Baxter Cycle - Marne, Iowa USA

[TigerTrax]

Yesterday on my home from a short sales trip into Iowa I stopped at
Baxter Cycle 'just to stick my nose in the door'.

As always, one gets greeted with a 'hi' ... if it's an unfamiliar face, "it's what can we do for you ?" ... if it's a familiar face .. small talk begins.
In both instances, you know you are amongst friends .... who talk Triumph!

There isn't anything fancy about this place in a town of 200-300 surrounded by corn and soybean fields .... well the epoxy floor is nice.... and Randy is the Mayor! You peer around the showroom where all the models are on display and you'll sometimes see a beautifully restored BSA, Triumph, or Norton. And you think, " I'll bet Randy sells a lot of bikes."

But walk down the dark corridor past parts bins  with boxes labeled,
' 1957-1961 Oil Seals' etc,etc,etc... as high as you can see... small boxes
4" wide x 4" tall x 8"-10 deep... thousands of them ... and you say, " I think Randy sells a lot of parts!"

When you get to the end of the corridor and step into his 'vintage showroom' .... " Gadzooks" rolls off your lips .... in front of you are 60 -75 vintage Brit bikes: Triumph, BSA, Norton, Ariel, and even a
Vincente Rapide...$58K.  You name it... it's probably sitting there... in running condition: Maybe not perfect, but good enough to buy & ride!
And you say to yourself, " Randy sells a lot of bikes!"

But as you walked in and were awestruck by all those bikes.... you missed something ..... All the vintage handlebars hanging on the wall.. there must be 200! And because we NEVER LOOK UP ..... you may have failed to see the 200+ vintage gas tanks resting on the rafters and shelves. And you say to yourself, " Randy sells a lot of tanks."

Wellllllll then Randy says, " Go over in that room and take a look at the bikes we have for restoration...... remember Gadzooks? Yep..... there must be 40 bikes in there. Oh, how about other buildings he has JAMMED with vintage Brit bikes!!! Yikes! You name it .. Randy probably has it or can get it. Randy sells a lot of stuff!

There are 2 service areas at Baxter Cycle:
One for modern era bikes sold off the 'new bike' showroom floor.

One dedicated to restoration. Kind of quiet group... some of their projects
may take 18 months or so. People from across the country drag their vintage iron in and leave it saying, "call me when it's ready!"

SO where does this lead to .... Baxter Cycle is a genuine 'destination' if you love Triumph or Brit bikes. I know there are a handfull of these dealers in the country ... I hope to visit them all.  But where they make their money is SERVICE. They are true to the brand, relish its past, and do their best to get you what you need ASAP. Baxter Cycle ranked #3 in the country for Customer Satisfaction at this years dealer meeting.

When I mentioned doing a custom paint job on my '06, Randy says " I know great paint guy, and he walks over behind the front counter where
there are oodles of names, numbers, notes, written all over the wall.... and he pulls off a Post It Note and photo copies the info for me.

I'll post some pics as soon as I figure it out!

Trax

Got a favorite Triumph dealer... let's hear about them.

[Stretch]

Wow, a reason to go to Iowa.  :mrgreen: