Written by Martin Hodgson
So it’s pressure you’re after; how does building a custom bike for the founder of the Backyard Axe Throwing League sound" Oh, and he also owns the incredible Dyna Guerilla by Rough Crafts that the new machine must be able to match and complement. For Rob Chappell of Origin8or Custom Cycle Co it was barely pause for concern. Because from the earliest of ages he’s been drawing up designs and then spinning spanners. So it comes as no surprise that the 1970 Triumph Bonneville they call ‘BATL’ had everyone smiling when it finally rolled out of his Ontario, Canada based workshop.

?Matt Wilson is the owner and founder of the Backyard Axe Throwing League (BATL) which now has leagues and locations across North America, so my discussion with him quickly turned to making a bike he could use to help promote the business,? Rob explains. But neither had any interest in creating some gaudy theme bike, like those vomited onto our TV screens a few years ago. Instead, Matt’s request was pretty simple, ?I just need it to be reliable? and black?.
Sounds easy right" Well not so fast; while Matt did already own the Triumph to use as the donor, it had been to half the shops in Toronto and still never ran right. Before finally being parked up and left to gather dust in a corner. Sometimes starting with a bike with such gremlins is more hassle than its worth, but Rob’s built enough bikes to have confidence in his craft...