A variety of motorcycles rumbled into the second-to-last Bell City Bike Night of the season, held at the Brant Artillery Gunner’s Club, on Wednesday, August 28, 2024.
About 125 people and their 75 to 80 motorcycles came out for the event and Doug Newton, organizer for the Bell City Bike Night, thanked the riders for stopping by despite the looming clouds overhead.
“I’d like to thank everybody for coming out tonight and supporting us tonight,” he said. “The overcast doesn’t exactly help with our numbers, but I’m glad to see everybody that did come out.”
During the evening, 18 attendees took part in the long-awaited show and shine event where they competed for first place trophies in three different categories; best cruiser, best metric and best sport bike.
With Kevin Davis, Mayor for the City of Brantford, as the honorary guest judge, himself and Newton got to work adding up points (on a scale of one through five) for paint and powder coating, chrome or black out, upholstery work on seat and bags, fit and finish (cleanliness and accessories), custom work, and overall style, uniqueness and look.
Later, the two announced Mike Blake as the winner for best sport bike, Geoff Luya as the winner for best metric bike, and Stan Fornell as the winner for best cruiser.
While the show and shine was the evening’s main focus, guests also spent the night socializing with both new and old friends, checking out each other’s bikes, and picking up a bite to eat from the Hot Diggity Dog food truck, the P’za Pie Gourmet Pizza food truck and the ice cream truck.
Newton, who has been running the Bell City Bike Night through his online radio station, RiderRadioRocks.com, said that next year, he’s planning on organizing it through his new club, Road Rebels Riding Club.
“We already have 19 members and we actually had another three or four sign up tonight,” he said. “The word ‘Rebel’ in the title is actually an acronym for ‘Riders Enjoying Bike Events Locally’ because all we do is support other clubs and ride with them. That’s why we have an open invite for all other clubs to come out to this event. We want them to come out and tell everyone about their upcoming rides. It’s great because we get to foster a good community, support other’s charity rides and we get more bikes coming out. It’s a win for everyone.”
Because of his open invitation to other clubs as a way to support them, many guests took the opportunity to learn more and sign up for the upcoming Sarah’s Ride to be held in September in Grimsby.
While the 2024 Bell City Bike Night season is coming to an end, Newton announced that next year’s events will be held more frequently.
“I’m happy to announce that next year, we’re going to be holding the event twice a month,” he said. “Instead of just the third Wednesday of every month from May to September, we’ll be holding this event on both the first and the third Wednesday of every month. “We’ve got lots of team power that’s going to help make those events happen, and hopefully we’ll be able to pack the place every second week.”
