Mum gifts Harley Davidson raffle bike to daughter for 30th birthday

It can be tough deciding on a 30th birthday gift, but one mother rose to the occasion on Saturday with a brand new Harley Davidson X350 motorcycle for her daughter. See what she said.

(L-R) Mark and Karen Phillips with Levi, 6, and Kristie Heaver

It can be tough deciding on a 30th birthday gift, but one mother rose to the occasion on Saturday with a brand new Harley Davidson X350 motorcycle for her daughter.

Frankston-based mum Karen Phillips entered the raffle to win the motorcycle during the 6th Million Dollar Bogan Lifeline ride in Geelong, and said she knew straight away she wanted to give the X350 to her daughter who lived in Townsville.

“I always had it in my mind to give it to Kristie,” Mrs Phillips said.

“The children grew up around motorcycles... I really love them and have a lot of good memories from the times I rode around New Zealand and visited the U.S.”

Fresh from a motorcycle ride out to Uluru, Mrs Phillips thanked Harley Davidson for shipping the X350 up to the Townsville dealership so she could hand the motorcycle over to her daughter in person.

Karen Phillips travelled to Townsville to hand the X350 over to her daughter Kristie Heaver right before Kristie’s 30th birthday.

Kristie Heaver said she was excited to accept the keys.

“I’ve only ridden dirt bikes,” she said.

“So it’s just going to be getting the practice riding on the roads. It’s more the people around you that I’m worried about.”

The Townsville mum-of-three got her motorcycle licence last week - putting her in a good spot to learn the ropes on the X350 which is one of several ‘learner-approved’ models.

Harley Davidson enthusiast Mike ‘McDuff’ Duffy was on hand to explain a bit about the X350.

The X350 first went into production in 2024. Harley Davidson enthusiast Mike 'McDuff' Duffy said the Townsville store has sold quite a few of the 'easy to ride' motorcycles.

“We’ve sold quite a few here in Townsville,” Mr Duffy said.

“It’s a very good product with all the right gear and very easy to ride with ABS and a fuel injected water cooled 350 twin (engine).”

SunCity Harley Davidson general manager Jake Stanfield said it can be daunting jumping onto a road motorcycle, but the only way to build confidence was by putting in the kilometres.

Alongside selling motorcycles, the dealership on Woolcock St also performs services, repair work, and is the location for the Harley Owners Group (HOG) Townsville club.

The X350’s sell for around $8000 - $12,000.

Originally published as Mum gifts Harley Davidson raffle bike to daughter for 30th birthday