Roland Sands (born August 12, 1974) is an American

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

racer and designer of custom high-performance

motorcycles A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising, ...

. In his career as a professional motorcycle racer, he has won the 1998 AMA 250GP National Champion road racer championship. Sands is a designer of custom performance motorcycles, and owner and founder of Roland Sands Design.

Background

Sands is from

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

. He began his life with the upbringing and diverse experience in the

industry. His first

was a

Suzuki is a Japan, Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu, Japan. Suzuki manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, All-terrain vehicle, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs ...

RM 50 dirt bike, given to him on his 5th birthday, on which, after just minutes of riding, he broke a bone, but fell in love with it anyway. He literally grew up in the Performance Machine shop, and started working there at age 14 sweeping floors. Quickly moving up to assembly, sanding polishing, wheel designing, eventually working his way as Director of R&D and Design at Performance Machine. In 2005, after the tremendous success Sands found on

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Channe ...

Biker Build-Off ''Biker Build-Off'' is a reality television series for the Discovery Channel. Created and narrated by Thom Beers, the series was originally conceived as a single special called ''The Great Biker Build-Off''. The show proved so popular that more ep ...

vs.

Arlen Ness Arlen Darryl Ness (July 12, 1939 – March 22, 2019) was an American motorcycle designer and entrepreneur best known for his custom motorcycles. Ness received acclaim for his designs, most of which are noted for their unique body style and paintwo ...

, Sands founded Roland Sands Design. RSD designs concept motorcycle parts and accessories and builds custom motorcycles. RSD works with major

manufacturers to design concept and prototype motorcycles and promote benchmark product in the motorcycle industry and beyond. Sands’ designs are described as being a mixture of

sport bike A sport bike (sports motorcycle, or sports bike) is a motorcycle designed and optimized for speed, acceleration, braking, and cornering on asphalt concrete race tracks and roads. They are mainly designed for performance at the expense of comfor ...

and chopper influences to create the ultimate custom bikes.

Pro racing career

During Sands’ professional

racing In sport, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific goa ...

career, from 1994 to 2002, Sands gained 10 wins to his reputation. At the age of 19, Sands’ father sent him to

Keith Code Keith Code is an American former motorcycle racer, writer, and founder of the California Superbike School. He has been called "arguably the best known and most successful on-track motorcycle instructor in the world". Rider training Code founded ...

’s

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Superbike School, and from that day on, road racing became his passion. His first race bike was a

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shareholder of Yamaha Motor Company (below). ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organization estab ...

TZ250, a purpose-built, two stroke racing machine. Winning his first novice 250GP race at

Willow Springs Raceway Willow Springs International Motorsports Park (commonly referred to as Willow Springs) is located in Willow Springs near Rosamond, California, about north of Los Angeles. It is the oldest permanent road course in the United States. Constructio ...

, Sands enjoyed a nine-year professional racing career at the top of the AMA 250GP ranks, including a national championship in 1998. In 2000, after winning a few races stateside, Sands did a stint in the British Super Cup series on a factory

Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a product ...

. Sands still currently holds four track records including

Daytona Daytona refers to the city of Daytona Beach, Florida, or things named after it. Daytona may also refer to: Locations * Daytona Beach Shores, Florida * South Daytona, Florida * The Daytona Beach metropolitan area * Halifax area, also known as Da ...

Sears Point Sears Point is a prominent landform that juts into the San Pablo Bay in Sonoma County, California, United States. This hill is the southernmost peak of the Sonoma Mountains and forms the southwestern ridge above Tolay Lake. Starting with European ...

, and

Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Laguna Seca Raceway (branded as WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and previously Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca) is a paved road racing track in central California used for both auto racing and motorcycle racing, built in 1957 near both Salinas and M ...

. Although enjoying his racing

career The career is an individual's metaphorical "journey" through learning, work and other aspects of life. There are a number of ways to define career and the term is used in a variety of ways. Definitions The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' defin ...

, bodily injuries caused by

accidents were taking the best of his competitive drive. Sands decided to broaden his career in custom motorcycle design and building, in which he had already mechanical and fabrication skills from building race bikes during his

years. In 2004, designer

Chip Foose Chip Foose (born October 13, 1963) is an American automobile designer, artist, and star of Velocity's reality television series ''Overhaulin. Life and career Foose began working on automobiles at age seven for his father's company, Project ...

awarded Sands with the Award of Design Excellence for his design on the motorcycle 'The Hard Way'. In 2005, he was honored by his peers, who voted him Rookie of the Year on the

award show. Since his first television appearance on Biker Build-Off, he’s been featured on

ESPN2 ESPN2 is an American multinational pay television network owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hearst Communications (which owns the remaining 20%). ESPN2 was initially fo ...

’s Chopper Nation and Super Bikes,

Speed Channel Speed was an American sports-oriented cable and satellite television network that was owned by the Fox Sports Media Group division of 21st Century Fox. The network was dedicated to motorsports programming, including auto racing, as well as aut ...

's American Thunder and

Build or Bust ''Build or Bust'' is a reality television series. Premise The concept for ''Build or Bust'' was that host and custom motorcycle builder Russell Mitchell took in a member of the public who thought it would be easy to build a bike "just like the ...

, and crowned champion of Biker Build-Off in 2006 against Jesse Rooke.

Awards and accomplishments

* AMA 250 GP Champion 1998 * V-Twin Wheel Design of the Year 2002 * V-Twin Control Design of the Year 2004 * V-Twin Wheel Design of the Year 2004 *

Design of Excellence Award, Sturgis, 2004 * Modified Harley Class at the World Championship of Custom Bike Building 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place in 2005 * V-Twin Award Trendsetter of the Year,

, 2005 *

’s ''Ultimate Chop''

Season Finale and Awards Ceremony Rookie of the Year 2005 * V-Twin Award Trendsetter of the year, Daytona, 2005 *

’s

Champion for Sands vs. Rooke episode 1, 2006

Press and publicity

Covers

* Xtreme Bikes (Spain), Issue No. 20 * Xtreme Bikes (Spain), Issue No. 22 * Freeway Magazine (France), May 2005 　Hardcore Chopper(Japan),November 2005 * Sport Bike (United States), 2006 Issue * Wild Motorcycles (France), June 2006 * Barnett’s (United States), September 2006 * Bike Works (United States), September 2006 * Xtreme Bike (Spain), Issue No. 22 * Superstreet Bikes (United States), October 2006 * Performance Bikes (UK[), October 2006 * American Iron (United States), September 2011

Articles

* Hot Rod Bikes (United States) Feb. 2003: ''The Racer’s Edge: Roland Sand’s Builds his First American Custom'' * Freeway Magazine (France) Feb. 2003 ''Rolling with the Homies: V-Rod Motorcycle Performance Machine’s Roland Sands Designs Whiskey Tang No. 10'' '' Team PM Family Affair: Perry and Roland'' * V-Twin Motorcycles (United States) Sept. 2003 ''Performance Machine Master Builder Triple Threat Talents'' * Wild Motorcycles (France) April 2004 ''The Hard Way 70 : PM raises the bar with Roland’s new V-ROD'' ''Like Father, Like Son: Perry and Roland Sands Interview'' * Hot Bike 2005 Calendar January: ''The Hard Way 70'' * Freeway Magazine (France) May 2005: ''Daytona Hard Rock El Grande Moco from Sands'' * Orange County Register – Sept. 2005: ''Architect in Motion'' * Barnett’s (United States) Aug./Sept 2005 ''Laughlin River Run: El Grande Moco'' * Harley Davidson’s Dream Machine (Germany) Sept. 2005: ''Performance Machine’s Roland Sands #35 V-Rod and Street Rod Specials'' * Robb Report Motorcycling (United States) Nov./Dec. 2005 ''Green Machine: Roland Sands builds for both style and Substance the Grande Moco'' * Xtreme Bikes (Spain) No. 20 ''Roland Sands’ The Glory Stomper'' * Playboy Magazine (United States) March 2006 ''On the Scene: Custom official Roland Sands is fueling next generation of custom motorcycles'' * Biker Journalen (Norway) No. 3 2006 ''Roland Sands Biker Build-Off: The Glory Stomper'' * McNytt (Denmark) May 2006 ''Back to Nature: ''RSD''’s the Grunt'' * Cycle News (United States) Issue #19 May 17, 2006 ''Build or Bust: Roland Sands’ No Regrets'' * Wild Motorcycles (France) June 2006 ''Wild Wheels: ''RSD''’s Grunt'' * Easyriders (United States) 35th Anniversary Special June 2006 ''Something Different from Roland Sands: The Art of Function, the Glory Stomper'' * Motociclismo (Spain) Aug. 2006 ''El Grande Moco'' * Cycle News (United States) August 9, 2006: ''Sands Gets His Hands on MotoGP Engine…Watch Out!'' * Freeway (France) Aug. 2006: The Roland Sands Story: Street Warrior Grunt, the ''RSD'' Grunt'' ''Roland Sands Performance Superboy'' ''The Glory Stomper'' ''El Burracho'' * Sport Bike (United States) 2006 Issue: ''Roland Sands’ New Blood HayabUnited States ‘BUnited States’s baby!'' ''Speed Dating: A ‘BUnited States and Bunny Tale'' * MotorRad (Germany) August 18, 2006: ''Intro News: ''RSD'' KRV5 Tracker'' * Wild Magazine (France) Sept. 2006: ''RSD’s KRV5 Tracker'' ''RSD’s No Regrets'' * V-Twin News (United States) Sept. 2006: ''RSD Vintage Cover Line'' * Performance Bike (Japan) ''Performance Machine'' ''PM’s Roland Sands'' * Bike Works (United States) Sept. 2006: ''Biker Build Off Race: Roland Sands vs. Jesse Rooke'' ''Roland Sands vs. Jesse Rooke at Willow Springs Raceway'' * Barnett’s (United States) Sept. 2006 ''Roland Sands Interview'' * Super Street Bike (United States) Oct. 2006: ''Biker Build-Off Winner: Roland Sands'' ''New World Order'' * Performance Bikes (UK) Oct. 2006: ''Roland Sands’ Radical 2-litre Harley Racer'' '' U.S. Bike-building Genius Injects some West Coast attitude into Goodwood: No Regrets'' * Hot Bike (United States) Vol. 38 No. 12 Oct. 24, 2006 ''Custom Looks, Reliability, and Good Manners: Roland Sands comes up another winner ‘The Vintage Kit’'' * Xtreme Bikes Magazine (Spain) Issue 20 Dec 2004 The Glory Stomper (Cover) * Xtreme Bikes Magazine (Spain) Issue 22 Feb 2005 Grande Moco (Cover)

Television appearances

: Chop Off finale September 4, 2006 *

: two episodes, 2005 *

’s SuperBikes : one episode, 2006 *

’s Chopper Nation : two episodes, 2005 *

's American Thunder : ten episodes, 2004, 2005, 2006 *

: three episodes, 2005 *

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

Nitro Circus ''Nitro Circus'' is an "action sport collective" led by Travis Pastrana, featuring his friends and him traveling around the world riding dirtbikes, BASE jumping, and performing stunts. Co-founded in 2003 by Pastrana, Nitro Circus has become a m ...

: One Episode, 2009
Esquire Network'sWrench Against the Machine
Judge for Season 1 (Episodes 1 through 5 ) 2016, 2017

Retail Expansion

July 2021 Roland Sands Design (RSD) moved their retail store to Long Beach, CA. On display is a beautiful collection of RSD Customized motorcycles, with leather gear, parts and accessories for sale. Store hours are Monday through Friday 9am - 6pm, Saturdays 9am - 5pm and Sundays from 10am - 4pm. The retail store is located at: 1365 Obispo Ave, Long Beach, CA 90804

References

External links

Roland Sands Design Main Website

Performance Machine

Roland Sands Design talks with us about his brand and more

Sources

Hot Bike Magazine

Motorcycle USA Magazine

Bikernet.com

Livingwithgravity.com
Roland Sands brings the high-quality motorcycle Johnny Jacket {{DEFAULTSORT:Sands, Roland 1974 births Living people Sportspeople from Long Beach, California Motorcycle builders American motorcycle racers