If you were one of the thousands forced to pack up your tent and flee the Barber Vintage Festival grounds when the skies darkened over Birmingham this past October, your regret is entirely justified. When the tropical storm finally broke over the grounds, it left behind a damp, gleaming scene that hosted one of North America’s finest collections of custom BMW motorcycles.
To grasp the event’s significance, you have to understand the legacy of BMW Motorrad Days, an annual gathering in Germany that has drawn the Bavarian faithful for decades to celebrate the brand’s heritage, engineering, and culture. Bringing that magic across the Atlantic created BMW Motorrad Days Americas, a festival within a festival seamlessly integrated into the Barber Vintage Festival. With Barber typically drawing 60,000 to 85,000 attendees for vintage racing, swap meets, and manufacturer demos, it served as the perfect backdrop.
The story of this custom showcase began months earlier at the MOA National Rally in Essex Junction, Vermont. BMW MOA Executive Director, Ted Moyer, was leading a tour of Motorrad executives through the grounds when they stopped at the Builder’s Best Show. Impressed by the caliber of the curated custom motorcycles, Moyer extended the invitation to bring the Builder’s Best Show to Birmingham, leaving Builder’s Best promoter, Sue Aldridge, to curate a roster spanning from classic Airheads to K-Series “Flying Bricks,” built in styles ranging from café racers to scramblers. Builders answered the call from California, Detroit, New York, and Canada.
While pristine motorcycles gleamed under immaculate Alabama blue skies on Thursday’s move-in day, forecasts warned of an impending tropical storm due Friday evening. By Friday afternoon, the brilliant skies vanished, forcing festival organizers to evacuate thousands of tent campers and delay Saturday’s start by several hours. The rain battered the grounds until midday Saturday, forcing many attendees to head home early. But for the die-hards who were able to stick it out, the Builder’s Best Show became one of the festival’s biggest attractions.
You can see the entire gallery here, but here are some of the standout builds from the showcase that proved weathering the storm was worth it:
Tyson Carver’s 1989 BMW R 100GS
Dripping in nostalgic Marlboro and Playboy livery, this rig was a brilliant modern interpretation of a 1985 Paris-Dakar racer. Carver’s machine arrived with genuine dirt cred from multiple off-road camping trips. To back up the rugged looks, he fitted WP forks from a KTM 450, a custom carbon-fiber dashboard tucked behind an SWT fairing, and a massive Brembo front brake to haul down the heavy-duty Excel rims. It rightfully earned BMW Motorrad’s pick as their favorite of the show.
Zack Witkowsky’s 1977 BMW R 100/7 “Bronze Bomber”
The Beecher, Illinois builder reimagined the classic airhead into a dark, brooding bobber. A single, sweeping piece of custom tubing replaced the subframe, supporting a minimalist solo seat that hovered over knobby Dunlop tires hugged by custom fenders. Bathed in matte black and heavy matte bronze powder coat, the Bomber proved that sometimes the quietest bikes speak the loudest.
Andre Baracat’s BMW R 100S Brat
The sleeper hit of the weekend, this Florida-built brat led the People’s Choice voting for much of the event before finishing a narrow second. Praised for its genuine ridability, it featured a custom subframe supporting a classic tuck-and-roll seat over Öhlins shocks. At the same time, the front end was updated with inverted BMW S 1000 forks clamped in Powerbrick triples. Finished in understated grey with a subtle tri-color BMW Motorsport stripe, it was a machine built to be ridden.
Anthony Logalbo’s BMW R100 RT Café Racer
Showcasing the camaraderie of the custom scene, friends Nick Rovello and Marek Kruszynski hauled this bike down to Alabama for New York builder Anthony Logalbo. The airhead was a textbook aggressive café racer, featuring Renthal clip-ons, Marekswerk rear-sets, Öhlins suspension, and dual Brembo brakes. Anchored by a dark navy blue gas tank, it perfectly honored the café racer ethos.
Scott Thibeault’s BMW RS Tribute
Built in just twelve weeks, Thibeault tore a 1972 BMW /5 down to the frame welds to create this raw-metal masterpiece. He fitted modern Suzuki GSX-R1000 suspension, completely rebuilt the engine with a Siebenrock 1,000cc kit and titanium internals, and wrapped the package in one-off aluminum bodywork shaped by Evan Wilcox. Left unpainted in polished aluminum and brushed stainless steel, this homage was selected as the BMW MOA’s favorite of the show. ( Read Thibeault’s Road to Barber)
Nick Rovello’s BMW K 1100 earned additional honors, taking the Champions Pick selected by OrangeCat Racing. Meanwhile, Parker Zamarelli successfully defended his People’s Choice title from the 2025 Builder’s Best Show in Lebanon, TN.
By the time the event wrapped on Sunday, the storm was completely eclipsed by the caliber of craftsmanship on display. The Builder’s Best Show is back on the road, with its next stop at the MOA National Rally in Great Falls, Montana. Whether you want to see the metal in person or put your own build on the podium, don’t miss it twice.
