West Bend Harley-Davidson

In 1946, Ervin Van Beek, working as a mechanic for his father at Van Beek Motor Co., a Chrysler/Plymouth dealership, signed on as a Harley-Davidson dealer. That first year's allocation was only three motorcycles and the sales and service were combined with the car dealership at the corner of 5th and Hickory in downtown West Bend. In 1967, Ervin needed some help, so he hired 17-year-old Jim Dricken, a high school junior, to work part-time as an apprentice mechanic. By 1969, Jim was working full-time. In August of 1980, Erving Van Beek retired and sold the company to Jim Dricken, age 30. In spring of 1998, Jim and Sandy Dricken made a huge commitment and purchased an old bowling alley at 2910 W. Washington St. The building was torn apart, expanded and re-modeled to meet Harley's stringent specifications and opened for business the last two days of 1998. The Harley-Davidson businesses continued to grow and by then about 26 people were employed by West Bend Harley-Davidson and Hartford Harley-Davidson. The Buell line was added during 2001. In 2003, following the 100th Anniversary Celebration, a 7000 square foot addition was built at the West Bend store to provide more storage, parts and service area. Louie Lauters had dreamed of being a Harley Dealer for quite a few years and in August of 2004, Louie and partners John Jordan and Chuck Monroe bought both stores from Jim and Sandy Dricken and became the third keepers of the legacy of Harley-Davidson in West Bend.