Vaughn Beals was inducted to the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2008.
11 Facts About Vaughn Beals
1.
2.
An only child, Beals was born and raised in the Boston area.
3.
Vaughn Beals earned bachelor's aeronautical engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
4.
Vaughn Beals then worked at North American Aviation and Cummins as engineer and executive.
5.
Vaughn Beals was CEO, chairman, and president of Formac in Seattle, a company that made large engines and logging equipment.
6.
In 1975, Vaughn Beals was recruited by the conglomerate American Machine and Foundry, where he was hired to oversee engineering of new products for Harley-Davidson.
7.
At the time Vaughn Beals was hired, Harley-Davidson was struggling with quality control issues and sales of its motorcycles had decreased significantly, losing market share mostly to Japanese imports.
8.
Vaughn Beals directed a number of changes in the company's motorcycles designed to make them more comfortable to ride and operate.
9.
Vaughn Beals directed creation of Harley Owners Group in 1983, today the world's largest factory-sponsored motorcycle club.
10.
The acquisition did not prove profitable, and Vaughn Beals eventually sold the company for $50 million in 1996.
11.
Vaughn Beals died at the age of 90 in Gig Harbor, Washington where he and his wife spent their summers.