Roland Sands’ perfect day at the beach includes surfing, punk rock and reggae beats and of course, motorcycle racing. The former American Motorcyclist Association 250 GP champion-turned-business owner is hosting the Moto Beach Classic on Oct. 14 at Bolsa Chica State Beach. The inaugural event is part of experiential marketing efforts for his Roland Sands Design, a Los Alamitos-based custom motorcycle parts and apparel company he founded in 2005.
“We want to get people excited about riding motorcycles and racing them,” said Sands. “We also want to break the classic mold of a bike show where you stand around and look at bikes … So we’re bringing racing to the people, and if they have some prior experience, they can participate.”
The all-ages event will feature “Super Hooligan” flat track races, motorcycle drag racing for which some 800 tons of dirt have been trucked in; a surf competition by West Coast Board Riders; and performances by Black Uhuru, Wargirl, Lit, and Unwritten Law at the adjacent Sea Legs Live outdoor venue.
Sands, who got his first dirt bike when he was 5, raced motorcycles for about 10 years, breaking track records and some 32 bones along the way. In the early 2000s he moved on to become a full-time parts designer at Performance Machine, his father, Perry’s, La Palma-based manufacturer of motorcycle wheels, brake systems, controls and accessories. When the elder Sands put the business up for sale in 2005, the son decided to go solo. His business took off after an appearance on Discovery Channel’s reality show “Biker Build Off” in 2006.
These days he employs 15 workers and sells after-market parts for Ducati, Harley-Davidson, Triumph, BMW, Indian Motorcycle and Yamaha bikes, along with motorcycle-inspired apparel and riding gear. His team also builds custom motorcycles, many of which were commissioned by celebrities, including Brad Pitt, Mickey Rourke, and Anthony Kiedis, lead singer of Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Connections
Sands’ relationships with bike manufacturers and brands from related industries have helped him line up more than a dozen sponsors for the upcoming event, including Bonnier Motorcycle Group in Irvine and Hurley International LLC in Costa Mesa.
“I reached out to a lot of friends and people we already work with, so it wasn’t like I was cold-calling people,” he said.
Indian Motorcycle is sponsor of the RSD Super Hooligan Bolsa Banzai Championship Race, while BMW Motorrad is backing drag racing heats on a paved 0.125-mile sprint course.
“BMW has been increasingly active in the custom scene, and we’ve done a number of custom projects with them,” he said, adding that the sprint race winner will take home a watch by Baume & Mercier, another event sponsor. “We’ve also got a live feed we’re producing that will be out on ours and our sponsors’ Facebook pages, sponsored by Valero. So if people can’t make the event, they can watch it all go down.”
Sands hopes to break even, although he said the event has potential to generate revenue.
“I would love to make it an annual event, and the state is behind that, so we’re excited to kick it off this year and keep adding to the show.”
