Novel paint, vintage motors win top awards at High Octane bike show

WEIRS BEACH — Hundreds attended a bike show at High Octane Saloon Thursday afternoon, which attracted contestants from around New England and at least one group of riders all the way from Georgia. 

Mixing between the large, newly-renovated bar area at High Octane and several outbuildings, including a large garage where live music played throughout the afternoon, visitors to Laconia Motorcycle Week drank liquor, ate food prepared onsite, listened to bands and celebrated the spirit of riding and the freedom of the open road.

There were 27 motorcycles entered into the contest, all of them on display in a sort of courtyard area between the bar, the garage and other outbuildings. Under the sweltering sun, contestants and enthusiasts perused bikes of all types for several hours leading up to the 3 p.m. announcements of winners over several categories. 

Between calls soliciting participation in the wet T-shirt contests, which occur several times throughout the day, Trevor Hart of Manchester learned he’d won first prize in the Dyna category. 

Hart made the trip up to Laconia Motorcycle Week on his 2005 Harley-Davidson Dyna Wide Glide, one of just 200 such motorcycles manufactured by Harley — he purchased it new, straight from the factory, he said. 

“I didn’t do s***,” he said when asked what he’d done to make his motorcycle stand out from the crowd. It’s worth noting it had custom handlebars and a unique paint job, part of what makes it a rarity among other Harley hogs. 

“It’s an everyday,” he said.

It’s the first contest he’d entered his motorcycle in, and he also won best paint. 

Another rider, Matt Theven from Lexington, Massachusetts, rode the 100 or so miles up to the rally on another unique motorcycle: a 1942 Harley-Davidson WLA that Theven said survived the Battle of the Bulge. 

Harley-Davidson produced their WLA to U.S. Army specifications in the years during and immediately after the Second World War. Based on a civilian model, it earned the nickname “liberator” among soldiers serving in the European theater. 

The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, occurred between December 1944 and January 1945. It was the final major offensive conducted by the Wehrmacht, intended to separate Allied forces and force a peace treaty.  

Theven won first place in the cobbled-together “military” category at High Octane on Thursday. He told The Laconia Daily Sun he’d purchased it initially from a collector in New Hampshire and worked hard, conducting lots of research, to collect other period-accurate items and accessories to display along with the motorcycle itself.

“You’ve got to search for them,” he said. 

One of those accessories was a genuine Thompson sub-machine gun, which was in common use by the U.S. Army during World War II. Theven had it secured in a holster attached to the forks of the bike, on its right side. In a metal side compartment, Theven stored numerous packs of Lucky Strike cigarettes.

“It rides great,” Theven said. “Old faithful.”

The World War II-era Harley-Davidson’s got just 23,000 miles on it, he said.

“This bike was at the Battle of the Bulge,” he said. “A survivor.”

But another rider, Mark Purdy of Derry, took the cake — two of his motorcycles won first  and second place in the Old School category.

Purdy said he purchased one of them, a 1957 Harley-Davidson XL 900, for $1,000 on Craigslist. The original owner had done custom work on it in the early 1970s, but Purday put countless hours into it after that. 

“I did it myself,” Purdy said in reference to custom welding, new gaskets, added rebar to the seat area and a new paint job, among other items. “This is my ‘I love America’ style.”

For Purdy, it was also his first time entering his bikes into a contest of any sort. His other motorcycle, a 1975 of the same make and model, he purchased from a co-worker for $1,000. 

“The paint job is a little bit different,” he said.

“This is pretty fun, it’s a little different than before,” Purdy said. “If I don’t win anything it’s fine, I’m not so competitive anymore.”