The story is short.
A strong man ferried travelers across a bad river. A child asked for a ride. Halfway over, the child got heavy. Then heavier. Christopher thought he would drown. On the far bank the child said he had been carrying the world.
That is why travelers kept him. Not as jewelry. As a promise that something stronger is in the water with you.
Riders already know that story. Night. Weather. Miles. A machine that does not care how you feel.
I did not want a church-window saint on a derby cover.
So I put him in a jacket.
It is not accurate. I knew that. I did it anyway. The people who buy these live on two wheels. A quiet standing saint looks like a medallion glued to a part. I wanted him to belong on a Harley. Staff in one hand. Child on the shoulder. Same crossing. Different clothes.
The jacket is not the point. The weather is.
Wind. Rain. Waves. Not decoration. The river in the legend is not a pond. The road is not a pond either. I wanted the bronze around them to feel busy and a little mean. So they read as moving through it. Not posing in front of a pretty sky.
Calm water kills the story.
That is the hard part at this size. A Milwaukee 8 Touring derby cover is 7.75 inches across. Faces. Banners. Water. All of it has to work from a few feet away, on a primary, in parking-lot light, after the pour and the patina. Too little relief and the storm turns to mud. Too much and it fights the lettering.
“St. Christopher” up top. “Protect Us” below. I wanted the piece to say what it is without a caption.
This is not a correct icon. It is not trying to be. If you want the church version, look somewhere else. This one is for a rider who wants the traveler story on the bike. In bronze. Not from a gift shop.
It is a different job than the other Christian pieces I make. St. Michael is a fight. The nail cross is an emblem. This one is two figures and a lot of weather.
The photo is the Touring size. I make it for the Harley derby sizes I support, for Indian Thunderstroke, and as an air filter cover. Timing cover too, if you want the set. Do not guess the bolts. Use the sizing guide. Or call me.
Same shop as the rest of them. Solid bronze. Lost wax. Omaha. Hot Shops. Made to order. Eight to twelve weeks. I will not ship one I will not sign.
The derby cover is here:
Custom Derby Covers
St Christopher Protect Us Custom Bronze Sculpture – Harley & Indian Derby Cover + Air Filter Cover
The timing cover is here:
Timing Covers
Here’s the piece in motion:
