born again

a san Francisco-based motorcycle shop can build the bike of your dreams

america’s west coast is the home of individualism, a landscape where freedom is often expressed in wheeled form, be it four wheels or two. Untitled Motorcycles sf is a small boutique engineering firm catering to these desires. Founded in 2014 by rcatrained hugo eccles, it was set up to take california’s motorcycle culture to another level, splicing minimal design with elegant engineering. ‘northern california has a long history of motorcycling,’ says eccles. ‘one of my favourite rides is down to alice’s restaurant, which featured in hunter s thompson’s book Hell’s

Angels.’ clients come to the company in search of the bike of their dreams, eager to own an example of eccles’ minimalist mantra. ‘My process usually involves stripping the motorcycle down to the rolling chassis, then designing custom bodywork, seat, controls and so on,’ he explains. the company’s latest creation is the supernaturale, a commission from simon waterfall, creative director at airbnb’s in-house design studio samara. the supernaturale is the epitome of the minimalist café racer. starting life as a 1975 Moto guzzi 850t, the project is lighter than the original, with a handcrafted aluminium fuel tank and raw leather seat that will age and weather with use, but with state-ofthe-art electronics and a restored and enhanced V-twin motor bringing the requisite performance.