THE RAILWAY ENGINEER

Last year I had the pleasure of introducing the work of photographer and custom bike builder Valen Zhou of Chengdu, China to a global audience; his work on the 'Monstub' soon appeared in BikeExif and subsequently all over the Internet.  The Monstub was his first customized motorcycle, and indicated considerable talent in Valen's hands.  I'm happy to share his second custom motorcycle, which he calls the 'ER', which is an homage to his grandfather, a railway engineer, who helped raise Valen.  His absorption of the tools of his grandfather's trade into the very body of his latest motorcycle is a beautiful statement of Valen's sincerity as a moto-artisan.

Here's the story in his words (all photos courtesy Valen Zhou 2014):

Valen lost his grandfather (who was 86 years old) in 2012; he grew up with him, and was proud he had such a cool grandfather, who was a railway and mechanical fuel technology engineer, working in the early 1950s, forming a new nation of Chinese industry. In those hard times, he was the one of engineers who built the four important railways in China. When he retired in 1986, Valen liked to sit next to his grandfather and watched him make toys. Valen says: “I still remember that time.” Valen liked bicycles so much, his grandfather said: “If you want one, just build it yourself,” and perhaps that’s why Valen likes doing things all by himself.