Those who can, ride motor-cycles. Those who can't, play video games that depict the act of riding motorcycles. And those who can do both at the same time? Well, they're having twice as much fun as the rest of us who have to wait until we get all the way home and in front of the telly before we can take on Rossi at MotoGP.
Eric Bennett of One Wheel Customs in Lima, Ohio, is one of those "both-at-once" dudes. Dig the Corbin Beetle Bags hung on his 2001 Kawasaki ZX-12R--no, they're not for carrying groceries. Instead, they're carrying more electronic hardware (and software) than the local Circuit City outlet, including a Sony Playstation II gaming console and a bangin' satellite sound system.
Bennett's packaging for all these entertainment goodies is clever indeed. The PSII games operate via a set of standard remote controllers, and the visuals are presented via a set of SPL seven-inch flat-screen monitors mounted in the upper portion of the bag shells. The sounds of Uzis spraying and tires squealing from the Grand Theft Auto: Vice City game can literally be heard from blocks away thanks to a big-ass sound system that puts out more juice than Tropicana.
Located throughout the bike (including a few along the frame) are 10 Earthquake minispeakers and six individual tweeters, all run by a four-channel amplifier. And if you get sick of listening to video-game bleeps and blips, pick up the remote and choose a song from the 200-channel XM Satellite Radio hookup located on the dash. And just when we thought we'd seen it all, Bennett flipped a switch that activated a Cathodes neon kit with a computer-controlled sensor that synchronizes with music (or even a human voice) so the lights around the bike pulse and blink in time. Dag!
Bleepin' games, bangin' tunes, blinkin' lights--this ZX-12R's got more game than a freakin' video arcade thanks to the onboard Sony Playstation II and 200-station XM Satellite stereo system cleverly concealed inside the saddlebags. Each bag lid contains a seven-inch SPL flat-screen monitor to provide visuals, while audio output comes via 16 minispeakers arrayed all over the bike--with more than enough wattage behind it to thoroughly drown out the sound of the Muzzys carbon exhaust. And dig the neon kit buried inside the fairing--it pulses in time to the music!
And in case you're the kind of hard-mug rider who thinks these fancy show bikes don't roll, peep this: Bennett's Kawi regularly sees serious road miles, including the long haul to and from Myrtle Beach Bike Week in South Carolina every May. The engine is basically stock save for a loud-talking Muzzys full exhaust system and a Dynojet Power Commander with custom mapping, so it's a reliable ride to boot.
Bennett spent plenty of time dialing in the cosmetics, though. In addition to the aforementioned Beetle Bags, dig also the dark-smoke Zero Gravity windshield, LED taillights, custom seat cover, trick billet ZX-12R heel plates and SLE brake rotors tied to bling chromed wheels. Contrasting nicely with those wheels is the Precision Red paint scheme sprayed in-house by One Wheel--including the matching helmet.
Bennett says he spent an entire Ohio winter working on the big Zed, and the design and detailing involved just about every member of the One Wheel crew. Like all custom sportbike nuts, Bennett swears he's not finished yet: future plans include a rearview camera that will eliminate the need for mirrors on the ZX, and maybe a bigger battery to handle all the electronic gizmos tied onto this beast. Not a bad idea!