It’s that time of the year again, when thousands of riders and bikes descend on the bustling French resort town of Biarritz for the Wheels & Waves festival. One of those bikes will be this fresh-looking Kawasaki W650?and it’s a perfect match for the moto-meets-surf vibe.
Builder Uwe Kostrewa is already in Biarritz, after an 800-mile jaunt from his hometown of Cologne in Germany. And there?s every chance he?s picked up a few fines on the way.

Despite Germany?s draconian TÃœV regulations, Uwe’s W650 is delightfully pared-down. ?In Germany you are not allowed to do whatever you want with a bike,? he explains.
?So I spend a lot of money on tickets from the police, because I am not a fan of original stuff.?

Uwe (‘Hombrese’ to his friends) has been riding long enough not to care any more. He started at thirteen?on a Honda monkey bike. From there he worked his way up to bigger engines, until someone else?s Yamaha SR400 café racer caught his eye. Uwe was smitten?he bought a SR500 donor, dragged it into his workshop and built his first custom motorcycle.

That was four years ago. Since then he’s been spending his after-work hours building bikes for himself and close friends, for the pure joy of it. ?I’m not happy when I don’t have a tool in my hands,? he says.
This 1999-model Kawasaki W650 is Uwe’s fourth personal build. It’s also the fourth bike in his garage, since he can never bring himself to sell any of ...