Canadian dealers are joining Battle of the Kings for the first time.
Battle of the Kings is Harley-Davidson’s in-house international custom build-off competition. Canadians haven’t competed before, but this year, we have 21 bikes headed to the competition. It’ll be an uphill battle, with more than 350 dealers from 30 countries submitting their machines.
The idea is for the shops to build a custom Harley-Davidson “using only their imagination, skill and a budget no bigger than half the cost of the original model.” There’s plenty of unique paint, and lots of bolt-on additions, although we haven’t seen anything truly wild, like an Indian Larry welded-chain front end. One of the contest rules is that at least half the custom parts used must be official Harley-Davidson accessories. Builders must choose to enter one of three sub-categories: Dirt, Chop, or Race.
If you want to vote, you’ll have to register here. You can see the Canadian entries here. More details about the competition in the press release below.
BATTLE OF THE KINGS GETS BIGGER THAN EVER WITH CANADIAN DEALERS TO COMPETE FOR THE FIRST TIME
- Canada & USA to join Battle of the Kings entry list for the first time
- Over 350 Harley-Davidson dealers are planned to take part in the world’s biggest dealer custom build-off
- Any model from the range (excluding trike and CVO) can be used
- Canadian voting phase opens today February 14th and the overall Custom King to be crowned November 2019
(Vaughan, ON) February 14, 2019 – After an epic international title showdown in 2018 Battle of the Kings – Harley-Davidson’s annual dealer custom build-off competition – is set to be bigger than ever before in 2019. This year sees even more countries, including Canada and the United States of America joining the battle to be crowned the best in the world.
The competition showcases the very best in customization capability and the creativity of the Custom Kings who can be found at every Harley-Davidson dealership globally. In 2018 the Custom King crown was taken by debut-entrants Harley-Davidson Bangkok with their Street Bob-based build “The Prince.” With over 350 entries already, the title defense will be the toughest yet as competition heats up on a global scale. Any model in the Harley-Davidson range may be selected as a base for the build (excluding Trike and CVO models) meaning dealers have more choice than ever before in order to create a title challenger. To further inspire the competition dealers must choose from three style categories – Dirt, Chop and Race – for their build. The rules for the build are simple – 50% of the parts used must be genuine Harley-Davidson accessories and the customization budget is a maximum of 50% of the donor bike retail price.
Steve Lambert, Director of Marketing for Harley-Davidson International is already looking forward to next year’s competition. “The Battle of the Kings is an incredible showcase for the customization DNA that is at the core of our brand. It inspires our dealers to show just what is possible and inspires customers globally that they can have a truly unique motorcycle – whatever the scale of their budget. After a fantastic competition last year, it’s really exciting to have dealers from Canada and the USA joining the competition – we can’t wait to see the amazing entries from all over the globe!”
The Battle of the Kings competition takes place in national and regional phases throughout the year with the ultimate winner and 2019 Battle of the Kings Custom King to be decided and crowned in November 2019. Voting for the Canadian phase of Battle of the Kings opens online February 14th. All competing Harley-Davidson dealers will be showcasing their custom built-off until March 15th for everyone to admire and vote for their favorite custom motorcycle.
The United States dealers have added an extra dimension to their competition, inspiring the next generation of custom builders by teaming each build with a trade school, with students working alongside the dealership team to create and build their machine.
Thank you. We felt the same. Its getting a lot of attention for sure !!!
Expecting to see a bunch of the chopper-style bikes, I was pleasantly surprised. Some nice flat-tracker and roadster builds.
The Street Tracker is what HD should have built in the first place – nicely done.