SO WHO IS BIKE FEST OZ!?

Good question. The organisers are a group of tightknit and hardcore motorcycle enthusiasts and entrepreneurs with unique skills that, combined, give them an impressive combination of skills and experience to be able to create, coordinate and run a successful and exciting event on the international scale of Bike Fest Oz!.

The ‘guy whose fault it is’ is a name fairly well known in motorcycle circles, both here and overseas. Chris Beattie’s first riding experience was ‘borrowing’ his mate’s dad’s moped at the age of eight and riding timed laps around his local area in northern NZ, until his antics were discovered – and punished — by his long-suffering Mum.

A move to Australia in his late teens saw him eventually sign up as a cub reporter with respected national title, Australian Motor Cycle News, becoming editor in three short years – “purely because of natural attrition” he is quick to point out.

“I was uniquely qualified for the job because I was an automotive machinist at the time, had absolutely no journalistic qualifications whatsoever and was an average/failed C Grade Superbike racer.

Subsequently, Chris embarked on his own publishing career, his suite of magazines included The Oz Harley Buyers Guide and leading Harley-focused magazine, Heavy Duty, which coincidentally last year celebrated its 30^th year of continuous publication.

Chris also contributes to an impressive range of leading enthusiast titles across motorcycling, automotive and marine media, including Australian Motor Cycle News, Heavy Duty, Unique Cars and Australian Hot Rod.

In a rich and varied career, he also found time to establish Ticket2Ride Global Adventures, a two- and four-wheeled specialist group tour company which, in 2003 transported nearly 500 Australian and Kiwi Harley enthusiasts (and 348 of their bikes) to the USA for the single-biggest/loudest/fun-est motorcycle party the world had ever seen, when Harley-Davidson celebrated 100 years of motorcycle building and racing in Milwaukee.

Speaking of which, Chris is now the owner — and one of the racers — in the interestingly-named Over The Hill Gang (othgang.com.au), a group of hardcore – and ‘mature’ – motorcyclists who compete on various bikes in the National Roaring Sporties Championship on modified Harley Sportsters and Buells.

In mid-2021, Chris decided to make the move from Melbourne to the sunny and beautiful Qld/NSW border region, linking up with long-time residents, mates and fellow Harley enthusiasts Craig and Annette Hughes, which was the catalyst for forming the Gang.

Joining Chris as a consultant in the Bike Fest Oz! management group is Peter Woods, a name that needs little introduction when it comes to founding, organizing and running major enthusiast events, shows and exhibitions in Australia. Together with his experienced Premiere Events Australia crew of seasoned large event experts, Peter has built up a formidable suite of shows and events that are at the pinnacle in their respective categories.

The Mandurah and Perth International Boat Shows, the York Motorcycle Festival, the Sydney 4WD and Adventure Show, the Perth 4WD & Adventure Show and the SA Boat & Fishing and Adelaide 4WD & Adventure Show are among many other major events that have come and gone over a stellar 35-year career, so the crew at Premiere Events don’t exactly need to parade their successes. Their long and varied list of repeat show exhibitors and visitors speaks for itself.

“We’re very excited to be helping Chris and his team on Bike Fest Oz!” said Peter. “I’ve known and ridden with Chris for a number of years and we’ve shared some fun times together. But while Chris brings a very impressive level of professionalism, promotional and entrepreneurial skill and expertise in handling large groups of people to the party, we like to think that Premiere Events is the one-stop shop when it comes to pulling together the many critical behind-the-scenes elements that go to making up major successful public events.

Chris was also quick to point out that he and his management team were keen to ensure that the local communities around the border, which has been so hard-hit by catastrophic weather events, benefited from the establishment and running of Bike Fest Oz!.

“As a local resident who loves the area and relaxed, informal lifestyle and genuine warmth and friendliness of the locals, I intend to work closely with local Coolangatta and other south-east Qld authorities, community groups, businesses and charities as much as possible to ensure the community as a whole is on board right from the start. We’ll certainly welcome input from local residents to ensure there’s as little disruption – and as many benefits as possible — during the running of Bike Fest Oz! 2023,” he said.