Williamsburg bar owner's Budweiser bike going on tour

A custom motorcycle project that began as a way to pep up business at a Williamsburg tavern is becoming a touring attraction for a Budweiser distributor.

John Donahue will unveil his Budweiser-themed motorcycle art, a $28,000 project begun in January, today at his Sundown Bar & Grill in Williamsburg.

The bar owner is a veteran motorcyclist who has enjoyed a growing trade with motorcycle tourists who stop by to drink, dine and listen to live music. He thought a special attraction might help him pick up more motorcycle visitors off nearby Interstate 80, a major artery to the nation's biggest motorcycle rally in Sturgis, S.D.

Donahue decided to turn his beloved 1999 Harley-Davidson Road King Classic, a large touring motorcycle, into a project bike with a custom paint job.

“It started out as a small project,” Donahue said. “I would show the bike occasionally at the bar, and take it to bike shows.”

Donahue needed a theme. He took his idea for a custom cycle based on the packaging for Bud Select, a premium Budweiser brand, to Cedar Rapids artist Scott Takes, owner of Underground Art Studio, 608 Second Ave. SE.

Starting with a Bud Select logo, Takes decided the beer theme should be repeated over the entire motorcycle. The design includes iced bottles of Bud Select, a tap handle and moisture droplets suggesting condensation on the outside of a can or bottle.

When Donahue approached his beer distributor about doing a Bud Select bike, the project really took off. Doll Distributing of Des Moines, Council Bluffs and Grinnell asked Budweiser's marketing management, which quickly got behind the idea.

“Bike shows and rides are very popular,” said Scott Doll, vice president of Doll Distributing. “If we can bring something to them that's a little different, they will take notice.”

Doll said he likes the fact that the motorcycle is a 1999 model, because one of the beer's selling points is that it has only 99 calories.

Doll Distributing offered Donahue a three-year agreement to display the motorcycle at promotional events. Arrangements were made for a special trailer wrapped in Budweiser marketing to transport the motorcycle.

Donahue said engine work, painting and other customizing of the bike came to more than $28,000, on top of the bike's original cost. The promotional contract will help him recoup that investment - which he plans to protect.

“It's a bike I will hardly ever ride,” he said.

The bike has a few personal touches, including the permanent thumbprints of Donahue and his son, Colton.

Today's charity event to unveil the bike at the bar, 112 E. State St., Williamsburg, will feature live music and a cookout from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and other show bikes.

The Bud bike isn't Takes' first alcohol-themed design. He once painted a chopper to express the owner's love of Crown Royal whiskey.