BIGGAR BRIT RALLY

I recall being a 7 year old kid in 1986, playing with lego on the living room floor while my father sat at the table in deep concentration with a pen and paper. Upon further investigation I found that he was drafting a t-shirt design featuring a motorcycle with a cool gothic typeface. It was then that I learned that he and a fellow motorcycle enthusiast, John Bennett, were planning a British motorcycle rally. At the time, no such event existed in Western Canada, and was born from my father’s and John’s dream to see more classic British bikes back on the road.  John would host the event on his farm near Biggar, Saskatchewan, while my father would write letters to anyone and everyone they thought might be interested in attending a rally. The August long weekend was chosen, hot dogs and hamburgers were prepared, and 25 red t-shirts with a blue inked Velocette MAC were printed to commemorate the inaugural event.

My Dad and John (along with help from family and friends along the way) went on to run the Biggar British Bike Rally every August long weekend from 1986 until 1999 when it was taken over by the Canadian Vintage Motorcycle Group. The rally was no Sturgis-North but rather a family event with camping, a poker run ride to the Handel Bar (in Handel, SK - population 25). Rick’s Trivia, show ’n shine, trials event, and the gymkhana. That first year saw 25 bikes and their accompanying riders and families and grew to around 75 before they passed the torch. This was truly a grassroots effort and paved the way for similar events that can be found throughout the country today. I’m very proud of what my father and his pals built and want to celebrate it. So…

with 2026 being the 40th anniversary of the first rally, I had the idea of recreating the original shirt. With no surviving artwork to use I had to try to track down an original t-shirt, and to the best of my knowledge, there are only two in existence. Doug Bone, who was drafted to create the gymkhana event at the rally, sent me his surviving original shirt, from which I created a new screen to print a new batch.
These T's are a limited edition. Get yours while you can.