It's Official

Born Free is going to Sturgis...and you are all invited. If you ever wanted to go this is the year.Michael Lichter and the Buffalo Chip are inviting Born Free to fill their building with builder/show bikes,art ( maybe some of your's)and the Born Free spirit.We are riding out and we want you all to have some fun with us. Here is the Press Release ::Come Together – The Spirit of Born-Free Motorcycles as Art is an internationally renowned exhibition, located at the Sturgis Buffalo Chip Campground in Sturgis, SD showcasing the works of the most influential master builders and artists in motorcycling. Motorcycles as Art has become the token exhibition of the annual Sturgis rally. Assembled by world-famous motorcycle photographer Michael Lichter, the exhibition, heralded as some of the finest industry collections ever assembled, captures the personal expression, creativity and spirit that permeate the history and culture of motorcycling. The 2012 “Motorcycles as Art” exhibition, presented by famed photographer Michael Lichter, in conjunction with Born-Free bike show creators Grant Peterson and Mike Davis and the Sturgis Buffalo Chip, titled "Come Together - The Spirit of Born-Free" will once again raise the bar of this annual Sturgis motorcycle rally exhibition as it celebrates freedom of expression, contemporary motorcycle design and the vision of today’s most innovative artists and custom bike fabricators. This Sturgis exhibition will look at what is behind the notion that motorcycle design is as much about the culture and times it was born of as it is about the machinery itself. It will do this by looking at an emerging movement within custom motorcycling. Over the last few years, custom bike building has been returning to its roots. Hastened by the state of the motorcycle industry and the economy as a whole, custom bike builders have been looking back to simpler times, to motorcycling in the 1950's-1970’s for inspiration. They are back in their small garages all across America getting their bikes to work better, look better, and represent who they are. They are using old original swap meet/Ebay parts from the decades surrounding WWII or they fabricate one-off hand-made parts whenever possible. For these builders, anything beats the catalogue ready billet-cut machine-made parts that have become so pervasive. They work by themselves and they work with their best friends. This new breed of builder is acknowledging the styles of the past as they choose to incorporate (or not) today’s engineering innovations. In doing this, they are breathing new life into these old machines. Their creations reflect their personal stories, their friends and contemporary life they are so part of. Paramount to all, they are building these bikes to ride – and they ride them hard. As these developments were coming to pass, two people that had no experience with bike shows, Grant Peterson of Freedom Machinery and Accessories and Mike Davis of Born Loser, decided to organize a one-day show in Southern California in 2009 "about the love of old motorcycles and like minded individuals having a good time together". They wanted the show "to unite people from all walks of life by bringing the passion that we all have of these old machines together for one special day." It was also important to them that the show was free to all that would come, and thus "Born-Free", the bike show who’s title came from combining words from their two company names, began. "Motorcycles as Art" curator Michael Lichter worked closely with Born-Free creators Grant Peterson and Mike Davis on this exhibition to fill the Buffalo Chip’s 7,000 square foot Lichter Exhibition Hall with 2-dimensional art and more than 25-custom bikes. They have selected the most creative bikes and artwork associated with Born-Free to represent this spirited movement and the culture it is part of. Michael, Grant and Mike would like to thank Come Together – the Spirit of Born Free sponsors, Rod “Woody” Woodruff and the Buffalo Chip, the many people on prep and installation crews and the confirmed participants. We will have more details on camping and the exhibit as soon as we know more.