Every country has some national symbols that they are proud of. America has the bald eagle, Australia has the kangaroo, England has the Queen and Argentina has the gaucho. What is a gaucho, I hear you ask" The gauchos were fearless and skillful horsemen who used to handmake tools for carve out wood and metal. These men were legends and are a significant part of the folklore in Argentina, where bike builder and sunglasses entrepreneur Sebastian Achaval is from. ?I am from that part of the world and wanted to make something that would capture the spirit and be unique in that way,? he says. This 2003 Ducati 749, named ?Arriera?, with all its handcrafted wood, leather and metal, is not only a tribute to Argentina?s past but also to its future.
When Sebastian first bought the bike he was already impressed with the performance. ?It was a beast to ride already, so I didn?t have to do much to get the bike I wanted in that sense, but still wanted to re-style to a naked bike and change the seating position to a more relaxed and upright one. Then one thing led to another and all of the sudden the bike was pulled apart and I was in the middle of a major conversion.?
Sebastian?s plan was to keep the tail section looking nice and clean. Firstly, he handmade the subframe and made the seat a single-seater. ?I had to redesign and reroute the exhaust pipes down and to the right side of the bike instead of under the seat. I didn?t have the right tools but was able to make the curves an...