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NSBNEWS.net photo by Sera Frederick. The nameplate for Bruce Rossmeyer's New Smyrna Harley-Davidson lights up the entranceway to the motorcycle shop on State Road 44 at night.
When my wife and I drove up to Bruce Rossmeyer's Harley-Davidson on State Road 44 in New Smyrna Beach to take a photo of his business as part of the news on his untimely death, I couldn't help but notice that the "D" in Davidson was flickering among the partially burnt-out lighting. At that moment, I closed my eyes and said a prayer for his family.
New Smyrna Beach Mayor Sally Mackay said it best in describing the Harley-Davidson motorcycle mogul's "loss as New Smyrna Beach's loss."
His Bruce Rossmeyer's New Smyrna Harley-Davidson has been a fixture on State Road 44 in New Smyrna Beach next to Pub 44 for years and is the number 1 destination for bikers in Southeast Volusia during the Bike Week and Biketoberfest motorcycl rallies that draw 500,000 and 50,000 bikers for the late winter and early fall rallies in greater Daytona Beach, respectively.
Even when Rossmeyer opened his mammoth Destination Daytona spread on Interstate 95 near Ormond Beach, the crowds that gathered here locally were not diminished in any way. After all, New Smyrna Beach has its fair share of motorcycle enthusiasts.
Though Rossmeyer was obviously more well known in visible at his Beach Street dealership in Daytona Beach and Destination Daytona, his presence was felt in New Smyrna Beach and his shop here draws a lot of traffic.
The circumstances of Rossmeyer's sudden passing are tragic, to say the least, and a reminder to all of us about just how precious life is.