The Wicked Wallop Motorcycle lifestyle event draws big crowds and premium bike brand sponsorship in its third iteration
Singapore
Saturday, January 6, 2018 saw motorcycle lifestyle event, The Wicked Wallop, held for the third time. Following increasingly successful debut in 2016, 2018’s version saw stellar attendance at the new event location, the rooftop of Carros Centre.
As described on the event’s official Facebook page, “The Wicked Wallop is Singapore’s first event for custom and classic motorcycles with a focus on lifestyle, custom culture, music and people.”
That might sound like the recipe for a passionate, cult event, with a small following, but judging from the healthy attendance, it seems lots more people enjoy this than you might expect – and that The Wicked Wallop has evolved into something much wider than its initial concept suggests.
Official attendance figures weren’t available but judging from the huge crowd of bikes (see photo) and cars (not shown), plus foot traffic, at least 1,500 people attended the event, which ran from 1400h to 2300h.
2018 also saw strong support from premium motorcycle brands through official dealerships: Sponsors for the event include Ducati (Wearnes Automotive), BMW Motorrad (Performance Motors Limited), Harley-Davidson (Komoco/H-D of Singapore), KTM (DirtWheel) and Mah Motor (Aprilia, Triumph, Moto Guzzi, Vespa, Victory).
All the official dealerships had ride-to-event convoys, which linked up and entered the event grounds together resulting in a huge impromptu motorcycle parade of sorts. At the event itself, all brands were offering test rides of their latest bikes, resulting in a never-ending circulation of bikes of every shape and type.
“Customer engagement is very important for us,” said Anthony Chaw, general manager for BMW Motorrad PML, “events like this help us build interaction with our existing customers, and expose the brand to new ones as well.”
More than 60 BMW rider/owners participated in the convoy ride, while BMW’s exhibition space featured numerous bikes in the current line-up, but with a focus on the R NineT Scrambler (part of the brand’s modern retro ‘Heritage’ line, which fits the Wicked Wallop theme) and the G 310 R (aimed at newer riders who want a less powerful, less expensive machine).
“Wicked Wallop is one-of-a-kind really, and what makes me very glad is that our customers, from HOG (Harley Owners’ Group) and more, fit right in and truly enjoy the whole spectrum of things to do and see,” said Dorothy Chan, general manager for Harley-Davidson of Singapore.
Singapore might be one of the least suitable places on earth to enjoy non-standard cars and motorcycles, but the event has evolved into a feisty celebration of ‘non-standard’ culture and interest that surrounds, or is related to, motorcycling.
This includes classic motorcycles and cars, machine building and customising, but also wider elements of custom culture, including tattooist, barbers, pin-up models, which meant a huge amount of things to do at the event.
There were also performances by rock bands, including a special guest Rockabilly band Johnny Pandora from Japan (above).
In line with the custom culture theme of the event, there was also a wide range of competitions, ranging best custom bike to best custom car and even best tattoos.
