Lars Gustavsson is founder of a small company in Sweden called Farmer’s Racer, a one-man brand making pack-bags and backpacks the old fashion way in waxed cotton with leather details sewn with vintage sewing machines.
The company started making bags a year ago when Lars realised there was a gap in the market between the high-tech Goretex/Kevlar/Carbon kit and Leather chopper accessories. Cool bags for trackers and cafe racers were hard to find so Lars decide to make them himself. As a testament to their success, one year on Farmer’s Racer has been chosen by Gestalten as one of the 60 designers written-up and featured in The Ride.
As a bike-centred brand they needed a signature bike, and the chosen machine is this 1984 Yamaha SR400. The inspiration for the build comes from the old Swedish gravel racers and hill climbers of the old school variety. It was an era of experimentation and tactics designed to inspire confidence in the riders, so anything and everything was tried to add greater performance, better traction, improved cooling, etc. The numbered forward-mounted side panels pay homage to that idea.
Lars’ bike draws a lot of attention; “the motor vehicle inspectors, police and old men share the same question: Do you race this thing?” “No. I made it to celebrate the era when farmers and industrial workers raced their bikes through the spruce forests and meadows.”
It’s a very nicely put together bike with a no-nonsense shortened rear-end and tucked-in headlamp, and as you’d expect from an apparel designer the finish and paintwork is also top-notch. Thanks for Sharing Lars. See more about Lar’s bike and his gear on Farmer’s Racer.
via The Bike Shed
