Sources: AMD, IDN, FT, Reuters, PSB, MPN, BDN, MCN, AP, Bloomberg, MSNW, Electrek, electricmotorcycles. news, RideApart. com, Motor1. com, Cycle World, motorbikewriter. com

Notorious right wing Conservative influencer Robby Starbuck ' s latest campaign- against what he calls Harley-Davidson CEO Artie Starrs ' wokeness – appears to have backfired and is being termed an exercise in " self-aggrandizement " by some Harley dealers. The MBJ reports that so far dealers are saying that they haven ' t received rider feedback supporting the campaign and that it ' s irrelevant to the company ' s path under Starrs. " This time around, dealers are far more united behind Harley ' s new CEO, compared with their lack of support for former CEO Jochen Zeitz." The new campaign, they say, " is more of an annoyance than a threat." Dealers point out that the company dropped the policies Starbuck criticized in August 2024, when Zeitz still was CEO. Meanwhile, dealers continue to approve of Starrs ' overall business strategy and his extensive outreach to improve the company ' s relationships with them.

Roger W. Marshall, the entrepreneur who built Marshall Distributing into one of the powersports industry ' s leading aftermarket parts and accessories distributors before selling the company to Western Power Sports( WPS) in 2014, died July 12 at his home in Sand Point, Michigan. He was 88 / PSB.

The AMA has announced 31 racers to represent USA at the 100th FIM International Six Days Enduro( ISDE), with 10 Trophy and 21 Club riders to compete in the Alentejo Region of Portugal on Oct. 12-17.

After announcing the cancellation of the Zeitz ' era Harley Homecoming Rally as an annual event, Harley has redefined and reconfirmed its plans for the Labor Day weekend with The Harley-Davidson Museum and area dealerships will presenting " The Ride Home " from Sept 3-6 at the museum and five Southeast Wisconsin dealerships. It was to have been six stores, but Oconomowoc based Wisconsin Harley-Davidson ' s owner Robert Moakley said he " cannot properly host this event for 2026 " but will resume hosting events during the rally for 2027. MBJ said that it had independently confirmed that House of Harley-Davidson in Greenfield, Suburban Motors Harley-Davidson in Thiensville and Uke ' s Harley- Davidson in Kenosha County were all signed up. Harley has moved The Homecoming to an every-five-years celebration, with the next one planned for 2028.

<<< Mannaia, once again demonstrated the talent of one of Italy ' s most exciting young builders. " Also featured in the AMD selection was ' La Primera ', the Harley- Davidson Road Glide built by Bad Boys Garage, bringing the unmistakable spirit of Chicano style to the stage through a modern bagger interpretation. Equally impressive was the award-winning Harley-Davidson Model B ' Nike ', created by the duo Gallery Motorcycles / Damiano Roncaglioni, which amazed the judges with its sophisticated postmodern reinterpretation of 1920s Harley- Davidson racers." The individual class winners offered an extraordinarily diverse snapshot of today ' s European custom scene. In the Clubstyle category, victory went to the Harley-Davidson Low Rider ST built by Austria ' s 2 Wheels Terror Crew. Samuele Gorni claimed the Freestyle title with his Yamaha XT600 Annina, while Custom Thom took top honors in Modified H-D with one of his signature creations, a muscular

Harley-Davidson Night Rod. Further victories went to RCK Roll- Chop and its Harley-Davidson Shovelhead in Old Style, BSS Custom & Repair with its IZH Planeta in the Metric category, and Low Special Parts from Naples, whose Buell S1 claimed the Streetfighter crown. In the Scrambler and Cafe Racer categories, two Harley-Davidsons came out on top: the Knucklehead 29 by Czech builder Zbinek Threcek and the XL1000 Ironhead by Austrian customizer Wolfgang Mayer. The extensive prize pool was provided by sponsors including: Zodiac International, Avon Tyres, Blauer, BS Macchine, Dynojet, Faster96, FG Racing, Gubellini, H- D Bergamo, Motodesign Custom, Rizoma, Salon du 2 Roues de Lyon, San Marco Petroli, Shoei, and Simpson Motorcycle

The Best in Show award of the Italian Motorcycle Championship( IMC) went to ' Paruk ', a BSA 650 chopper built by Friulian customizer Renato Peres.

Helmets. " Alongside the Custom Bike Show, the second edition of the Performance Bagger Show brought together some of the finest sporting interpretations of modern touring baggers, reflecting one of today ' s fastest-growing trends thanks to dedicated racing series such as the Harley-Davidson Bagger World Cup- held alongside MotoGP weekends- and the Bagger Racing League Europe, now in its second season and official partner of the competition. The overall winner was the Harley-Davidson Road Glide prepared by 4Touring and Ironborne for A. Pagnanini of Novara." Finally, the prestigious Golden Rod Awards were presented by leading personalities, magazines, influencers, and representatives of major custom events who traveled to Lignano from the United States, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden to honor some of the show ' s most remarkable motorcycles. Among them, media partner Bikers Life recognized Belarusian builders Savitski Custom Workshop and Garage 242, who had traveled all the way from Minsk with their custom Harley-Davidsons. Additional awards were presented by Sturgis Buffalo Chip( USA),

12 AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER- AUGUST 2026 www. AMDmag. com