Wyoming resident receives unique 25 year award for loyalty to the Kawasaki brand and KLR650 models
Paul Westman of Lander, Wyoming, has received a unique award from a fraternity of originally BMW motorcycle enthusiasts. The Big Dog Adventure Ride recognized Westman’s loyalty to Kawasaki motorcycles and specifically for having owned and ridden KLR650 models for the entire 25 years of the model’s availability in the United States.
The Big Dog Adventure Ride was initially an invitational event organized for customers of BMW of Denver and was exclusively for BMW G/S and GS models. Over the years the annual gathering allowed other big (over 640 cc) displacement dual sport models to enter what has been called “The Annual Running Of The Dogs.”
In 2006 the group celebrated 25 years of production of the G/S and GS BMW models. This year those present at their annual gathering celebrated 25 years of production of the venerable Kawasaki KLR650 model.
The 2012 Big Dog “Continental Divide Ride” was based in Lander, Wyoming and hosted by the local Kawasaki motorcycle dealer, Lander Marine and Kawasaki, the oldest Kawasaki dealership in the United States. Paul Westman, and his brother Eric Westman, are the owners of this exclusive Kawasaki motorcycle dealership.
For the last 25 years Paul Westman has owned Kawasaki KLR650 models and still has the one he purchased in 1987, the first year of the KLR650 models. He has been loyal to newer models of the KLR650 as they became available over the last 25 years, purchasing several and riding them seriously off-road and on pavement, as they were designed for: a big single cylinder dual sport model.
Westman’s award from the fraternity of Big Dogs reads, “First place to Paul Westman for 25 years of loyalty to Kawasaki motorcycles and the KLR model. Presented by the BIG DOG ADVENTURE RIDERS of the 2012 Continental Divide Ride.”
The Big Dog Adventure Ride can be found at horizonsunlimited.com/bigdog.
Sponsored VIPs for the 2012 event included Bob’s BMW of Jessup, Maryland (www.bobsbmw.com), BMW of Denver, Colorado (www.bmwofdenver.com), Sandia BMW of Albuquerque, New Mexico (www.sandiabmwmotorcycles.com), and the well respected dual-sport and adventure motorcycle outfitters Happy Trails of Boise, Idaho (www.happy-trail.com).
