ORWIGSBURG - An Orwigsburg man bought the first motorcycle Thursday from the new Schaeffer's Motorsports, off Route 61 in the borough.
Burd Guers, 69, bought a KTM 250 XC-W, an off-road motorcycle, on the opening day of Schaeffer's Motorsports. "XC" represents cross-county while "W" represents wide-ratio transmission.
This is not Guers' first first purchase from a Schaeffer's dealership. He was the first to purchase a Harley-Davidson from Schaeffer's Harley-Davidson, Orwigsburg, in 1967. It was a Harley-Davidson Spring 250, a dual-sport motorcycle.
Guers said he bought the KTM 250 for racing.
"I'm now three to four months away from being 70, and I'm still racing," he said.
"And he wins," Karen Guers, his wife, added.
He said that with the suspension and amount of gas the KTM 250 can hold, the motorcycle was the closest to what he needed for hare scramble racing. Hare scramble is a form of off-road motorcycle racing around a track that lasts for about two hours. Burd Guers' first race was in 1968, and the KTM 250 will be the third bike he currently owns for off-road racing.
Schaeffer's Motorsports is located in the former Heritage Ford building at 1194 Centre Turnpike in Orwigsburg. Schaeffer bought the building for storing all 86 of his motorcycles but thought the building might have more use than keeping his collection safe.
"We are sort of dirt motorcycle-oriented, and we saw guys riding up and down on (Route 61) with trailers, so we thought we could fill this with bikes to sell," Dennis Schaeffer said of the building.
The store sells KTM motorcycles and products as well as used, non-Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Harley-Davidson motorcycles are strictly sold at their dealership, Schaeffer's Harley-Davidson.
Since Dennis Schaeffer's collection still resides in the building, the back of the store also doubles as a motorcycle museum. Dennis Schaeffer's wife, Carol, said that he has so many bikes, they occasionally rotate the motorcycles in the museum.
Dennis Schaeffer said he chose to sell KTM models at Schaeffer's Motorsports because that is what he used to ride.
Motorcycles normally cost anywhere from $3,000 to $35,000. Schaeffer's Motorsports sells motorcycles at about $7,000 to $18,000 as well as smaller motorbikes at about $3,000.
Dennis Schaeffer said his favorite part of working at the store is his service to customers.
"I like to explain how stuff works," he said.
His love of riding motorcycles also influenced his job. Following in his father's footsteps, Dennis Schaeffer started riding in the late 1950s, before he was 16 years old. This paired with Guers' love of racing led to a quick friendship between the two.
Schaeffer and Guers have been "the best of friends," according to their wives, Carol Schaeffer and Karen Guers, since 1963. They both belonged to Schuylkill County Motorcycle Club and Deer Lake Hogs.
The two men said they have taken many motorcycle trips together. Their favorite trips have been across the country to the West Coast. The trips normally take about four days.
"The scenery is nice because it's different than around here," Guers said.
Dennis Schaeffer said they would make stops along their trip at places like Mount Rushmore and the Grand Canyon. He said Beartooth Pass riding into Montana is especially nice.
Carol Schaeffer and Karen Guers have been friends longer than their husbands have. They went to school together and have been friends since fourth grade, Carol Schaeffer said. They also go along on their husbands' road trips, riding on the backseats.
"We would ride one way and fly back the other," Karen Guers said.
"We had to because we worked," Carol Schaeffer added.
The wives said they don't worry about their husbands when they go on motorcycle trips now that there are cellphones and Bluetooth.
"Before there were cellphones, they would just go out and ride until they were bored, so I would worry, but now he can call me," Karen Guers said.
Dennis Schaeffer plans to share a passion for riding through his new store. Schaeffer's Motorsports is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and is closed on Sundays.