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The Liberty
Bike
As we wandered around the grounds surrounding the statue we saw a glass
cabinet with the "Liberty Bike". It was commissioned by CEO Richard W.
Stocks, of Gold
Leaf Corporation a company that performed restoration work on the Statue
of Liberty and maintains artifacts from it. Richard asked Orange County Choppers (OCC) to build
a bike dedicated to the statue and freedom. The kicker was they were given a few
choice artifacts from the statue itself to incorporate into the bike (a cable
that lit the torch became the shifter, for example), and the entire bike was
plated in copper from the actual statue.
Orange County Choppers bikes are motorcycles
featured on the television series American
Chopper built by OCC for a specific corporate or celebrity
customer. Theme bikes are motorcycles in which the theme
of the motorcycle takes priority over everything else, influencing the frame
dimensions, paint scheme, and overall 'feel' of the motorcycle. The function of
motorcycle usually takes a backseat to the presentation of the theme, and these
motorcycles attract attention solely on the premise of the theme itself.
Customer bikes are built for and generally to the specifications of a particular
customer.
Although the customers typically give OCC creative freedom to do what they will,
some clients have a specific idea in mind and expect OCC to reproduce their
mental picture literally. Customers use the bikes for promotional purposes at
tradeshows or auction them off as a charity fundraiser. OCC was in the business
of building custom motorcycles for individuals before it gained fame building
themed projects or was featured on television. OCC has returned to that business
while incorporating some of the designs that made them famous.
 
 
 
ALL IN ALL QUITE A BIKE
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