The 25th Annual Republic Of Texas Motorcycle Rally will be host to the Inaugural Derwood Invitational Builder Show. Located on the Rally Midway at COTA, the show will include a curated collection of motorcycles from some of the top builders in the country. Bikes of every kind are welcome to participate and we are currently selecting hand picked bikes to join us. See our list of participating builders below and check back often as the list continues to grow.

COLE FOSTER – SALINAS BOYS CUSTOMS

From Hot Rod Royalty comes classic customizing. Cole Foster, owner of Salinas Boys Customs, has been constructing rolling works of metal art since 1989. Cole’s designs are timeless, stylistic and subtle yet making a screaming statement collectively with the final product. Attention to detail, maintenance of pure lines and skillful craftsmanship are the qualities respected by those who have seen Cole’s work. Passionate and obsessive in the pursuit of the perfect custom is what defines Cole Foster the artist.

PATRICK TILBURY – ROYAL-T RACING

Royal-T Racing is a 3 man custom fabrication shop and race team located in the heart of the upper 9th Ward New Orleans, Louisiana. Owned and operated by Patrick Tilbury and focused on producing the highest quality parts and full-builds possible while competing in the Super Hooligan racing scene. Since its inception Royal-T has showcased quality and innovation while keeping beauty and simplicity in mind.

BRONSON WILLARD – SOUTHERN METAL CHOPPERS

Austin’s Bronson Willard is the owner of Southern Metal Choppers. Southern Metal Chopper’s builds have been featured in publications like Cycle Source and Hot Bike Magazines. His award winning motorcycles have been featured in several films, music videos, national commercials and video games.

TOM FOSTER – TOM FOSTER MOTORCYCLES

One of the pioneers who led the resurgence of custom choppers in the late 80’s, Tom Foster took his love for hi-tech components and meshed them with his gritty SoCal hot rod style creating show stopping works of art that ran as good as they looked. Tom has built bikes for rock and movie stars, he has traveled the world, but he is happiest when he is thrashing one of his bikes around town or on the open road.

MATT JACKSON – JACKSON CHOPPERS

Matt Jackson is a custom bike builder from Austin, Texas. Jackson Choppers specializes in 60’s and 70’s style Harley Davidson choppers. Full builds and custom fabrication.

WIL THOMAS

Wil Thomas is a Los Angeles based Producer, Director and entrepreneur.  His multifaceted involvement in the motorcycle community have made him a cultural ambassador, and he has traveled globally in support of his passions and creative ventures.

He has been featured in chopper centric films, magazine publications, books and even music videos like (Ride by Lana Del Rey) (Suck it and See by Arctic Monkeys) and (Be Together by Major Laser featuring Wild Belle). In recent years he toured extensively throughout Europe, South America, Malaysia, Japan, North America, and even Africa.

Executive Producing the film Sugar & Spade which has been screened and received internationally. He also produced and directed the film short “They Call Me Cheetah”, which was invited to both Toronto and Mexico motorcycle film festivals. Often used in-front of the camera and associating with brands like Harley Davidson, Stance, Brixton, Levi’s and is currently an ambassador for Caddis Eyewear.

Custom motorcycle invited builder shows include Michael Licther’s Passion Built Show, Born Free 4, Mama Tried 1 & 7, Paradise Road Show, and the Cycle Showcase St. Louis, Two Wheels Brazil.

XAVIER MURIEL

There have always been two passions in my life, Drums and Motorcycles.

At the age of six, my father gave me my first 1974 Honda “Mr. 50.” As far back as I can remember, motorcycles have been in my blood and family. As I got older, my love for music grew exponentially and I found myself pursing drumming, not as a hobby but as a full time career.

I turned my new love for music into a professional career at the age of 22. This career has taken me all over the world, playing the same stages as my childhood idols. It has driven me and brought me back full circle to motorcycles.

While touring as a drummer for Buckcherry, in between tours and recording records, I built a motorcycle for myself for fun. I wanted to learn how to do as much as possible on my own; my father always told me, “Exhaust all efforts before you pay someone to do it.” I have a lot fantastic friends in the industry who were generous in helping me with this dream. Because of these friends, I dove into building custom motorcycles with the same love as I did for music.

To me, these two loves are one in the same. It is a creative process that starts with an idea from which you take the raw elements and time and hard work and then you watch it come to life. That is the beauty from which art is created.

I approach my builds in the same manner as I my drumming, “Less is always more.” Clean and simple lines that enhance the overall feel and look of a bike, to me, that makes a motorcycle. After all they are made to be ridden. I believe that my builds are a work of my personality.

I believe that, although many times we cannot see it, the art is there … all around us.

I am so grateful to my father for always telling me, “You can do anything you want, you just have to be willing to work for it.”

COLT WRANGLER

Colt Wrangler rides Harleys and builds custom motorcycles. His work has been featured on the show Ride with Norman Reedus, as well as in Iron and Air magazine —not bad for a guy who lives with his dog, Gunner, in a 17-foot. camper behind his workshop

BJ ENGLISH

Like many others BJ was fed up with the typical 9-5 job that left him wanting more out of life. He would get off work, go home, and work another long block of hours on cars or motorcycles to feed the creative beast. After a motorcycle that he had built for fun started to gain some popularity online He imagined that it would be cool to do this as a profession. Soon after, the company he worked for closed its doors unexpectedly and that was the final push he needed to turn his passion into a career. He sold everything he could and started investing in bikes, more tools, and reorganizing his garage to function as a shop! Working from his garage, Brick House Builds was born! Now 4 years into it he wouldn’t have it any other way.

CHRIS KELLAND – LIMEY BIKES

Over 30 years ago Chris “The Limey” Kelland straddled his first motorcycle, a Yamaha FS1E “Fizzy.” From that moment onwards his love affair with bikes bloomed and in the 1980s, Chris opened his first motorcycle shop in Great Britain.

Tired of the rain and gloom, Chris decided to bring his shop across the Atlantic to Austin, Texas. In 2010 Chris opened his new shop in Austin, specializing in vintage Japanese and British motorcycles built before 1980. Over the years he has constructed a number fun machines, focusing on light, clean, simple bikes with high performance.

ELIJAH REESE – LIMEY BIKES

Elijah joined Limey’s shop in 2012. Originally a Texas native, Elijah was first an academic, studying philosophy and engineering. His love of working with his hands, and tinkering with machines, swayed him away from academia and towards a life grease, gas, and speeding tickets.

Although fully certified on a number of modern European brands Elijah prefers the mechanical simplicity and ingenuity found in cantankerous old bikes.

CRAIG JACKSON – DEVELiGENCE, LLC

Craig Jackson is the founder and CEO of DEVELiGENCE, LLC and creator of the “Jackson” signature brand of custom motorcycles.

Craig’s passion is building a motorcycle of any kind into a ridable custom showpiece. He can see the sexy under the ugly… taking old, rusty, crusty and abandoned bikes and creating something unique, something special, something you want to throw a leg over and thunder down your favorite stretch of road.

“I like ‘em loud! ”, Craig says,“ But, not just loud, loud with just the right tone. It’s the voice of a bike and a big part of its personality. Twisting the throttle, hearing that sound. The music that makes you grin and shake your head every time you fire it up.

That song that makes the hair stand up on your arms and makes you excited to go for a ride.” Jackson bikes are built inside the 6000 sqft “Astin- Porter House”, a historic home built in 1901 located in Bryan/College Station, Texas..

RICK BRAY – RKB KUSTOM SPEED

Rick started RKB Kustom Speed back in 2010, but has been fabricating one off custom creations since 2004. Rick says, “It’s more of a passion than work. I can’t think of much else I’d rather do.” Rick comes from a racing background so besides motorcycles, he has been building race cars or working in race car fab shops since 2003. Rick exclaims, “I’ve met the best people on this planet doing what I love, and I’m excited for what the future brings.”