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The Lexington & Rockbridge Area Tourism Development office provides assistance to working media by filling requests for information and materials. The online press room provides easy access to information about the Lexington and Rockbridge area. If you need additional assistance, please contact L&RATD.
Media inquiries should be directed to:
Sheryl Wagner, Director of Marketing
Lexington & the Rockbridge Area Tourism Development
106 East Washington Street, Lexington, VA 24450
Telephone: 540/463-3777
Fax Line: 540/463-1105
E-mail: marketing@lexingtonvirginia.com
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The Lexington & Rockbridge Area Tourism Development office would be glad to help you develop your story. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
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Lexington & Roanoke, VA – August 1, 2006 – Recognizing a similar, growing audience in two very different localities, Jean Clark of Lexington and the Rockbridge Area Tourism and David Kjolhede of the Roanoke Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau saddled up to make a farther-reaching, more powerful impression on a hot niche market than either could hope to alone: motorcyclists.
Roanoke Valley and Rockbridge County each see a large number of motorcyclists passing through; that number is growing. Both areas host motorcycle conventions and club gatherings, namely a Moto Guzzi enthusiasts group, a British Motorcycle club, a Christian Motorcycle Riders association, and the Gold Wing Road Riders’ Rally. To better serve these thunderously loud groups and attract more of them, the two offices created a dynamic motorcycle touring brochure, Roanoke Valley & Rockbridge Rides in the Heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains, that includes varying lengths of scenic and white-knuckle loops in each jurisdiction and two tours that join the jurisdictions. The cooperative effort equals shared costs and shared benefits.
Aside from attracting motorcycle affinity groups, Roanoke and Rockbridge County seek to grasp the attention of baby boomers on motorcycles. A 2005 market research study indicates baby boomers represent the vast majority of visitors to the area with 60% earning $75,000 or more per year. In stride with that, Harley-Davidson’s Demographic Profile shows that their buyers’ median age range has held steady at 45 to 50 with a mean income of around $80,000 each year since 2001. Big name bikes, baby boomers and the gorgeous pilgrimage of the Blue Ridge Parkway is a match made in motorcycle tourism heaven.
As of 2004, there were 5,781,000 motorcycles regularly in use in the United States. Those cycles traveled a total of 10,048,000,000 miles in 2004, according to the United States Department of Transportation Bureau of Transportation Statistics. A total of 645,503 street bikes were sold in the United States in 2005, a 6.8% increase over 2004, as reported by the Motorcycle Industry Council. Specifically, Harley-Davidson’s touring segment of sales increased 18.1% from 2004. The market and the roads are hot as sales continue to climb.
Roanoke Valley & Rockbridge Rides is the first brochure of its kind in Virginia, and has already attracted the attention of several publications. Road Trips and Road Runner magazines have each made plans for editorial content.
Lexington and Roanoke are 50 miles apart and are both located along Interstate 81 in western Virginia. Let us roll out the asphalt carpet for you! Request your copy of Roanoke Valley & Rockbridge Rides by contacting the Roanoke Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau at 540-342-6025 or Lexington and the Rockbridge Area Tourism at 540-463-3777.
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Lexington, Virginia – February 1, 2007 – The 2007 Group Tour Planner for Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County is now available. This comprehensive piece includes summaries of attractions, as well as suggestions for specialty tours and a list of exciting annual events to plan around. Make your planning process as smooth as possible with an inclusive chart of area accommodations and a chart of distances from more than 50 metropolitan areas.
For more information on Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County, or to request a Group Tour Planner, please contact Ms. Mayumi Smitka by phone (877-453-9822) or email (pr@lexingtonvirginia.com).
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Lexington, Virginia – January 23, 2006 – The staff of Lexington & Rockbridge Area Tourism worked with Access, an advertising agency in Roanoke, Virginia, to create a new promotional brochure and dining and lodging guide. Both brochures are modeled in the same style as the tourism website, lexingtonvirginia.com, to maintain an ensemble of resources to enhance branding and recognition.
“We’ve Been Working on Your Getaway for Centuries,” the title of the promotional brochure, serves as a teaser to what the area has to offer visitors. Featured are photographs of Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County sites. A marquee attraction, the Natural Bridge, is prominently displayed on the front cover with Civil War General Thomas Jonathan “Stonewall” Jackson and a musician, which reflects Buena Vista’s many outdoor musical events. The brochure suggests visitors prepare themselves because “even the things you expect to see exceed your expectations.” Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County truly offer something for everyone, from sight-seeing, outdoor recreation, and family fun to an enormous amount of historical and cultural details.
For more information on Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County, or to request a brochure, please call 877-453-9822.
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