Roland Sands is a renowned motorcycle designer, racer, and entrepreneur, founding Roland Sands Design.
Born in August 1974, in Long Beach, California, Roland grew up with a passion for motorcycles, as his father was also a motorcycle racer and business owner. Growing up in his parents’ shop, Performance Machine, he was surrounded by unique two wheeled machines, racing, and the custom motorcycle industry.
Roland’s first trip to Sturgis was at age 15. He roamed Glencoe and spent the week riding his Triumph T100 through the canyons with his dad Perry and crew. He’s been to Sturgis almost every year after. In 2019 he was honored as the Grand Marshal.
Roland began racing at 18, He turned pro and competed in racing events across the US and Europe. Roland won the AMA 250 National Championship title in 1998 and won more races and broke track records across the US. Roland retired from racing in 2002 and focused on design and motorcycle customization while working as the VP of Design at Performance Machine.
In 2005, following in his father’s footsteps, Roland founded Roland Sands Design, which quickly became a leading brand in the motorcycle industry, known for its unique and innovative designs. The company specializes in creating custom motorcycles, performance parts, and accessories for riders who are looking for a distinctive and personalized experience. Roland has expanded his products into quality fashion-forward protective riding gear, that look good on and off the bike.
A talented motorcycle designer, he collaborated with many motorcycle manufacturers including Harley-Davidson, Indian motorcycles, Ducati, BMW, Honda, Triumph, Yamaha, Aprilia, KTM, building custom and concept bikes and parts collaborations. Roland and his team built over 200 custom motorcycles and helped pioneer performance customs, expanding the custom industry beyond the V-twin segment, helping to inspire and usher in a new generation of custom bike builders.
His current business continues to push the boundaries of motorcycle design and innovation, and his work has earned him many awards and volumes of press. He is regarded as one of the most influential figures in the motorcycle industry and continues to inspire riders and designers around the world. He expanded into events and created the Moto Beach Classic, highlighting the West Coast Motorcycle culture.
In 2015 Roland returned to the racetrack, pioneering the Super Hooligan National Championship Series. Initially, a dirt flat track series, it helped to pioneer alternative racing. The SHNC graduated to the pavement and is leading a high bar naked bike road racing series racing across the United States with Moto America. Sands team fielded an Indian Challenger in the King of the Baggers race series and was the only non-factory team to win a King of the Baggers race to date.
With endless ideas and energy, Roland and his team at RSD are touching just about every piece of the two wheeled industry and will continue to do so.
Roland is humbled by this honor and thanks everyone for their support.