STURGIS – In just over three months, Laura Klock, founder and president of Helping with Horsepower, along with seven students from Mitchell Technical College’s Power Sports program have transformed a 2018 Harley-Davidson Road Glide motorcycle into an amazing one-of-a-kind performance machine.
Klock and the city of Sturgis revealed the bike in Sturgis Tuesday before it heads off to be sold at Mecum Auction in Las Vegas on Jan. 28.
“It’s a win-win-win,” Klock said. “The students got the project experience, which included extra training by some of the sponsors, while Helping with Horsepower and the Sturgis Rally Endowment benefit from the proceeds.”
“The Helping with Horsepower bike rebuild program adds an marketing, design and teamwork aspect that pairs perfectly with the student’s hands-on mechanical course work,” he said. “These programs have a significant impact on the future of powersports and the students are excited to be working on a project of this caliber.”
The Helping With Horsepower Bike Rebuild Program at Mitchell Technical College launched on Sept. 22, 2022, when Klock and Degen introduced the project to the students during class. When presented the Road Glide, provided by the City of Sturgis, to customize, the group unanimously approved the performance bagger style as the theme. Design ideas began and the team enlisted Tex McDorman, TexEfx, to draw the concept.
“Hopefully this bike will sell for a lot of money to help these great causes,” Klock said.
The mission of the Helping with Horsepower Bike Rebuild Program is to teach life lessons on a personal and professional level, hands-on, with youth, veterans, or any group that would benefit from the experience, all the while providing education, empowerment, and encouragement that delivers an important message: “Just like a motorcycle, you can repair, customize and rebuild anything in your life with the right tools and inspiration,” Klock said.
In 2021, the City of Sturgis set up the Sturgis Rally Endowment Fund, a part of the Black Hills Community Foundation to ensure that the Rally tradition of charitable giving endures for the benefit of future area residents, Sturgis Mayor Mark Carstensen said. Recently, the Sturgis Rally Endowment attracted the attention of a generous anonymous donor who agreed to match donations to the fund, in the form of cash, pledges, or deferred gifts, including the city’s share of net proceeds from the motorcycle build program to a maximum of $100,000. Klock said the finished product is amazing: “This is a really great motorcycle, with thousands of dollars in upgrades,
one-off pieces, and branding that is one of one,” she said.
The city of Sturgis has sweetened the deal for whomever purchases the motorcycle with a VIP Package for the 83rd Rally, scheduled Aug. 4-13. The VIP package will include a 5-night hotel stay at the Baymont Inn, concert tickets, gift cards to the LoudAmerican Roadhouse and the Knuckle Saloon, passes to the VIP Hospitality Center, Sturgis Motorcycle Museum passes, Main Street photo, a 4×8 engraved sidewalk brick, official T-shirts, passes for either the Mayor’s Ride or Ride with a
Local, and entry to either the Tattoo or Beard or Mustache contest along with a 2023 Rally pin/patch kit. And, Tex Mcdorman is providing an original autographed print of the concept drawing as the cherry on top to whomever buys this epic bike.
Klock said she wanted to thank all those who made the bike build possible including: Chris Degen, Todd Dozark, Lockwood Nicole, MTC Power Sports, Vance & Hines, Eddie Tejeras, Paul Yaffes-Bagger Nation, Roland Sands Design, Custom Chrome, PPG, Klock Werks, Rockford Fosgate,
GorillaPro, Dennis Kirk, Arlen Ness Motorcycles, Black Hills Harley-Davidson, Dillon Brothers Harley-Davidson, J&L Harley-Davidson, Harley-Davidson City of Sturgis, SD, Barb Young, Crystal Young, Brian Fathke, Dave Dunn, Jeff Jolliff, Dave Sietsema, Dan Cheeseman, Saddlemen, Laurie Hines Dozark and Schaeffer’s Oil.
