BMW R45 custom: 'The Gonzo' by El Solitario

One of the more original builders working today is David Borras, a Spanish vintage motorcycle racer who runs El Solitario (“the loner”) MC. He's got an idiosyncratic style, and his disregard for contemporary fashions has won him a lot of attention. This is Borras' latest bike: it's unlikely to be as controversial as his Triumph T120, but it’s just as eye-catching. Called ‘The Gonzo’, it's a heavily customized 1976 R45 that Borras describes as “terribly underpowered, but indestructible”. It was a fast build: “We were not looking for a posh finish, or complicated technical solutions.” The first premise was to...