BMW of North America Employees Give Send-Off to Ride of Smiles Organizer Dr. Hans-Henning Buetzow

Employees Ride Their Motorcycles to Work in Show of Support for Charity Ride

Woodcliff Lake, NJ – May 15, 2015…Employees of BMW of North America, L.L.C. welcomed Dr. Hans-Henning Buetzow to BMW’s corporate headquarters today and gave him an official send-off for his charity motorcycle ride that will traverse 50,000-miles and raise an anticipated 50,000 euros for children in need throughout the world.

Dr. Buetzow will complete his Ride of Smiles journey aboard a BMW R 1200 GS Adventure motorcycle. His route, which will trace a symbolic 50 on the world map, will take him across North, Central and South America as well as Australia and New Zealand. His goal is to raise at least 50,000 euros for four charitable organizations: Doctors Without Borders, Christian Blind Mission, United for Africa, and Sternstunden, the Bavarian TV and Radio Broadcast.

“We are delighted to welcome Dr. Buetzow to BMW today to give him a proper send-off on his long and ambitious journey,” commented Kris Odwarka, Vice President, BMW Motorrad USA. “I am confident that the bike is up to the task; and I’m sure Hans is too, judging from his previous adventures!”

Mr. Odwarka thanked BMW employees who rode their motorcycles to work in a show of support for Dr. Buetzow.   “Imagine your commute times 1,000, and you can understand what Hans-Henning is about to do. We wish him a safe and prosperous journey.”

A resident of Heidelberg, Dr. Buetzow is an experienced and enthusiastic motorcycle tourist, who has been traveling the world on two wheels since 1989. Impressed by the enormous hospitality and joy of life shown by the people he meets on his travels, he was inspired to give back to those less fortunate through his Ride of Smiles.

Donations can be made directly to the four charities or via the Ride of Smiles website (www.ride-of-smiles.de).

For more information on Ride of Smiles and to track Dr. Buetzow’s route around the world, visit www.ride-of-smiles.de.

BMW Group In America

BMW of North America, LLC has been present in the United States since 1975. Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC began distributing vehicles in 2003. The BMW Group in the United States has grown to include marketing, sales, and financial service organizations for the BMW brand of motor vehicles, including motorcycles, the MINI brand, and the Rolls-Royce brand of Motor Cars; DesignworksUSA, a strategic design consultancy in California; a technology office in Silicon Valley and various other operations throughout the country. BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC in South Carolina is part of BMW Group’s global manufacturing network and is the exclusive manufacturing plant for all X5 and X3 Sports Activity Vehicles and X6 and X4 Sports Activity Coupes. The BMW Group sales organization is represented in the U.S. through networks of 339 BMW passenger car and BMW Sports Activity Vehicle centers, 146 BMW motorcycle retailers, 122 MINI passenger car dealers, and 35 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. BMW (US) Holding Corp., the BMW Group’s sales headquarters for North America, is located in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.

Information about BMW Group products is available to consumers via the Internet at: www.bmwgroupna.com

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Journalist note: Information about BMW Group and its products in the USA is available to journalists on-line at www.bmwgroupusanews.com and www.press.bmwna.com