Niki Smart Honda XL500 Motorbike

To transform an affordable Japanese enduro bike from the ’80s into a Quail Gathering dual trophy winner takes more than just talent, it takes masterful skill and perhaps a bit of time travel. Niki Smart (a designer for the likes of Ariel Motor and General Motors) used a 1981 Honda XL500 and turned it into a vintage trackboard racer-style motorcycle replete with both 3D printed parts, CNC milling, and composite laminate work. Smart intentionally kept the XL500’s engine due to its clean design and ideal layout and then formed the rest of the bike around it. The low profile tires set on racy black composite wheels, an artful carbon fiber tank, darkened chromoly tubing for the frame, and a single floating saddle all come together for one of the most magnificent bike builds we’ve ever laid eyes on.