Willie G. Davidson Electra-fies Crowd at Bayside Harley-Davidson's Grand Opening

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Harley-Davidson enthusiasts couldn't ask for a better finale to the 3 day non-stop grand opening celebration at the dazzling new Bayside Harley-Davidson than an appearance by the legendary Willie G. Davidson, Harley-Davidson design guru and grandson of the original founder. Thousands of riders and non-riders alike came out to see the new state-of-the-art dealership located off Interstate 264 in Portsmouth, Virginia to enjoy the weekend of food, free music and entertainment, contests, games and fireworks. But it was Willie G. and his wife Nancy, escorted through the dealership by owners Maurice and Cynthia Slaughter, General Manager Kevin Johnson and facility designer Loredana Henderson, who electrified the waiting crowd on Sunday afternoon. Hundreds of fans stood in line to shake hands, to take pictures and to ask Willie G. and Nancy to autograph their Harley-Davidson shirts, jackets, books, bike parts and helmets.

Willie G. and Harley-Davidson CEO, Jim Ziemer were on hand to support and congratulate Bayside Harley-Davidson on the opening of one of the largest dealerships on the East Coast. This 36,000 square foot mega-facility, located on 8 acres and easily visible from the surrounding area and Interstate 264, boasts a 7 story motorcycle display tower making it the tallest Harley-Davidson Dealership in the world. As a tribute to the large US military personnel presence in the region, the interior of the dealership was designed to replicate an aircraft carrier flight-deck and the display tower symbolizes the tower on that ship. The seven cities in the Hampton Roads area are also represented by the seven story tower.

Bayside Harley-Davidson will also host the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles Motorcyle Rider Safety Courses.

MS Family Enterprises is the parent company of the Bayside, as well as the Elizabeth City, Outer Banks, Nags Head, and now Kitty Hawk, North Carolina Harley-Davidson Dealerships, and is a five-time Bar & Shield Award winner, Harley-Davidson's highest award for customer service and sales as well as a three-time Dealer News Top 100 recipient. These dealerships have the largest inventory in Southeast Virginia including diverse rental fleets in both Bayside and Kitty Hawk.