Onno "Berserk" Wieringa www.madnessphotography.nl: Motor Bike Expo Veronafiere 2013 Verona, Italy

Motor Bike Expo 2013 Verona, Italy

Veronafiere, January 18-20 2013

It’s no secret anymore; the Motor Bike Expo has the best custom bike show in Europe.

Thanks to the Abnormal Crew for their friedship and hospitality

Motor Bike Expo Verona Italy 2013

Twelve halls full of motorcycles, parts, accessories, clothing, helmets, tires, apparel, tools, and much more were to be seen at the Motor Bike Expo held in the Verona Fiere in Northern Italy. The four main halls of the Veronafiere, where the custom scene dominated, were booked solid in advance, not a single square meter wasn’t occupied with custom bike stuff.

Me and my good friend Franky - Abnormal Crew

The four main halls filled with everything custom makes ‘Verona’ definitely the best custom bike show to go to in Europe. With celebrities from Europe and USA like Zach Ness the Motor Bike Expo Verona’12 drew a crowd that exceeded 130.000 visitors.

Zodiac Performance Parts for Harley-Davidson

The Adels, cool band!

A high level Group of Customizers like Zach Ness, Russel Mitchell / Exile Motorcycles, Danny Schneider (Hardnine Choppers), Cycle Kraft / Ken’s Factory Kenji Nagai, Kirk Taylor of Custom Design Studios, Peder Johansson (Hogtech), Ben Pudon of Primo and many more were there to present their newest custom bikes and parts, together with the high level Italian Customizers like World Champions Abnormal Crew, ASSO Special Bikes / Carlo Colombo, Garage 65, well, everybody really!

Yeah, I thought you would like this one...

Boccin custom bikes Italy

Masterpieces by Boccin

The Italians are famous for their designs and they again certainly did not disappoint us at all during the Motor Bike Expo Verona this year. Many new parts and accessories were on display, the coolest ideas, the craziest things, it was all there.In the perfect ambiance of music (bands playing everywhere) nice food and drinks, friendly people and, yes, we can’t get around that; many beautiful Italian girls willingly posing on cool custom bikes!

W&W Crew

But man, what a great style the Italians have when it comes to custom bike building. Clearly the early chopper style as we saw in the early seventies is still the favorite style in Italy. Like a time machine your suddenly back in the time when the AMF Harley-Davidson was built, the choppers roared down the street, psychedelic paint jobs on the tiniest gas tanks and small Frisco handlebars were common. But also the Café Racer styling is becoming more and more popular. New and older bikes are treated to a Café Racer gas tank, fender, a pair of fork gators and the typical rear fender / seat combo. A race pipe, rear set and and clip-ons added and voilá, a Café Racer is born. Cromwell type helmet and leather ´Rocker´ jacket makes the owner like a sixties Road Rocker. Although the Italians hardly speak English, they adore everything American and-or English, be it cars, bikes, music or the whole lifestyle!

Hundreds and hundreds of the best looking, coolest custom bikes competed in several bike shows. The judges had to choose among all the custom bikes present in Verona. And all the bikes were spread out over three huuuuge halls, making it one hell of a job to find them first, and because of the high level, pick the best ones out. CCE had their Championship prize ceremony first, followed by Lowride Magazine a couple of hours later. Great fun and the very enthusiastic Italians made a good show on stage. The international press was there to cover it all, so you’ll read and see more in the upcoming custom bike magazines about the Motor Bike Expo Verona’13

Axel Scherer presenting Custom Chrome Europe's new 'Bolt on and Ride' Custom Bagger

Motorcycle Storehouse

Cycle Craft demonstrating their newest product

Kenji Nagaj, Ken's Factory 'Blowing Digger' won Best of Show!

Headbanger reveiling their newest model

Carlo Colombo - ASSO Special Bikes and his prize winning bike

Danny Schneider - Hardnine Choppers' winning Indian Scout

Just like last year, Danny Schneider of Hardnine Choppers had built exclusively for Verona a new custom bike. A gorgeous Indian Scout that was on display in their booth.

Too many builders and parts manufacturers to mention here were in Verona, if you weren’t there; you missed a lot. A whole lot. A whole lot of nice stuff!

The Motor Bike Expo Verona’13 was great. The atmosphere, the bikes, music, the whole scene. It’s the best show in Europe I believe.

“Our challenge is to try to surprise our visitors every year, offering the public something that’s always beyond their expectations” states Francesco Agnoletto, who, together with Paola Somma, is the creator and organizer of the event. “The cordiality and satisfaction created clearly an atmosphere in the three days of the Motor Bike Expo, that demonstrates that our aim was achieved for the 2013 edition too. This was possible also thanks to our innovative formula that shortens the distance between the motorcycle proposal in its whole spectrum (producers, customizers, event organizers) and the consumers”.

“Motor Bike Expo, having it’s 5th edition by Veronafiere, shows the positive and increasing trend and confirms itself as the leading fair in Europe for aficionados and operators. The event combines the world of the industrial and handcrafted motorbikes production with the custom, sport and tourism worlds. In a period in which many productive sectors are experiencing difficulties, the positive results of this event, demonstrate how the “Fair” is the only one that focuses its attention and creates an integrated platform of services for the real economy promotion; both for the industries and for the small-medium business”, underlines Ettore Riello, President of Veronafiere.

“The area dedicated to tourism on two wheels, Motor Bike Travel, first appointment of the year for tourism operators and “buying and selling” of tourism on two wheels, presented the travel proposal of the whole north of Italy, from Liguria to Friuli Venezia Giulia, broadening its horizons this year also to the East of Europe. Motor Bike Expo proves itself as a situation of in depth analysis on the safety measure and of the divulgation of a prevention culture, that, together with solidarity and voluntary work, consider the motorcycles as an instrument to make aware the public opinion. On the whole it is a Fair that fully represents the two wheels world, both as match- point among production, passionates and operators, and for the contents that are faced in order to offer to the sector ideas for improvement and new business opportunities”, underlines the General Director Giovanni Mantovani.

We tried to capture the atmosphere, the bikes, the scene, the lifestyle here and ended up with a couple of thousend pictures. So here's a selection of the best shots we did. A great job, and my friend and collegue 'The G-Man' helped me out doing that, so a BIG thanks for that buddy!

Almost a thousend photo's are here to be seen. And as the saying goes; 'A picture says more than a thousend words', it means you don't need anymore 'words' from me!

With special thanks to the Motor Bike Expo Verona’12 crew, especially Gaia Bozzo!

Enjoy the photo's of the Motor Bike Expo Verona 2013!

On the Sunday the award ceremonies always take place of the different Bike Shows. In the 2013 edition there where even four of them, starting with the Custom Chrome Europe International Series 2013, of which Verona is the only Italian show. The famous aftermarket company selected (thanks to the efforts of its collaborator Ing. Horst Roesler) twelve Bikes divided into four categories.

The Jammer Old School Class is the class for vintage bikes, restored and customized following the style of the past. The third position for this category went to the café racer “Double Trouble” by the Italian Andrea Radaelli of Radikal Chopper (Milano), based on a Honda CB450. Second place was for the 74 c.i. (1200 cc) Knucklehead by Abnormal Cycles (Benareggio, MI), with the famous “Knucklehead” engine build by

Harley-Davidson between 1936 and 1947. Well deserved first place was for Swiss Danny Schneider of Hardnine Choppers (Bern CH), with his Indian Scout 101 from 1930.

The Rev Tech Powered Class, as suggested by the name, is dedicated to bikes with V-Twin Revtech engines, on disposal with different shapes, and engine sizes between 88 and 125 cubic inch (1450-2050 cc). Third place went to the Cruel by the Italians Isidoro and Davide of Custom Attack (Vertemate, CO), second place the Stray Kat of Aldo Lanciano, owner of the American Dreams workshop from Castrovillari (CS). The winner is Carlo Colombo of Asso Special Bike from Lecco with the astonishing 199RRs.

In the class Modified Harley, in which an original Harley-Davidson frame and engine are required, third place saw Skinny Café Racer by Uboldo (VA), with a scrambler interpretation on Shovelhead basis, on second place the Speed Bike 43 from Padova, who realized the racing version of a Softail. On First place ended the space age bagger by Garage 65 (Viareggio, LU) with an aluminium body and all the equipment managed by an iPad.

Finally the Championship Class, which has no restrictions. On the third step of the podium the Ducati racer by South Garage Café (Caggiano, SA). Second place was for the 74 minibike by the Spanish Maik Moratò Guell, who realized a Sportster Harley on a reduced scale. On the highest step of the podium ended Abnormal Cycles from Benareggio (MI) with the boardtracker Speed Demon based on a 1919 JD Model Harley, multi-winner of many international contests.

After the CCE Championship, the award ceremonies went on with the Magazine Award, organized by the Motor Bike Expo Staff, and that had as judges the most famous international journalists of sector magazines, offering as a prize a complete article in their Magazines.

Pierre Brancaleone by RAD Motorcyle Magazine voted for the Moto Guzzi V7 from 1970 by Ruote Fiere, realized by the Milanese Davide Caforio. From Australia, Guy Bolton of the magazine Greasy Kulture Magazine, his preference went to “Primadonna” by Italian Choppers (Milan), on an H-D basis. Alvaro Cabezas of Custom Machine (Spain), choose the rigid “Purple Haze” by Passion 4 Custom, workshop in Serravezza

(LU). Gary Inman of Sideburn Magazine voted, of course, for a bike that completely follows the philosophy of the English fanzine: on the stage Lorenzo Buratti, creator and owner of a SWM RS320 TL from 1980. Freelance photographer Onno “Berserk” Wieringa (Madness Photography) didn’t have any doubt and his choice was for the Knuckle by Abnormal Cycles, realized by Samuele Reali, who won a second award. English journalist Blue Miller of Back Street Heroes, choose the patriotic Triumph T120 from 1976 built by the Tuscan Alessandro Pacelli of Kustom Tech. Then the American Jeff Holt of Hot BikeMagazine choose a real Italian realization: the powerful 199RRs by Asso Special Bike, with carbon body, aluminium frame and a RevTech engine.

After this, the award ceremony of the contest organized by F.I.C. (Italian Customizer Federation) and IMMBA (International Master Bike Builders Association), that awarded ten special chosen bikes among the Customizer Stands and voted following the IMMBA international criteria. The third place went to the bagger by Garage 65, second step on the podium was for the 199RRs by Asso Special Bike and the winner was the incredible Vulture by MS Artrix. Among these three bikes a difference of just five points, demonstrates the really good job made by these Italian Customizers, who made it really difficult for the judges (headed by the President FIC Fabrizio Favre) to choose the winning bike.

In short; the LowRide bike show, who had the biggest number of enrolled bikes, almost 150. Before this the airbrushed helmets contest sponsored by 70’s Helmet: third place for Jonathan Minici and Federica “Rica von Spades”, second position for Cristian Ellis Garage da Bosa (OR) and first place for Alessio Mattiazzi from Paese (TV). Back to bikes, the awarded categories were three in addition to the Top20, the Best of Show and 5 special prizes. Those went to the Guzzi V7 by Ruote Fiere (awarded also on the occasion of the Magazine Award), to the Ironhead 1000 of Alessandro “C44” Castellani from Legnano (MI), to the Sportster of Motoracing Roddolo (Monforte d’Alba, CN), to the 883 “Incrociatore” of North Coast Custom of Santa Lucia del Mela (ME) and to the Sportster “mini” of the Spanish Maik Morato Guell (already awarded on the CCE contest).

Due to the bad weather, with lots of rain in Verona, the outdoor areas planned races of Vespagimkane, organized by the Verona Vespa Club VR37100 were turned into performances. But anyway the event didn’t lose on interest and spectacular nature and the public, that came to watch in high numbers despite bad weather, and greeted the racers with a big applausss, in particular the evolutions of Nicola l’impennatore (a real Piaggio scooter Stuntman) and the acrobatic guys of the “Principato delle Roe Basse” who demonstrates that the Ape in its racing version has definitely a different personality in comparison to that of the utility car we normally know.

The Scrambler & Racer category had as winner the “household” Customizer Mr. Martini with his Triumph Thunderbird Jerolamo, followed by another Triumph by TpR (MI) and by the Sportster of Alberto Benedetti (PT). The H-D Modified appointed as winner a Cross Bones built by Speed Bike from Padua, followed by the “Rock’n’Roll” by Rino of authorized H-D dealer Savona and by the “Shogun” by Stile Italiano on a 1340 Evolution basis. In the bagger category the space age realization by Marco Cinquini (Garage 65) triumphed again, followed by the Green Hornet of Vallese Garage from Borgo Montenero (LT) and by the Electra Glide by Custom Attack.

In the Top20, the first three positions went to the Chopper by Bike Hospital from Reggio

Emilia, to the Lakester on a Harley-Davidson Versilia Shovel basis, and the highest step of the podium went again to the Vulture of MS Artrix.

Lowride organized also the most aspired award, the Best of Show: the best Bike in the whole Fair is the “Blowin’ Digger” by the Japanese Kenji Nagai of Ken’s Factory/Cycle Kraft from Nagoya City who already won in Verona in 2011.

Finally the Italian operators address the European Tourists who love bikes: this is the principal signal of the Motor Bike Travel, the biggest Italian event dedicated to tourism on two wheels, that took place during the Motor Bike Expo.

More than a hundred brands (both Italian and foreign) were present: the biggest specialized realties who operate on a specific field, but above all, national tour operators, consortium and district institutions as the Veneto Region, the Lombardia Region and the Provincia of Genova. The operators of Piedmont, Lombardy, Liguria, Veneto, Puglia, Sicily e Sardinia are the most attentive to this market that looks for quality, wellness, landscape, wine and food: a demand that can have good answers in the offers of these regions.