The majority of the bikes that we see are chromed, stretched and painted customs wearing fat tires, and usually the reason for the style is, "I wanted my bike to look different." We get a lot of very, very similar-looking rides that were all built to look unique--can you see where this is headed?
In contrast, the builder of this 2004 Yamaha R1 didn't care about being different, he just wanted the bike to look good--more specifically it had to look good to him. Ironically, when it arrived at the magazine it immediately stood out from that mass of shiny, stretched bikes we're getting used to. Different--but sort of by accident.
While you're pondering that, we'll start the story of this sweet R1. The bike began its life on a Yamaha conveyor belt, just like every other R1. Its destiny then brought it to the San Francisco Bay Area, where it was bought by one of the original co-owners of European Motorcycle Accessories (EMA). Gregg Colyer from EMA rode it for 3000 miles and then figured it would be more useful as a rolling billboard for his business. So, with the engine run in, Gregg and business partner Jeff Hubert tore the R1 down.
On went everything that the shop had in the way of go-fast goodies, stuff like race-spec Galfer brake rotors and lightweight PVM forged wheels. Saving weight in a set of wheels can make a more dramatic difference than weight loss anywhere else (because wheels are a spinning mass). The trick front wheel was then mounted to top-shelf hlins forks.
The rear wheel was fitted to a genuine Harris-made World Superbike-spec racing swingarm. The cost of these parts alone total that of a whole stock bike.
This certainly isn't everything that EMA fitted; that list is as long as your arm and includes everything from carbon-fiber body parts to Harris controls and a set of gorgeous titanium Remus exhausts cans.