Does anyone remember the BMW R1150R Rockster" It was an attempt by BMW to inject some edginess into their capable but somewhat vanilla R1150R. So they gave it squinting headlights, a wider rear wheel, a hazard tape livery… and an unfortunate name.
It was good enough to turn heads and agile enough to be a fun ride, but it also dated really quickly. So when the owner of this particular 2003-model Rockster decided it was time for an upgrade, he he had no qualms about ditching the quirky styling, and using it as the base for a custom project.

The 1,130 cc boxer went straight to brothers Diego and Riccardo Coppiello at North East Custom in Padua, Italy. The Coppiello bros. have a few early-2000s BMW boxer builds under their belts, so they’re well-versed in the art of transforming them. For this project, the goal was to update the looks, but also throw a few performance upgrades into the mix.

?Our client used the Rockster mostly for mountain rides,? Diego tells us, ?but recently he started to go to the racetrack as well. And he really enjoys it, because it’s on the track the BMW gives its best.?
?The brief was to make it technically better and give it a new aesthetic. He wanted a bike suitable to ride to the track for track days, have fun, and then easily ride back home.?

A couple of details stayed the same: like the R1150R’s sculpted fuel tank, and its handlebars, so that the original rider ergonomics wouldn’t be affected too much.
But ...