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Schmick my bike
On the lookout: There is a steady stream of customers at this Kuta workshop looking for âchoppedâ and classic motorcycles
On the lookout: There is a steady stream of customers at this Kuta workshop looking for 'chopped' and classic motorcycles.
A 'reluctant lady' is the apple of Julien Goalbre's eye. The object of his affections is a dark red 36-year-old restored Honda CG 125 motorbike named after Spider-Woman, Jessica Drew.
Like a growing number of scooter riders, Julien has turned his back on the ease of modern automatic scooters, preferring to enjoy the good and occasionally grudging moods of his geared motorbike, rebuilt at the design studio of Edi Wahono in Kuta.
While Edi's space, with its acetylene tanks flaring and motorcycles stripped to the bone could be thought of as just another garage, the artistry and passion going on there separates it from the workshop of your average grease monkey.
An accidental entrepreneur, Edi opened his motorcycle chop shop in 2006, more as a hobby than a business. Today he has his sights on the capital with plans to open in Jakarta next year.
'In 2006, this was just for fun, not a business, but my hobby just grew on its own. Back then I was chopping just a couple of bikes, now we are doing more than 100 a year and I have a staff of 10 mechanics, welders and specialist painters. And I am still passionate about chopped bikes. It's a hobby for me that has turned into a business,' says Edi surrounded by a metal heap from 'donor' bikes that will be used to rebuild classic motorcycles and chopped bikes.
Despite his design influences based on the original Mad Max movie, Edi is a savvy business operator. On the workshop walls, customers are advised to understand that taking on a chopped or classic bike takes commitment, there is also a detailed price list for bikes by year and rarity.
With most of his customers coming from Bali's expat community, Edi says he is aware his clients like to know the price and quality of their bike before ordering.
'I had the idea of the price board because expats don't like to bargain. The list of priorities on why people buy these bikes, I got off a television program on chopped bikes in the States,' says Edi. His approach is paying off, within a 15 minute stretch four new customers had come looking for bikes, cash in hand. But they discovered all the completed bikes in Edi's shop were already sold and the ones being built were on order.
Australian Ben Renwick is disappointed there is not a bike with his name on it available. 'My friend bought a Honda CB 150 and he loves it. I am back and forth to Bali a lot so I thought I would buy a bike, but all the bikes here are either sold or on order, so I will have to wait for a chopped bike,' says Ben.
His love affair with old bikes was born on the back of his father's Honda CB 100, says Edi, who was born in Pati, Central Java. Edi says it was being driven to school on the back of father's trusty Honda CB 100 and an aged Vespa scooter that started his affair with these classic bikes that are finding a growing fan base.
'These bikes bring back memories from when I was a little kid. As an adult I feel these bikes give me pleasure when I ride, they give me a prize when people stop to look and they give me a lot of love. And for that, they need attention. That is what I like, that you have to commit to an old bike like you would to a friend, each with its own personality,' says Edi.
Julien, the owner of the Jessica from the top of this story, agrees. He speaks of his Honda CG 125 like a lover.
'She is a reluctant lady, but it's hard to speak about her. She is an enjoyable bike to ride around Bali, but yes, she's reluctant. That's the thing with custom built bikes, due to age they can break down a bit, so Edi is my best friend,' says Julien. Her history is also an important element in the relationship the events manager has with his machine.
'She has a story. She is from Singaraja, but how she got here, how she ended up being customized, that I don't know, so there's mystery. Even though I don't know her full story, I do know she has one, and so there is emotion involved,' says Julien fondly patting Jessica's shiny red fuel tank.
As well as rebuilding old motorbikes, Edi also crafts lamps, tables and other household furnishings from the left over bits of machinery. 'I make these just for fun ' that is better than throwing it in the rubbish,' says the self-taught welder whose motor part sculptures are garnering well-deserved praise, as do his chopped bikes that are a schmick salute to the everyman machines.
' Images by JB Djwan
