Generally speaking, drivers past and present tend to stick to their first love when it comes to vehicles, meaning they tend to mostly use four-wheeled machines for their daily routines. There are exceptions, of course, and some of them are real suckers for motorcycles as well. Just think of Sebastien Loeb and his relationship with Indian and you'll know what I mean.
But yeah, it doesn't happen all that often for us to learn of a race car driver, a champion even, going for a motorcycle, not to mention a modified one. So imagine our surprise when we came across a custom Harley-Davidson put together at the request of a former Le Mans winner.
The bike in question is the one we have here, this insanely green interpretation of a species of V-Rod motorcycles Harley once sold as the Night Rod. It was recently put together over in Spain by a local crew called Lord Drake, at the request of someone named Bertrand Gachot.
The name may not ring a lot of bells these days, except if you're a fan of the Hype energy drinks sold pretty much everywhere but in the U.S. That's because Gachot is now involved with that company's marketing efforts.
But that was not always the case. Back in 1991, the Belgian/French national won the most demanding endurance race in the world, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, behind the wheel of a Mazda 787B. But that's probably not what his name has remained famous for - that honor belongs to how he unwillingly helped a Formula 1 legend be born.
At about the same time as he won Le Mans, the man was also one of the drivers of the Jordan Formula 1 team. His absence from the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix, caused by legal trouble he got into as a result of a road rage incident, allowed for a German national named Michael Schumacher to make his debut in Formula 1.
But that's all in the past now, and we're here to talk about Gachot's insane custom Harley. The bike is now called 260 GP, a moniker that blends the width of the rear tire fitted in there by Lord Drake with the owner's initials.
The entire motorcycle is supported by an air suspension system that gives the ride a more appealing stance, while a number of bodywork modifications – including the fitting of a custom spoiler, new fenders, and a number of covers where covers are due – help enhance the bike's original lines. Fine touches like the handmade license plate holder or the leather seat with double green stitching are also on deck.
As usual when it comes to custom Harleys, this one too still uses the base bike's original engine, now gifted with a modified exhaust system for better breathing.
We have no info on how much the bike cost to put together, and it being a recent project kind of means we won't see it for sale anywhere anytime soon.
Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies. Full profile
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News