The 30th anniversary European H.O.G.® Rally attended by more than 100,000 visitors.
The 30th anniversary European H.O.G.® Rally attended by more than 100,000 visitors.The beautiful, historic riverside town of Senigallia, Italy hosted the milestone 30th Anniversary European H.O.G.® Rally for the first time, from June 6-9th 2024. This touring rally is annually hosted in a different location, and regularly attracts tens of thousands of motorcycle enthusiasts. This Italian edition exceeded all expectations with an estimated 100,000 Harley-Davidson devotees and Harley Owners Group® members attending the Le Marche region across the three-day event. Over 20,000 motorcycles visited from all over Italy, Europe and beyond for a packed agenda, as this iconic event turned the town into a Harley-Davidson fan’s heaven.
The key event zones included the Piazza Garibaldi, Foro Annonario and the gardens of the huge medieval fortress the ‘Rocca Roveresca’ containing attractions that included a customer welcoming H.O.G. hang-out zone and a Harley-Davidson Expo featuring all the latest Model Year 2024 motorcycles. Celebrating the new era of touring performance, technology, and design, the all-new Street Glide® and Road Glide® models, featuring an updated Milwaukee-Eight® 117 V-Twin engine, were on display. More than 270 people participated in free Harley-Davidson demo rides, and dual sport and off-road fans took the chance to join an exclusive off-road experience, hosted by the Italian Di Traverso Adventouring team of guides, headed up by flat track legend Marco Belli. These popular tours took place on some of Le Marche region’s best Strade Bianche – white gravel tracks that took riders off the beaten path – and demonstrated the Pan America 1250™ versatility.
On Friday the Custom Bike Show, sponsored by Metzeler, hosted many incredible creations from across the European continent, with the overall winner being announced as Italian customer Mirko Perugini and taking home the Metzeler People’s Choice Award a popular winner, Diane Halhead from UK – voted for by more than 300 members of the public.
Saturday’s spectacular parade was led by Harley-Davidson VIPs, including Jochen Zeitz, CEO of Harley-Davidson, and Karen Davidson, Global H-D Ambassador, great-granddaughter of founder William A. Davidson and the daughter of William G. “Willie G.” Davidson, Chief Styling Officer Emeritus, highlighting the Rally’s importance globally, not just in Europe. H.O.G. chapter representatives and flag carriers also led the parade as it set off from the seafront road in front of the iconic Rotunda, a superbly picturesque location. More than 3,000 riders took part in the 20.5 mile (33 km) parade, and thousands of spectators crowded the route to wave and high-five it past.
No H.O.G. event would be complete without an extensive entertainment line-up, and this year’s rally included an impressive Italian and international line up, hosted by Italy’s Virgin Radio DJ Ringo. The bands included The Picturebooks (DE), Eric Steckel (US), The Rainband (UK) Marky Ramone’s Blitzkrieg (US), Heavenix (SI) Timothy Cavicchini and the Gang (IT) and Giuseppe Scarpato (IT).
During the event Harley-Davidson was delighted to confirm that the Harley-Davidson® Euro Festival will return to Porte Grimaud, Golfe de Saint-Tropez, France from May 8th-11th 2025. Last held in 2018, Euro Festival returns in response to huge customer demand with a huge celebration of music and moto culture, planned international headline bands will perform live and with incredible Harley-Davidson experiences brought to the shores of the French riviera. Regularly attracting more than 30,000 attendees, Euro Festival promises to be a huge and unmissable season opener in a packed calendar of 2025 Harley-Davidson sponsored events.
Kolja Rebstock, Vice President and Managing Director EMEA at the Harley-Davidson Motor Company commented on the Rally: “The response of riders to this fantastic event in Italy has been overwhelming, from our local resident attendants, through to those who have travelled far and wide. With attendees from all around the Globe, extending far beyond Europe, from Brazil to New Zealand, really demonstrating the incredible sense of community that the Harley Owners Group embodies, and indeed the strength of the Harley-Davidson brand in Italy. A special thank you to the Commune of Senigallia and the region of Le Marche, all our event partners who made the occasion possible, our sponsors and most of all to everyone who joined us for this amazing rally. See you at European Bike Week 2024, and of course the long-awaited return of the Harley-Davidson Euro Festival which will be held at the French Riviera in May 2025!”
The next riding event in the European Harley-Davidson calendar is European Bike Week, Lake Faak, Austria from 3rd-8th September, which annually attracts more than 100,000 visitors. More information is available at Harley-davidson.com. The location of the 2025 European H.O.G Rally will be announced soon.
Original post on modernclassicbikes.co.uk and published by Frank Duggan. Frank is the Founder and Editor of Modern Classic Motorcycle News, an independent motorcycle publication covering modern classic motorcycles, roadsters, scramblers, cruisers, electric motorcycles and the wider motorcycle industry.
