American iron in the Netherlands – a first hand account of the 2025 AMCA meet in Raalte.
Words: Kim Middelbosch
Photos: Kim Middelbosch
The 12th edition of the AMCA’s European Meet took place on the sun drenched surrounds of the American Motorcycle Museum in Raalte on May 30 – 31 2-25. For two days, this quiet village in the east of the Netherlands echoed with the sounds of antique American motorcycles, many of them proudly wearing their original paint – the official theme for 2025.
The event drew thousands of visitors from 24 countries, all united by a shared passion for history on two wheels. But this isn’t your average motorcycle meet. It’s part outdoor marketplace, part rolling museum, part re union of the European antique motorcycle community, all bonded by oil-stained hands, long rides and stories passed down through generations and across borders.
A Hungarian engineer stands next to a Dutch hobbyist, while my 10-year-old boy Boet (named after Dutch GP racer Boet van Dulmen) watches in awe as Bertus van Hamersveld’s historic half-Harley race bike comes to life again. Here, age doesn’t matter: you don’t stop playing when you get old; you get old when you stop playing. At its fullest, the site holds around 500 people at a time – a scale the organisers lovingly call gezellig druk (comfortably busy). “Raalte is the ideal spot for this event,” says Cees Visser, newly appointed president of the AMCA’s European Chapter. “It’s centrally located in the Netherlands, close to Germany and Eastern and Northern Europe, where many of our visitors come from. The surroundings are perfect for tours – quiet roads, lots of space, none of the big-city frenzy. And then there’s the unique combination of hotel, restaurant, event grounds and the American Motorcycle Museum all in one place. You won’t find that anywhere else.”
But beyond the location and logistics, it’s the people – and their bikes – that make this meet unforgettable. Take Jos Willems from Bladel, a few hours south. He brought something truly special, a beautifully preserved 1917 Indian Power-Plus, purchased from Dutch vintage-bike brokers Yesterdays Motorcycles. “When I ride this Indian, I ride history,” he says, pointing to the worn rubber of the right handlebar grip, where the thumb-print of the original owner is still visibly pressed into place, silent witness to over a century of throttle-twisting.
While the Powerplus is a showstopper in its own right, Jos’ heart beats fastest for Indian’s iconic four-cylinders – of which he now owns five. And it doesn’t stop with him. You could say Indian blood runs through the veins of the entire Willems family. His wife rides a 1940 Sport Scout, son Harm commands a 1946 Chief and son Bram keeps the legacy alive on a 1939 Four.
It’s Jos’ third time at the Raalte meet, but motorcycles have been part of his life for much longer. He started out on BMWs and a Belgian Saroléa, and even raced motocross back in the day. But the first time he laid eyes on an Indian? It was love at first sight – and the rest, as they say, is history.
Then there’s István Nagy, who took his love for motorcycles and built an armada of machines. The first-time visitor from Hungary brought heavyweight history to Raalte: a 1914 Flying Merkel endurance racer, a 1912 Indian Big Twin and a 1914 Excelsior Big Valve. “I am only the second owner of all three machines,” he says, quite rightly, with pride.
His passion started early. At 15, he hauled his first motorbike home in a wheelbarrow, leaving his mother with her hands in the air. “And now I have 449,” he laughs. A civil engineer specializing in bridge construction, Nagy used his success to fuel a lifelong devotion to preserving motorcycle heritage. On his 160-acre estate, 120 miles from Budapest, he keeps all 449 of his pre-1940 motorcycles – a third of them American, including 35 Indians and 100 machines still in original paint.
This is preservation as a way of life. And Nagy doesn’t only collect bikes; he races them too. From Goodwood to the Isle of Man, he rides his machines as they were meant to be ridden: hard, fast and with a deep respect for their history. “These bikes,” he says, “they are my time machines.” And Raalte? “It’s like a candy store,” he grins. “We’ll definitely be back next year.”
Another Hungarian, Tamás Kalmár, describes himself as a true lover of motor-cycle mechanics, and it shows. When he kicked his 1924 Ace four-cylinder to life, the machine purred like only precision engineering can. But it’s Indian motorcycles that really make his heart race – he even has the logo tattooed on his arm. The Ace is just one of the gems in his ever-evolving collection, which includes several Indian Fours, early Detroit and Chicago Hendersons and other rare American beauties.
Tamás was 13 when he bought his first prewar two-stroke, back in 1981. He’s now 57, and still chasing new projects with the same boyish spark. “My true love is restoration,” he says. “When I buy a project, I restore it. I keep it for 2, 6 or 10 years, then I sell it. I like the constant change, always waiting for a new adventure.” For the past 25 years, Tamás has made his living working exclusively on prewar motorcycles for clients. When he first saw photos of the Raalte event on the American Motorcycle Museum Facebook page, he knew he had to go. “It was a dream,” he says. “And in 2025, that dream has become reality.”
Steven Gerrits had a different kind of dream: to bring his 1941 Harley-Davidson WR to the meet and have it scored by the AMCA judges. This rare factory racer, one of only 36 ever built, with just a handful still known to exist, is the culmination of 19 years of painstaking restoration. His father bought the WR in the late 1970s, when it was little more than a pile of parts, a forgotten piece of American racing heritage.
This particular WR has a remarkable history. In 1949 it took second place at Laconia and the following year it raced at Daytona. According to records, it completed just 17 laps there before retiring, most likely due to engine failure. After that, the machine vanished from the scene, only to resurface years later in Dalfsen, the Netherlands.
Steven meticulously restored the bike to its exact 1941 specification, a project that took him nearly two decades and a huge personal investment. “At some point, the crankshaft broke under a previous owner,” he says. “I’ve put too much of myself into this machine to risk that happening to me.” So while the WR still looks ready to roar, its racing days are over. Understandably, it’s earned a permanent spot in his private collection.
During the AMCA weekend, Steven’s bike earned an impressive 95 points in its first official judging. “For those wondering what that means, a rivet that’s 1mm off can cost you half a point,” Gerrits explains. “Yes, it’s that precise. And that’s exactly what makes judging so much fun.” Still, Gerrits is a man of details, and he’s double-checking the literature. He hasn’t quite accepted every comment on the judges’ report just yet. Who knows? Maybe next year’s score will be even higher.
Of the WR he says, “It represents half a lifetime of searching, learning, researching and restoring. Along the way, I’ve met so many people across the world who were willing to share their knowledge and passion. That’s what makes this hobby so rewarding.” Steven’s passion for motorcycles runs in the family. It was passed down by his father, who rode with the Dutch Harley-Davidson Club in Zwolle alongside Max Middelbosch, then the club’s president. “As a kid, I was taken along to places like Max’s museum and shop – it grabs you,” Steven recalls with a smile. “I even had my 10th birthday party there.” That the hobby got slightly out of hand in this family becomes clear when you hear about the Gerrits’ collection. “We mainly have British and American bikes.”
Steven says. “When it comes to Harley-Davidson, I’ve taken a deep dive into the year 1941.” That submergence includes the WR, a WLDR, two 1941 WL SAUDFs (both Type 1 and 2), several WLCs, plus JDs ranging from 1925 to 1929. “And my next project is a 1920 Ottaway racer replica,” he adds, referring to Bill Ottaway, Harley’s famous early race team manager. “But that one’s just for fun.”
Motorcycles don’t just connect generations. Some carry stories of war, narrow escapes and happy reunions. Fritz Martin’s “Black Pearl” has lived through it all. His 1936 Harley-Davidson EL Knucklehead is one of the crown jewels of Martin’s collection. Originally secreted into Hamburg in 1937 by renowned German Harley-Davidson dealer Georg Suck, the Knucklehead narrowly escaped Nazi confiscation during World War II. When the hostilities ended, the bike was returned to the road.
It lived a quiet life, trading hands several times until decades later when Martin acquired it. One of his first tasks was reuniting the Harley with the first owner’s son. It was an emotional meeting. “He sat on the bike again, touched the handlebars and said, ‘These are the same grips I held as a young man.’ I’ll never forget that,” Martin recalls. By adding the Black Pearl to his collection, Fritz hasn’t just preserved a rare and desirable Knucklehead. He’s kept a thread of history alive – one that spans borders, generations and the quiet resilience of a machine built for motion, paused by war and brought back to life by passion.
While the vendor field buzzed with wheeling and dealing, what really stood out was the atmosphere. Many different languages were spoken yet communication was effortless, as love for antique motorcycles is a universal language. Thanks to meets like this (and social media) the scene stays tight. Some folks drive halfway across Europe to attend or fly in from overseas. Others just roll in from down the road.
Like Peter ter Haar, on his original-paint 1949 Harley-Davidson WL. His bike once served as a delivery vehicle for the U.S. Embassy in Copenhagen, before spending 40 years tucked away in the facility’s basement. Eventually, it landed in Peter’s hands via Max Middelbosch. “I visit the AMCA swap meet every year,” he says. “It’s always lively, but never overcrowded. Even if you’re not actively hunting parts, you end up finding something rare to replace a repro.” He fondly recalls an unforgettable moment during the 2019 meet when 14 Ace Fours were lined up side by side. “You never see that anywhere else, right?” he says.
For Peter, the Euro Meet feels like a true home game. He lives just 6 kilometres down the road and is one of the museum’s dedicated friends. Most Saturdays, you’ll find him lending a hand in the workshop; currently he’s helping to prepare an Indian Sport Scout from the collection for European beach races this summer.
He also voices a quiet hope, that new blood will keep entering the classic-bike scene to ensure events like this continue. “It’s not the cheapest hobby,” he admits, “but it’s such a great world to be part of. It brings people together.”
And so it does. Durk Miedema is living proof. At 38, he represents the next generation. This year he rode his 1939 Harley-Davidson WL from Heerenveen to Raalte, a 105-mile roundtrip, alongside his father who arrived on a 1920 Harley-Davidson J. “This was probably my sixth time at the AMCA meet,” Durk says. “I keep coming back for the rare bikes, the atmosphere and the people. This year I finally found the oil pump I needed for my 1925 Harley J.”
He continues, “The community is incredibly welcoming. Fortunately, the passion often runs in the family…and it is always great to see younger enthusiasts getting involved.”
While some motorcycles are meant to stay in the family. Others change hands and fuel the next chapter.
Leon Koelewijn arrived in Raalte with a real head-turner, an original-paint 1915 Excelsior V-twin. Over a hundred years old, the fuel tank still flashing its bold red “X” and gold “Auto-Cycle” script, a true time capsule of early motorcycle freedom.
And, yes, it is for sale. “I’m selling it to help my daughter buy her first home,” he says. No fuss, just facts, and a damn good reason. Because make no mistake: the swap meet in Raalte is also about business.
Rare machines change owners. Parts swap hands. Deals are made. One moment it’s on display, the next it’s gone, off to a new garage, ready to write a new tale. History is traded, raced, restored and remembered – by fathers, daughters, friends and perfect strangers. And with every handshake, every turn of the throttle, a new story begins.
The next AMCA European Meet is May 15-16, 2026, as always during Ascension weekend, with “Art Deco” as the theme. To see more from Raalte or explore the American Motorcycle Museum online, check Instagram and Facebook, @american.motorcycle.museum.
This article was previously published in The Antique Motorcycle Magazine. Text and photo credited to Kim Middelbosch.
an article by The Girder Club
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