Harley-Davidson Rapid Is Very Quick at Making You Forget It Started Out as a 2014 Breakout

As we continue our journey through the world of custom Harleys, with some of them admittedly quite old, we keep uncovering Breakout examples that make the new one look out of date. And that’s probably going to be the case until custom shops the world over get access to the 2023 model and start spitting out fresher ideas based on it.

Today’s old but custom Breakout with enough style to take on the 2023 model is called Rapid and was put together over in Poland by a crew called Nine Hills. In several European languages, rapid is another word for fast, and the two-wheeler supposedly more than lives up to its name.

Made by Harley as a 2014 model year, the motorcycle is described by Nine Hills as “not the first truly sports project that we have launched from our company,” but one that is by far “the most awarded and famous.”

That’s because shortly after it was shown, in 2016, the two-wheeler went on to win a spot on the podium during the Custom Bike World Championship in Germany. It was only a third place there, but if you know what incredible creations usually come out of the Old Continent you know that’s still quite the accomplishment.

Built with an unlimited budget (that’s what Nine Hills tells us, without revealing how much the Rapid eventually ended up costing), the custom is a radical departure from its former, stock self.

The first thing that hits you is the apparent longer and lower stance. That was achieved by fitting a new fork up front of Ohlins make, dropping the waist, where the seat is located, lower into the frame, and propping the entire thing on a Legend air suspension system.

Add to all that the larger wheel at the rear, and significantly wider than stock at 260 mm, and you get the perfect side view of a custom Breakout. Just like the piece at the front, the rear wheel is a custom creation of Rick's Motorcycles and is held in place by a wide swingarm.

Several other big names of custom motorcycle parts making contributed their products to the Rapid. The list includes Roland Sands Design, which supplied the foot accessories and engine covers, K&N which is responsible for the air filter, or the maker of the bike’s electronic bits, motogadget.

The exhaust system slapped to one side of the engine is made in-house. Speaking of which, we’re told the powerplant underwent thorough tuning, although exactly what that means in terms of performance was not revealed.

The current whereabouts of the Harley-Davidson Rapid are not known, but you can still find it listed as part of Nine Hills’ portfolio. That’s where we stumbled upon it and decided it’s definitely worth its 15 minutes of fame this weekend.