European Bike Week is an annual motorcycle rally held at Lake Faak in Austria. Attendance in 2018 was 200,000 people, the largest rally in Europe and the third largest worldwide.[2][1]
| European Bike Week | |
|---|---|
 European Bike Week: Harley village at night, 2007 | |
| Genre | Motorcycle rally |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Location(s) | Lake Faak in Austria |
| Inaugurated | 1998 |
| Previous event | September 2–7, 2019 |
| Next event | September 7–12, 2020 |
| Attendance | 200,000 (2018)[1] |
| Patron(s) | Harley-Davidson |
| Website | europeanbikeweek |
The first motorcycle meeting at Lake Faak took place in 1998 and was a Harley-Davidson anniversary event at this time. The meeting was organized by Daniela Gabriel, who worked for Harley-Davidson Europe management. The first meeting took place with 15,000 participants.[3] The next year, the event was renamed European Bike Week. In the next few years, it grew from a small event to now the biggest event the rocker- and biker scene of Europe and the third largest event worldwide. Also, the event has been increased in the meantime to ten days.[2]
Events of all kinds happen in organized "villages", as well as those privately offered around Lake Faak. This includes a ride-in bike show since 2002 by Custom Chrome Europe with a stunt show. Concerts take place during the week. In 2012 Kiss cover band Kiss Forever played, the Rammstein cover band Stahlzeit, as well as 10cc.[2]
A focal point of the event is the Harley village, where campsites are located as well as the official Harley-Davidson dealership. The outlaw biker scene has its own place at the event.[2]
An annual highlight is the parade of up to 25,000 riders take a common exit with very large media presence around Lake Faak.[4]
In 2012 motorbikes worth half a million euros were stolen.[5]
References edit
- ^ a b 120.000 Teilnehmer an der Bike-Week, Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF), 2012-09-09, retrieved 2012-11-16
- ^ a b c d Horst Rösler (November 2012), "European Bike Week", Bikers News (367): 28–34, ISSN 1614-9157
- ^ Zu Gast bei "Miss" Harley-Davidson, Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF), 2012-09-06, retrieved 2012-11-16
- ^ 25.000 Harleys bei Abschlussparade, Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF), 2012-09-08, retrieved 2012-11-16
- ^ "Harleys" strahlten mit Sonne um die Wette, Kleine Zeitung, 2012-09-08, retrieved 2016-09-02