First Annual Don Tilley Memorial Poker Run

story And photos By Alan Dockery

Western Carolina Bikers were blessed with such a pretty blue sky day on the first Saturday in October(10/3). As I got ready to ride out, it was 42 degrees and the carburetors loved it. I found my winter gloves, zipped the sides on the helmet and snapped on the flip up face shield. I knew there would be hundreds of bikers at Tilley Harley-Davidson in Statesville, NC, breaking out their winter gear. As I rode down Highway 70 and slowed at the old dealership I started thinking about Don Tilley. It’s been six years since the biker world lost a legend and hero. But so often we still talk about Don and how we miss him. Not just my racing buddies, everyone has a Don Tilley story they tell with a big smile. There had been a couple small remembrance days when we went to the new dealership and rode a little. This year the family and staff had the first Don Tilley Memorial Ride and plan to make it an annual event. I was glad to see a great turn out with hundreds of bikers parked all around the building. The morning started with a brisk ride, but it was warming fast and folks were shedding layers. The ride was up one of Don’s favorite local routes for getting to the closest tightest twisty mountain roads. We went up through Hiddenite on Sulphur Springs road to Brushy Mountain road and back down Highway 115 past Love Valley to the shop. Back at Tilley H-D stories were shared, big laughs were heard, and a good time was enjoyed by everyone. Ol’ Bob’s provided a delicious BBQ, and local musician Dani Kerr and her band rocked us into the afternoon. Terry LeVan ran through the crowd with door prizes easily won by answering Tilley Trivia questions. Hey, we had winners of the poker run. Donny Tevepaugh had the best hand and Dave Carman drew the worst hand. The hands were so close they gave Todd Holland a prize for second place. As it turned out, both hands were won by such close margins Tilley awarded second place prizes to those who lost by one number in each case! I hung out inside for a bit listening to stories about Don and the race bikes. I answered folks questions, too since I can talk about those race machines and their histories. Antique Harleys were displayed outside. This was another mellow day to hang out at Tilley’s and tell stories about Don. We raised money for the Iredell County Sheriff Department’s Special Programs. To end the day, Sheriff Darrin Campbell addressed the group, and thanked the crowd. “Tilley Harley-Davidson, Don Tilley, and the whole family has always been supportive of the sheriff’s office,” Campbell said. “When we were contacted and told that the proceeds from this poker run would benefit our activities, we were ecstatic. This will go to special programs like our Teen Academy and Athletic League plus the Spousal Auxiliary Group. We are blessed and honored. And so appreciative that people came and spent their Saturday helping us raise money to fund those projects,” Campbell said. It was great to see the Tilley family as it has grown over the years. Tilley’s is still a family run Harley-Davidson dealership. Generations of bikers have bought new bikes and accessories from the Tilley family. They gave me the following statement about the First Annual Don Tilley Memorial Poker Run. “A big thank you to everyone who made the First Annual Don Tilley Poker Run a fun time and a huge success. It was a pleasure seeing so many long-time friends in attendance to celebrate Don. And to those who are just discovering Tilley H-D, we happily extend a hearty welcome.” We thank everyone who spent time with us that day and look forward to 2021 as we ride into our 48th year in business. We sure hope you’ll continue to join us along the way and add to our history of great memories.Ê The Don Tilley Poker Run will be annual event, for sure! Next year we’ll choose another local organization in need and gather again to ride and to remember Don.” The Tilley family said. Terry LeVan added, We want to thank our employees for all their hard work on this event, coming in early and leaving late, it takes a great team to pull off and event like this and you guys made it a big success!! A big thank you to Robbie and Ol’ Bob’s BBQ & Catering, the BBQ was so good, when I got in touch with Robbie and told him what I had in mind for this event and we were raising money for sheriff dept, he was in!! So, thank you guys so much!!! And our band .. wow Jordan Danielle, (Dani Kerr) and her band rocked the house, thank you guys so much and look forward to having y’all back again!!! A big shout out to the Cubbard Express and County Line store, and Trinity fire department for allowing us to have our stops there!! Thanks to Hickory Doc for taking some great pics and just hanging out with us. thanks to Bob Karney for the Don Tilley coozies !! We hope everyone had a great ride and a good time, thanks to our Sheriff Darren Campbell, and the entire sheriff department for all you do for all of us!! You guys are so awesome, and we appreciate each and every one of you guys and gals!! Already can’t wait till next year. this ride is gonna get bigger and better each year! Thanks to all involved!! and thanks to all the people that worked our stops! Thank you all.

A Legend And Hero

Don Tilley was one of my heroes from the time I first started riding Harley-Davidson motorcycles and paying attention to racing. He wasn’t the rider going for the wins, but the owner, builder and tuner who put lots of riders in the winner’s circle. I remember getting to know him while covering Harley’s efforts in Superbike road racing with the VR-1000 and at the dragstrip. Don put Harleys on many different types of racetracks. In the 1950s and 60s he raced stock cars, winning on the local tracks. He moved up to NASCAR’s Grand National Circuit running several races, including Daytona. Don even worked for Richard Petty before he and Robinette opened Tilley Harley-Davidson dealership in Statesville in 1972. Fast motorcycles made him a legend. His riders won lots of races and championships for many years. Occasionally, Don would roll out some of his race bikes for display at the dealership during events. It always brought a smile to my face to see guys checking out the race machines, like the famous “Lucifer’s Hammer”, and telling stories about watching them in action.

Winners, Terry LeVan, Darek Tilley and the Sherriffs

Dani Kerr And Her Band