The Bike Story

When I was growing up, I used to help Dad on the farm mustering cattle, and by the time I turned 13, he decided that it would be easier for me to help him with a motorbike of my own.
He bought me the cheapest possible bike we could find, a 1989 Honda XL1985 with no side panels and a battery that sometimes worked.

I absolutely loved that bike, and I got pretty familiar with it over years of cattle work on rough terrain.
The bike was a farm bike. It was kept going to be able to do its job, but not much more than that.
By the time I left to go to boarding school, it was put in the shed and very rarely taken out again. It was forgotten.

It sat in the back of the shed, decaying for the good part of two decades. By the time Dad called me to ask what I wanted to have done with it, it was not starting and was being held together mostly with cable ties.
The tyres were rotting and flat, it was covered in rust, the internals of the engine were all gunked up, and the electrics were non-existent.
I am not really sure at the time why I said I would take it to “fix it up,” but I am glad that was my decision.

Over the course of two years, the bike was extensively restored. I made sure to keep the originality of the bike by keeping the same fuel tank, engine, frame, wheels, kick starter, but making it better in every other way.
The seat was wrapped in tan leather, the big farm mudguards were removed, the suspension and exhaust were upgraded, and the whole thing was painted dark green on a black frame with a custom ‘Honda’ decal on the fuel tank.

Now, the bike sits pride of place in the lobby of the office. It is completely custom. A one-of-one original design, with no other bike identical to it in the whole world.
From almost being thrown in a skip to being front and centre of Finestream, this bike’s journey has been amazing, and it is guaranteed to be around for a lot longer still.