HONDA CT110

There may have been a road-registered Manx Norton, a squadron of Vincents and a platoon of Velocettes at Phillip Island, but Chris Gallagher’s $400 custom Honda step-through got all the attention.

“Everyone seems to be able to relate to it, even if they don’t understand what I’ve done to it and why,” laughed Chris.

Chris tried to explain what he’d done to his CT110, a model that has been around since 1980, based on the 1958 Super Cub.

“I spent $400 to buy it and used an angle-grinder to modify it,” he said. “It wouldn’t be a custom bike without a suicide jockey shift,” he added, pointing to the extended gear lever. That thing on the headlamp is an Eddie the Head I got at an Iron Maiden concert in Belgium.”

Nicknamed ‘Postie bikes’, in Australia, CT110S are part of Australian householders’ daily lives. A bizarre subculture of Outback riding, racing and inner-city customising has sprung up around the 105cc, four-stroke singles.