An Alaska man was left “dumbfounded” after he was gifted a brand-new motorcycle by Vladimir Putin during the Russian president’s visit to Alaska for a meeting with Donald Trump.
It all started because of a viral news story captured by a Russian reporter who was visiting Anchorage ahead of the historic summit.
Mark Warren, 66, was riding his Russian-made Ural bike around Anchorage, running some errands, about a week before the summit. He was stopped at a stop sign by two men, who later identified themselves as Russian journalists.
They were intrigued by the bike, which has a long history of use by Russian military forces, including during World War II, when it was used to repel the Nazi invasion of the Eastern European country. Putin himself has also ridden a Ural bike in the past.
There are only a few dozen of the bikes registered in Alaska, and the journalists felt they could get a great human interest piece by interviewing Warren, who is a retired fire inspector, about his history riding the Russian-made bike.
Warren chatted with the journalists for a while, telling them about the recent problems he’s had with the bike’s starter.
He had been unable to get a new one — not because of Trump’s tariffs and sanctions against Russia, but because there’s only one mechanic in the whole of Alaska who works on Ural bikes, and he has to reportedly order parts for them through a company in Redmond, Washington, which has to get them from Russia. It’s a long, convuluted and expensive process.
A TV report about Warren and his bike ended up going viral in Russia, and it caught the eye of Putin himself. Warren told the Daily Mail he soon had Russian officials calling him and telling him not to worry, that Putin would be bringing him a new bike when he went to visit Trump.
The diplomats had to assure Warren that they weren’t scamming him — Putin actually wanted to give him a new Ural bike. Warren told the Mail he initially thought the proposal sounded “bats— crazy.”
The new bike ended up flying in with Putin from Russia, and U.S. officials agreed to let it leave the scene of the summit, which was held at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, an airbase near Anchorage.
A day after Putin left, Warren said he got another call from some Russian diplomats inviting him to the Lakeview hotel in Anchorage, which is where the Russian delegation had been staying.
Russian diplomat Andrei Ledenev was reportedly waiting in the parking lot with the bike and told Warren that it was a personal gift from Putin. He had Warren ride the bike around the parking lot slowly.
Warren said he noticed that the vehicle was very similar to his old one but had some “different trinkets.” He thanked the Russian authorities and then took it home. It even came with a sidecar.
“I’m dumbfounded,” Warren told the Mail. “I guess I should probably write Putin a thank-you letter or something.” He said he’s been so busy that the gift “hasn’t really sunk in yet.”
“It’s super cool, you know? I mean, it’s such a unique bike.” He said Urals aren’t for everyone, however. They only produce 42 horsepower, which isn’t “very agressive,” he said, and they’re a bit difficult to drive because of the sidecar. Rounding corners, especially making right-hand turns, is difficult.
The bikes are also built off the platform of a BMW, he said, with an older BMW boxer air-cooled motor. The bike Warren received is brand-new, too, having just gotten off a factory line on Aug. 12, with the manufacturer’s address listed in Sverdlosk, Russia.
Warren won’t be able to ride it around Alaska just yet, however — he needs to get a title, insurance and register it with the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles. Until then, he said it’s under wraps at the outbuilding at his home.
Warren emphasized, however, that he hasn’t done any “nefarious” deals with Putin. He didn’t ask for the bike, and he doesn’t know anyone in Russia. In fact, he said he wants Russia’s war in Ukraine to end.
