2 minute read
VALE
AVE ATQUE VALE Dale Walksler 1952-2021
Multi-time Dealernews Top 100 winner, perennial “Best Use Of A Theme” winner, moto historian, museum curator and AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Dale Walksler died at home February 3 after battling with cancer for four years. An entrepreneur as a teenager, Walksler was a wheeler and a dealer from the beginning. He bought and sold Harley parts during high school before launching Dale’s Hogs motorcycle store in 1973 when he was only 18.
He opened his second shop, ‘Custom Works’ in 1975. In 1977, when the opportunity to buy a franchise opened up, young Dale seized the chance. With a loan from his father Bernie, Walksler became one of the youngest Harley-Davidson dealers in the history of the Motor Company at 22, when he bought Harley-Davidson of Mount Vernon, Illinois. As his business grew, Dale moved his motorcycle collection into the dealership to attract customers. The draw was unmistakable as the dealership immediately differentiated itself… and began decades of dominance in the annual Top 100 awards recognizing retail excellence.
His larger-than-life personality and marketing prowess allowed him to turn a small rural dealership into one of the most successful Harley-Davidson franchises in the country. He renamed the dealership “Dale’s Harley Davidson” in 1982 and began his ascent to his status as a treasured motorcycle icon. In 1997, Dale rode a 1917 Henderson motorcycle coastto-coast and beat Alan Bedell’s old transcontinental record, ending in New York City with an appearance on The Today Show with Al Roker. One of our favorite dealerships, Dale’s Harley remains the only 4X winner of the Best Use Of A Theme award in the Dealernews Top 100… but that was just the tip of the real excellence juggernaut this operation was. Dale was a 14X Top 100 winner before he sold the dealership. When he sold the dealership in 2000, Dale toured the country scouting out a new location for his Dale’s Wheels Through Time Museum. He settled on Maggie Valley, NC adjacent to the Blue Ridge Parkway where he built a world-class facility to house his burgeoning collection of 350+ vintage American-made motorcycles.
Although the Dale’s Wheels Through Time Museum is only open six months a year, more than 100,000 visitors tour its exhibits annually… a lasting legacy from a legendary dealer. From December through April, the staff restores bikes and arranges new exhibits. While we are biased and believe his accomplishments as a dealer stand out, it is the museum’s popularity that earned Walksler real fame, including appearances on American Restoration, Chasing Classic Cars, American Pickers and his own show What’s in the Barn?
Even after becoming an icon, Dale remained true to his love for Harley-Davidson. When asked what drew him to the brand, Dale stated, “It was the panache of the company and the idea that four young men, working out of a shed behind their dad’s home, could change the world.” Dale’s legacy continues to change the world 100,000 visitors a year and millions of viewers on re-runs. Walksler was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2019. His biography can be found at motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/detail.
