GTS1000 morphs into Project Rhodium Omega

Hub-steered bikes are not new. The system was invented before all this was fields by the James Cycle Company but never really used in any volume because it's expensive to develop and manufacture - and doesn't give as much feel and feedback as a normal fork setup.

Yamaha had a go with the GTS1000, which was even raced at the Isle of Man TT by Bedfordshire lunatic Steve Linsdell, but the system has become the preserve of the weird and wonderful special project builder - the latest of which is this, Project Rhodium Omega.

Samuel Kao, boss of JSK Moto in California, was approached by raving petrolhead James Chen to take the bike that captured his imagination as a kid and build a millennial version of it.

As the original GTS was a bloater - Linsdell's bike was named Supertanker - a load of weight was carved off it with a new tank and radiator, and the ABS was despatched to a skip, as was the bodywork. The OE battery became a lithe, lithium-ion version too.

New shocks were penned by Gears Racing while the headlight went through six iterations before the one you see was settled upon.

 

The motor has remained untouched but is fed by a new air intake which is hidden by the light. 

It's different...