HARTFORD, S.D. (KELO) — Just off of Highway 38 in Hartford, you’ll find a new motorcycle repair shop that does everything from general services to custom performance builds.
“Our goal first is to provide the same level or better of services capabilities that you can get at any named dealership,” Andrew Hahn, co-owner of War-Torn Cycles, said.
The owners of War-Torn Cycles also want to be people-focused.
“A lot of the community, a lot of the customers, have reached out and they’re like, ‘man, there’s really a need for a shop that’s more focused on us as the rider and that personable one-on-one instead of just the big corporate machine, basically,'” Christopher Fischer, co-owner of War-Torn Cycles, said.
But the idea of being there for their customers and community goes well beyond just fixing and building bikes.
“One of our biggest personal drives is veteran outreach, predominantly for veteran suicide intervention issues, and just building a camaraderie base with the vet community,” Hahn said.
Owners Andrew Hahn and Christopher Fischer are veterans themselves who met while serving in the Tennessee National Guard. At the time, Fischer had just gotten back from Afghanistan where he was hit with an IED.
“It was a really dark time for me and he kept me from committing suicide in ’15,” Fischer said.
Together they now want to help other veterans facing similar struggles by pledging a portion of their profits to fund local outreach programs.
“I don’t want to just be another organization that can just turn a wrench,” Hahn said. “I want here to be known as a center spot that you can get phenomenal care, you can talk to us like human beings and then you can come to get support for whatever effort that you’re then trying to do.”
“If I can take one guy and bring them out of that dark spot, or gal, and just give them a redirection and keep them from going down that path, that’s what I want,” Fischer said.
The grand-opening for War-Torn Cycles is this Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm. The event will include a bike blessing from the Christian Motorcyclists Association, raffle drawings and a Dyno shoot-out.
