Article And Photos By: Chris Rosenberg
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s most people know, Born Free was postponed in 2020 due to Covid. Alleyway Customs knows this story all too well. Of course, we had built a bike for the Biltwell’s “People’s Champ” competition, 2020. We made it to the “Final Six” cut in the competition, which meant a guaranteed trip to California. Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on our side that time; but business is business. A new 2021 competition started, which left our trip in limbo while everyone sorted things out. We were finally given an invitation to display our bike
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alongside this year’s competitors and almost two years later locked in our travel plans! We took off the Tuesday before the show on our three-day trip across the country. We were excited and had very high expectations that we would finally experience what is rumored to be one of the best shows in the country. We were not disappointed! With beautiful sunny (humidityfree) California weather on deck, the stage was set at a massive venue filled with all the nation’s top vendors, builders, and show bikes. There was an impressive display of motorcycles that
were ridden to the show. Bikes could park in the grass area with a specially purchased pass or in the general parking area. I’ve always heard that the parking lot could be a bike show in itself, but it wasn’t until I saw it for myself that I could grasp just how killer it actually is. The Ives Brothers and their Wall of Death shows were on hand all day Saturday and Sunday. As if all of that wasn’t enough, during the awards ceremony on Sunday, they also gave away three bikes: A 1939 Knucklehead restoration, a full custom FXR build from San Diego
