on the circuit. Although he never made it to the top spot, Roeder etched his name into the Harley record books in 1965. On October 21, at Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, Roeder set a world land speed record of 177.225 mph for 250CC motorcycles. He rode a modified Harley-Davidson Sprint named the Streamliner.

In 1967, Roeder retired from racing and returned to his home in Monroeville, Ohio to work his 500-acre farm. A few years later, in 1972, Roeder again connected with Harley-Davidson after a friend suggested they open a Harley-Davidson dealership in Monroeville. Roeder balked at the idea, saying he was too busy with the farm but he friend said he would run the shop while Roeder would just be the silent partner.

Harley-Davidson wasn't passing out many dealerships in those days, but Roeder's racing years with Harley gave him an opening. He called John Davidson about a dealership. "I'll see that you get one," Davidson told Roeder. And he did. The friend backed out of the deal, though, and if it hadn't been for Roeder's wife, Jessie, he would have too. "Jessie wouldn't let me back out," Roeder had said, "or I would still be farming."

George Roeder, Founder of Roder Harley-DavidsonRoeder Harley-Davidson opened in 1972 with a first shipment of 20 Harley-Davidson® motorcycles. Roeder had to drive his farm truck to Milwaukee to pick them up and stored them in the barn, which had no lock on the door. Roeder slept with a shotgun on a mattress on top of the crates of motorcycles, stored in what were once the milking stalls until he could get them assembled and the barn remodeled into a dealership.

Roeder continued to work the farm by day and build motorcycles by night. Jessie would sell a motorcycle and Roeder would build it that night, having it ready for delivery when the customer wanted it. But Roeder's dedication to customer service and his integrity have set the benchmark of his business even to this day. In the early days, Harley-Davidson would only warranty the parts and the dealer had to back up the labor. Most dealers were only interested in the sale. Not Roeder. He stood behind what he sold. Roeder told his customers that "they were built to run and if they didn't, bring them back" and he would fix them. Roeder Harley-Davidson customers today still rely on that dedication to customer service, especially those that have been with the dealership since the beginning.

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