From Hot Rods to Handrails: Brock Bridge’s Journey of Craftsmanship
From about the time he could walk, Brock Bridges was immersed in the world of drag racing. He tagged along with his dad and grandpa as a toddler, attending races around the country. By age 8, Brock was racing on his own, and by 14, he was using the knowledge he had picked up to help build race cars with his family.
“My grandpa was very motor inclined, and my dad was very fabrication inclined,” he says. “In my younger years, my dad was building race car chassis, and my grandpa was the motor guy on those builds.”
When he was 15 years old, Brock discovered a passion for building motorcycles — a craft that’s become a defining part of his life. He’s now built an estimated 20 motorcycles in his lifetime.
“I try to push myself to do something new and different on each one,” Brock shares. “Each motorcycle takes 9-12 months – for the wheels, the frame, everything completely from scratch… I do some for me, some for clients.”
For Brock, Ironworker Superintendent at O’Shea, working with his hands has always been a natural part of who he is.
At just 12 years of age, he was painting numbers on hot rods at the dragstrip. Gaining a reputation in the Virden area as “that kid with the paint box,” farmers would hire him to paint custom lettering on their trucks.
“I was always an artist as a kid; I did a lot of painting,” Brock recalls. “Now on my motorcycles, I do all the paint and leatherwork, and it was all self-taught.”
Each of Brock’s bikes is a masterpiece, showcasing intricate details from paint to pinstriping to silver leafing, all executed with impeccable craftsmanship. That same attention to detail carries over to his work at O’Shea, where he oversees all ironwork on projects and uses his talents to provide custom fabrication work for clients.
“While motorcycle building is a lot more precise and requires more time to think about, the mechanical aspect is similar,” he says. “I’ve done custom fab for O’Shea like handrails. That goes more hand-in-hand with the motorcycle building.”
Brock’s talent has garnered national attention. A recent build was featured on the cover of HOT BIKE magazine, a quarterly publication featuring the custom and performance V-Twin motorcycle. The bike won awards in multiple competitions.
“I never expected to be on the cover of HOT BIKE. I have issues of HOT BIKE from the late 90s and early 2000s and never would have guessed this,” Brock says. “It’s been very cool to be featured.”
Brock’s participation in competitions started at Daytona’s Bike Week years ago. At one point, he was winning Best of Show at most of the competitions, and people began inviting him to participate in their display shows.
“I like doing the display shows because even though I am competitive, they’re more like getting together with my buddies,” he says.
While the recognition is fun, Brock most enjoys the challenge of building motorcycles from scratch as a creative outlet and an exciting way to try out new ideas.
“I like the creativity the most. You can hide things underneath a car body, but everything is exposed on a motorcycle, which means you can get more creative with it,” he says.
If you need expert custom fabrication work, Brock and the team at O’Shea are ready to bring your vision to life. Contact us today to discuss how we can help with your next project.