What’s your idea of the perfect adventure motorcycle" For some, it’s a liter-plus globetrotter loaded with tech. For others, it?s a monkey bike that can also fly. But for Gareth Hadden, it’s this carbon-clad Husqvarna 701 Enduro called ‘Alchemy.’
An English ex-pat living in Cape Town, South Africa, Gareth earns his keep as an event and production designer in the entertainment industry. So he’s good at two things: finding skilled people to work with, and obsessing over the tiniest of details. Which is precisely why his rally-inspired Husky turned out so good.

Ironically, Gareth didn’t originally set out to create an adventure bike. His original plan was to build a streetfighter around a stonking Suzuki GSX1400 power plant. But then he bought a BMW R1200GS Adventure, got into adventure riding, and changed tack. Looking for something less heavy and more nimble, Gareth noticed a Husqvarna 701 Enduro built and owned by Mark Johnston of Johnston Moto. So Gareth bought a brand new 701 and roped Mark into the project.

?My role was vision, sourcing, budget and coffee,? says Gareth. ?Mark was amazing?he definitely had input, and all the actual hard work was him. He understood my vision and my design criteria: clean, simple and minimal.?
Mark’s 701 was sporting bodywork from Omega Fibre?a company in Johannesburg specializing in composite fiber rally kits for enduro bikes. Omega uses a mix of carbon fiber, Kevlar and fiberglass...