December 17, 2004 Two hope to ride biker bonanza to prosperity;

BY STACEY ROBERTS

MARBLE FALLS — Combining a shared love of motorcycling and part of a defunct resort on one of the state’s best motorcycling routes is a gamble two men are taking to capitalize on one of the country’s hottest trends.

Bob Richards and Randal Phillips confirmed they signed a contract with the Nielsen Family Trust three months ago to buy five buildings of the former Marble Falls winter sports complex overlooking the Dogpatch U.S. A. theme park in Newton County.

Those five buildings are a 60-room hotel, a 1,700-seat convention center with meeting rooms, a former ice skating rink, an empty restaurant building and a seven-unit strip mall building.

Access to a 25-plus-acre parking lot is also part of the agreement. "We are in negotiations with the bank to take over the mortgage and possibly finance the initial operating costs and refurbishing," Richards said. He said the bank management requested that he not release the bank’s name. He also did not specify how much the refurbishment of the buildings would cost the partners. "We want to keep the numbers to ourselves for a little bit," he said.

The Newton County clerk’s office confirmed the property’s warranty deed remains in the name of Debra Nielsen.

Plans include reopening the hotel and the convention center. The restaurant building will be a rental space for weddings and other events, and the mall will feature a general store and six other specialty shops. Eventually the ice rink will become an exhibition center, Phillips said.

The overriding theme of The Hub — the new name of the center — will be motorcycling, the same interest that drew the partners together. "That’s our common ground right there," Phillips said.

The Marble Falls winter sports complex was built on a hilltop overlooking Dogpatch U.S. A., the theme park opened in 1968 and named after Al Capp’s long-running "Li’l Abner" comic strip. The complex featured a ski lodge with manufactured snow for the runs, a motel, ice skating rink and convention center to increase Dogpatch’s appeal and attendance. The Arkansas winters proved too warm to continue the attempt at snow, the crowds dwindled at Dogpatch, and the park closed in 1993. The property then changed hands several times.

Ford Carr, president of Westek Corp. and Leisuretek Corp. and owner of the 141-acre park, offered the property for auction on eBay in 2002 with a minimum bid of $1 million. No one bid on the property.

Richards, a television producer who recently gave his notice to KTKO Channel 8 of Harrison, founded Star Touring and Riding Club No. 298 in Harrison a couple of years ago. Phillips is a fellow Harrison motorcycle enthusiast who has worked for Tricounty Telephone Co. for 30 years. Marble Falls is the perfect location to appeal to other motorcycle enthusiasts, Richards said.

Several motorcycling magazines have identified Arkansas 7, "Scenic 7," as one of the best roads for riders in the country. "The magazine for American Motorcyclist Association in December ran a cover story," Richards said. "Highway 7 was actually mentioned in the first paragraph."

Rider magazine has also mentioned the roadways of Northwest Arkansas for scenic touring and riding. "Recently the hobby of motorcycle riding has been exploding," Richards said. "Now motorcycle riding seems to be the hobby of choice."

Phillips and Richards have researched their target audience. The typical motorcycle rider is 46 to 47 years old with an annual income of $70,000. According to the American Motorcyclist Association, 26 percent of motorcycle riders have a three-year or better college education. "In the past two years — 2002 to 2003 — there were close to if not more than a million motorcycles sold in the U.S.," Richards said. "The industry expects they will double that in the next year. So it is a huge trend."

See this quality Arkansas newspaper to read the rest of this motorcycle story...

Arkansas Motorcycle News Articles: Online Arkansas Motorcycle News -Arkansas News Stories, Blogs, Events, & Press Releases

What is Motorcycle News World . Com is About?

This web site will touch on the following key words, or topics: Motorcycle news, biking events, biker, biker news, magazine, rticles, press releases, motorcycle articles, stories, manufacturers press releases,motorcycle club news, motorcycle accident, road reports, motorcycleaccessories, motorcycle theft, weather reports, motorcycle sports news, motorcycle racing news, dirt bike news, dirt track, mc, mc news, racing coverage, motocross, superbike, British superbike, Australian superbike, American superbike, yamaha, honda, harley davidson, kawasaki, suzuki, ducati, bmw, hayabusa, crotch rocket, racer, cruiser, dirt, moto gp, motorcycle dealers, motorcycle repairs, used motorcycles, motorcycle touring.

Motorcycle News World will reprint and provide links to motorcycle news stories from Canada, Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest Territories, Manitoba, ONT, ON, ALTA, AB, BC, QUE, QC, YK, NWT, PEI, NB, NS, SK, SASK, MAN, MA, CND, CA, USA, Britain, Australia, Europe, international, Alabama Ala. AL Montgomery, Alaska AK Juneau, Arizona Ariz. AZ Phoenix, Arkansas Ark. AR Little Rock, California Calif. CA Sacramento, Colorado Colo. CO Denver, Connecticut Conn. CT Hartford, Delaware Del. DE Dover, Florida Fla. FL Tallahassee, Georgia Ga. GA Atlanta, Hawaii Hawaii HI Honolulu, Idaho Idaho ID Boise, Illinois Ill. IL Springfield, Indiana Ind. IN Indianapolis, Iowa Iowa IA Des Moines, Kansas Kans. KS Topeka, Kentucky Ky. KY Frankfort, Louisiana La. LA Baton Rouge, Maine Maine ME Augusta, Maryland Md. MD Annapolis, Massachusetts Mass. MA Boston, Michigan Mich. MI Lansing, Minnesota Minn. MN St. Paul, Mississippi Miss. MS Jackson, Missouri Mo. MO Jefferson City, Montana Mont. MT Helena, Nebraska Nebr. NE Lincoln, Nevada Nev. NV Carson City, New Hampshire N.H. NH Concord, New Jersey N.J. NJ Trenton, New Mexico N.M. NM Santa Fe, New York N.Y. NY Albany, North Carolina N.C. NC Raleigh, North Dakota N.D. ND Bismark, Ohio Ohio OH Columbus, Oklahoma Okla. OK Oklahoma City, Oregon Ore. OR Salem, Pennsylvania Pa. PA Harrisburg, Rhode Island R.I. RI Providence, South Carolina S.C. SC Columbia, South Dakota S.D. SD Pierre, Tennessee Tenn. TN Nashville, Texas Tex. TX Austin, Utah Utah UT Salt Lake City, Vermont Vt. VT Montpelier, Virginia Va. VA Richmond, Washington Wash. WA Olympia, West Virginia W.Va. WV Charleston, Wisconsin Wis. WI Madison, Wyoming Wyo. WY Cheyenne.

If you have any questions about our site, please send us an iquiry: admin at motorcyclenewsworld.com
- see also our members area