GRC member donates latest custom bike

Steve Koontz, owner of Koontz Farms at Shelbyville, Ill., has welded his shop abilities and motorcycling hobby into a hybrid crop of fund-raising prizes.

He builds the special bikes under the “Fighting Chance Customs” banner.

A Crazy Horse Grass Roots Club member, he met a year ago with Crazy Horse Memorial officials to discuss a chopper gift.

Steve and his cousins Dale and Todd Koontz (from left to right, below) in August unveiled “Help From Above” at the Memorial.

The bike will be the prize for the Memorial’s drawing in 2013. The nonprofit Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation uses motorcycle drawing proceeds to help fund its educational programs and carving the mountain.

The aerodynamic chopper features a tear-drop fuel tank, a metal tail jutting up over the rear tire and snub wings housing the brake lights and turn signals. The paint theme further invokes the symbolism of the Huey, the Army’s Vietnam-era air ambulance workhorse.

Steve said the adornments honor the country’s military personnel and veterans like his cousins.

Steve also built a bike for his hometown hospital’s Oct. 12 drawing to help patients pay healthcare expense. And he gave up his bike for the nonprofit Kandie’s Kidz group that assists military veterans, soldiers and their families. “And that’s what it’s all about. If someone can use these motorcycles to help others, that’s great. I can build a motorcycle for me anytime,” he said.

Tickets for “Help from Above” are $20 each or $50 for three. Call (605) 673-4681 or email memorial@crazyhorse.org for ticket information.