GET TO KNOW FRANK KERGIL
What was your first motorcycle ?
My first motorcycle was a nearly perfect Honda 50 that I got for $ 75 at age twelve ! It was the cool one with a manual clutch and a fourspeed gearbox and those sweet ribbed street tires . A great bike for riding in the field behind our house .
What bike did you then graduate to ?
When I decided I wanted to be a racer , all my saved up paper route money went to buying a used LT2 MX Yamaha . I was a squid in 100 junior class racing on that bike . Then I hit the big time when I got a job in a Hodaka shop and raced a 100 Rickman with a Hodaka 100 super rat engine in it . I remember the front brake cable breaking on the big downhill at Washougal . That shop evolved carrying Penton bikes and later on just about every European bike available in the 1970s . I think I worked for three different owners throughout my time there .
Tell me more about your riding history .
I started riding off-road events and rode my first ISDE with a day qualifier when I was 16 . In high school , I was a mechanic at the local Suzuki dealer and continued racing in more ISDE events . When I went to college I sold everything and didn ’ t ride off-road for a while .
How did you find your way back into the industry after college ?
I started riding again at about age 28 and was racing quite a bit . Once I was back at it I must have had 20 different bikes over ten years . Then in 2005 , I had a van fire that burned up about five motorcycles and all my gear and some tools . As I was rebuilding for that , I decided to dabble in the industry , selling Sherco ’ s and TM ’ s . When the opportunity came about that Beta was available in my area in 2012 , I jumped at the opportunity and we became a " real " MC Dealer . We were fortunate that our shop started just as the twostroke RR ’ s came out . That in a few short years became a life changer . In 1995 I had started a business as a video systems integrator . That business required a hands-on interface to the customers and we become a partner with each customer . They rely on our products to run their business . When I started Frank ' s Motorbikes , that is the same approach I wanted to take to ensure every customer gets the best service we can give . We may do things a bit differently and our shop layout is different from some shops , but it works for us and our customers . Beta is key to our business and we want to continue to grow it every year .
VOL . 6 ISSUE 3 - MARCH 2021 // PAGE 39