What you can expect at SA’s premier motorcycle, music & lifestyle festival this week!
Are you ready for South Africa’s premier motorcycle, music and lifestyle festival coming up this weekend? The SA Bike Festival takes place 26-28 May at the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit.
It’s just a few short days until the hugely successful South Africa Bike Festival, powered by Discovery Channel, returns for it’s second instalment at the ALL NEW Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit. Back by popular demand from industry members and visitors alike the festival returns to electrify fans with motorcycling mayhem!
South Africa Bike Festival takes place from Friday 26th– to Sunday 28th May and tickets are on sale now for just R200 per person (kids under 10 go FREE), which includes an action packed day out with mountains of 2-wheel action for all ages, sizes and know-how. This is the time for anyone and everyone to see the very best the motorcycle industry has to offer for three days of unparalleled fun for the whole family! Come on down to learn, try, test, ride & buy to your motoring hearts content.
All 2017 tickets include:
- Even bigger leading manufacturer displays and pit garage activations from KTM, Harley-Davidson, Ducati, BMW Motorrad, Suzuki, Yamaha, Honda, Can-Am, Royal Enfield, Aprilia, MV Agusta, Hyosung, CSR, BetaRacing, Polaris, Linhai, Zontes, Husqvarna and Indian Motorcycles.
- GAS Sports are gearing up to bring the 1000cc class for a round of the SuperGP Champions Trophy. Visitors can now also look forward to seeing over 30 of SA’s top superbike rider’s battle it out on Gauteng’s most renowned, celebrated and legendary race circuit. This will be their debut for this race series and the organisers are delighted to also welcome Swiss luxury and innovative watchmakers, TISSOT as the official time-keeping sponsor.
- Official energy drink partner, Monster Energy are bringing a spectacle of death defying tricks, jumps & stunts from 3 of the very best Pilot riders with 2 epic night-time performances taking place on the starting grid. As the sun goes down at 18h00 on Friday and Saturday, the circuit will transform into a mash up of Freestyle Motocross (FMX), fiery pyrotechnics, electrifying lighting, blinding smoke machines, mega Monster Trucks, sizzling Monster Girls, bewildering trial-biking, fascinating fire throwing and booming music. Athletes this year include international FMX daredevil, Jimmy Hill (Yamaha) hailing all the way from the US of A, followed closely by Monster’s “local elite”, Alastair Sayer (Yamaha) and Dallan Goldman (Yamaha).
- A first for South Africa Bike Festival is the launch of the RAMP RODEO BMX & Skate invitational fuelled by Monster Energy. Witness South Africa’s top BMX & Skate athletes go head to head in a jam style format competing for hard cash and the chance to take home the “Ramp Champ” & “Best Trick” titles on a custom mini ramp setup with added features for driving progression & creativity. And if this isn’t enough the Le Riche brothers will be doing their funtastic “brother duo”, Trial Bike Show on their brand spanking new rig twice a day, throughout the weekend!
- A firm favourite returns with the RocoMamas Custom Bike Build Championship with international builder & judge, Frank Sander, from Germany, as well as local judges Grant Mc Nicol and Malcolm Powrie from Ink & Iron. This year’s competition will once again boast 14 carefully selected categories, from Café Racer, Scooters, Trikes and 3 Wheelers to Classic, Street-fighters, Sport Bikes and more! Organisers look forward to welcoming over 40 of SA’s best custom builds on the viewing deck, upstairs and inside the Kyalami Pit Building. Judges and organisers have also decided to add a public vote prize aptly named the BIKE SA People’s Choice Trophy. For those custom-fanatics out there, Harley-Davidson® Africais also bringing several of their SA finalists from the acclaimed international “Battle of the Kings” custom competition.
- Another great addition is the return of the prestigious Pride of Ownership Classic Motorcycle Display. All those with motorcycles dating 1995 and older have by now nominated their classic bikes to be one of thirty exclusively hosted on the top of the Kyalami Pit Roof. Organisers would like to thank the Classic Motorcycle Club, Classic Car Magazine, and the 2-Stroke Smokers Club for helping with the selection of the top 30 for the 2017 festival.
- Those who have never been on a motorcycle can also get involved at the Harley-Davidson Jump Start™machine to get a feel for what it’s like to ride the most iconic motorcycle in the world in a safe and supervised environment. Harley-Davidson isn’t stopping there, as they’re also offering free riding lessons at the event for anyone who signs up at the manufacturer’s stand in the main pit area. And for those who haven’t yet earned their motorcycle license, you can practice your skills with the K53 Training School on an especially laid out range with the ADA-SA Accredited Academy alongside instructors registered at the department of transport.
- This year the event will be lead and hosted by the very best talent in the motorcycling industry, with famous presenters Greg Moloney from #FAST and Robert Portman from Ride Fast magazine who will be our official MC’s and commentators for the event and Super GP Racing, as well as Pro-Freestyle Mountain Biker “Tricky Nicky”, Nick Clarke from Canada, who will MC the Ramp Rodeo and Monster Energy Flight Night. We are thrilled to welcome our official brand ambassador, Biker Queen, Seipei Mashugane, who has spent the past seven years of her nine riding years creating The Biker Queen brand centred on the Lifestyle of Motorcycle riders. Seipei is part of a rapidly growing niche market, and is an inspiration and motivation, as she is known to be one of the first South African black female riders in the country. Not to mention, this year KTM are also hosting South Africa’s hero from the Dakar Rally, Joey Evans, in their Pit Garage. Joey, who was rendered a paraplegic less than 10 years ago, is the only South African biker to finish the Dakar in 2017, achieving his dream with the motto “I did not come this far to only come this far”.
- New for 2017 is the “The Nearly-New Motorcycle Shop, powered by AutoTrader”, offering pre-owned dealerships the opportunity to sell nearly new, trusted motorcycles as well as to generate leads for potential buyers. Visitors can leave their details with various dealers and schedule a test ride in the weeks following the festival. Thus far there are 12 Victory demo & pre-owned motorcycles available to buy in this area, which is located over the main Circuit Bridge. In this area expect to find your favourite local dealers from Honda, BMW Motorrad & more!
- This year the Live Music line-up hails from local Gauteng! Chosen because they are the finest up-and-coming rock, country, indie, blues, jazz and folk bands this side of 2017. They include Boxer with their mixture of box & roll and indie-fuzz, to Jerry & the Bandits sing-along and feel good tunes. State Society bring with them rock, pop, indie & blues, with funky Straight Jackal and Josh Kempen with his folk, swing to garage rock. The Gus Brown Band is a banging folk funk family & Lost&Found are previous members of the Parlotones, Glen Hodgson and notorious drummer Jason Oosthuizen. Crystal Park, Jasper Dan and Deity’s Muse bring their alternative folk rock & country, while Greedy Greg ranges from jazz, hip-hop, rock/blues, psychedelic & country. A full line-up is available today on the festival website.
- There will be some VERY lucky visitors walking away from this year’s festival as there is over a MILLION RAND worth of competitions and giveaways taking place throughout the weekend. Stand a chance to win a Suzuki GSXR 750 from Dunlop Tyres, a Harley Davidson Street Rod®, a Victory Custom Judge, TWO TISSOT T-Race MotoGP watches and meal vouchers from Rocomamas. There is a Monster Energy Jorge Lorenzo MotoGP helmet up for grabs with ZABikers.co.za, plus awesome deals, discounts and festival offers on apparel, tyres and merchandise from over 100 retailers and distributors. All deals and special offers can also be found on the festival website so you can prepare yourself for an epic shopping extravaganza!
Additional Activities:
- Visitors will experience the top favourite activity to come out of last years festival, the Circuit Test Rides, in association with ZABikers.co.za, which is two laps around the circuit on the latest 2017 models including the new Yamaha R6, Suzuki GSX R1000, Indian Scout Sixty, Harley-Davidson Street Rod®, Honda CBR 1000RR Fireblade, BMW Nine T Racer, Can-Am Spyder, KTM 1290 Super Duke R and Duke 390 to name just a few. Prices range between R60 and R160 a test ride and online sales are now closed. Remaining rides are for sale on a first come first serve basis per day and can be bought from the Circuit Test Ride area.
- For those adventurous types, there is also the opportunity to test ride a 2km off-road course with ADA Development Training for just R60 a go, which include KTM’s new adventure range, Yamaha’s XT 1200 Z Super Tenere & XT 1200 ZE Super Tenere & Honda’s CRF 250 Rally, CRF 250L, Africa Twin CRF 1000L & XR 190. Visitors can also ride as a passenger with the experts on the off-road course in the Can-Am Traxter, Polaris Ranger XP900 and Linhai Raider 800. Country Trax instructors will coach visitors on the BMW Motorrad 1200 GS LC starting with a handling and balance skills course before venturing out behind the Kyalami property and into the old prison lands.
- On Sunday, 28 May, the DUNLOP Sunday Charity Motorcycle Ride will see thousands of motorcyclists being able to ride their own motorcycles around Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit as the ride finishes with TWO laps in formation around the circuit. The Charity Ride will have FULL road closures leaving Fairland’s Shopping Centre at 8am sharp. The public will have key viewing points from one of the bridges over the highway: Malibongwe Dr, William Nicol or Bowling Ave. The cost to participate is a “R40 Top Up” on your South Africa Bike Festival ticket, with ALL the proceeds going towards Ride for a Reason-Claw and Paws Charity
- There will be a ton of 2-wheeled kids activities taking place throughout the weekend, including pocket bikes, as well as a mechanical bull, climbing wall and inflatables galore. Plus Joburg’s favourite food trucks. Yes, visitors to the show should arrive hungry with a massive variety available from Sha’p Braai, Smoking Joe’s Rib Shack, Engine 67, Knickerbocker, The Filthy Moustache, Chilli Chef, TacoKombi, Umbuzi Café, SA Belgium Waffle and many more. We’ve got it covered in the way of fuelling your tummy for a FULL DAY of fun and excitement. All to be enjoyed with a refreshing ice-cold beer from our craft beer partners, RedRock Brewing Company.
- Also new for 2017 is a hospitality experience aptly named the Sumting’s Superior Experience for just R495 per person. This ticket includes a meal voucher, compliments of an award winning food truck, Sumting Fresh, priority parking and fast-track entry, access to the festival grounds for the whole day as well as all day access to the Kyalami Pit Roof with the best view of starting grid and Monster Energy Flight Night. Back by popular demand, an even more exclusive VIP package returns for those motorcycle enthusiasts, corporate entertainers and industry heads that want a stress-free all-inclusive experience. The much sought after Sky Lounge Experience (R995pp) gives visitors a 180-degree view of the all new circuit and festival grounds from the Kyalami Pit Roof and most importantly a complimentary pop up-style restaurant serving breakfast and lunch and including beer, wine and soft drinks. Sky Loung tickets are now sold out on Saturday, however are still available (online only) for Friday and Sunday’s event.
This and so much more can be expected at this year’s festival! It is without a doubt, that South Africa Bike Festival, powered by Discovery Channel, is set to be the highlight of South Africa’s motorcycling events calendar this year.
For a full update on the festival and to buy tickets, visit www.southafricabikefestival.com TODAY!
Watch last year’s Drone Coverage; https://youtu.be/TIKiZgmnSJY
Follow @SABikeFest #SABikeFestival #FlightNight #RampRodeo #DunlopWinASuzuki #ThisIsYourTime