More than 100 motorcycles from around the world will vie for the Official World Championship of Custom Bike Building at this year's Sturgis motorcycle rally.
Champions Park on Lazelle Street will host the event, slated for Saturday, Aug. 1 through Wednesday, Aug. 5. The park is near Lynn's DakotaMart, and awards will be presented at 3 p.m. on the final day.
Roger Goldammer of Kelowna, British Columbia, earned the 2008 championship. He won the Freestyle Division title with a "Goldmember" bike also used for racing. It was assembled at Goldammer Cycle Works in Kelowna.
The winning entry was a liquid-cooled, single-cylinder, fuel-injected blown sport bike with nitrous. It achieved a top speed of more than 160 miles per hour.
A Japanese bike named "StG Nautilus" earned runner-up honors in the Freestyle Division last year. Third place went to "Seppster 2 Ice Racer," a German creation.
"I hope a lot of people come to Sturgis this year," Mary Beth Crowe said. The event's vendor, media and consumer contact edited the Motorcycle Events magazine in Pierre. The 101 bikes expected to vie for top honors at this year's World Championship represent 82 builders.
Fifty-two builders reside in the United States. Seven call Canada home, and the other 23 come from nations like Australia, Germany, Russia, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
Fully-assembled bikes in four categories are on display for the World Championships. Builders choose their 12 favorite bikes but may not vote for their own.
A point scale is used to rank the bikes. Industry VIPs and custom magazine journalists may also cast votes.
The Freestyle Division means just what its name implies. Builders are free of directives and constraints.
Bikes in the Modified Harley-Davidson Division must be based on an original Harley engine and frame. They must also have those items.
Production Division entrants are able to showcase the next generation of production bikes. Metric Division bikes use metric-based parts and components.
This year will mark the sixth World Championship held in Sturgis. Thunder Road east of town previously hosted the event.
Many different competitions precede the World Championship, Crowe said. "The competitors themselves determine who wins."
Crowe said Sturgis has received considerable publicity from this event. Hot Bike magazine dedicated a 100-page issue to this event, and the Discovery television channel aired a program called Sturgis Motorcycle Mania. The magazine distributed 95,000 copies nationwide between November and January.
Winners at events like the European Championships come here. "Part of the winning is getting their bike shipped to Sturgis to be in the World Championships," Crowe said.
Sturgis Events, LLC approached Crowe about two years ago. The company managed the vending at the Lynn's lot.
Dealer World was a UK-based organization partnering with Sturgis Events, LLC. Crowe said the global motorcycle trade publishing company created the World Championship concept.
