Roland Sands
Californian custom bike builder Roland Sands likes to tread an unconventional path for his creations. A love of track riding ensures that as well as looking great, his customized specials have enhanced performance and a stripped back style.
Never one to shy away from a challenge, Roland gained inspiration for his Hyper Modified by seeing pictures of the maxi-scooter during its development process.
“With this Hyper Modified project we wanted to take the TMAX back to the basics. I saw a picture of one naked and was blown away by what was underneath the fairing. I was surprised as structurally the TMAX looked really cool – different and a little bit weird, which appeals to me. I was intrigued and started thinking about the possibilities of taking this mechanical beauty and using it to create the look of the bike…” “I’ve ridden the TMAX around and people freak out when they see it. To be honest I didn’t expect to like it myself as much as I do, it’s so different and weird and it works great. It still rides in the same way as a TMAX but is even lighter and more agile and sounds like a dirt bike thanks to the race exhaust! It’s crazy.” “People think I’m into cruisers but I’m more driven by dirt bikes and racers, but there is no way I’m letting the Hyper Modified TMAX go. I’ve got a scooter in my garage now – I didn’t think that would happen! All I need to do now is to fit a surf rack on it and take it to the beach!”
Ludovic Lazareth
French custom bike builder Ludovic Lazareth draws on his design graduate background and love of muscle machines to create unique vehicles that not only look fabulous – they deliver outstanding performance. If it has Lazareth’s name on it then watch out – the bite is as strong as the bark!
Having created one of the very first Hyper Modified Yamaha VMAXs during the early days of his customisation career using a wrecked 1991 bike, Ludovic always likes to push the boat out when working on a new Yamaha model. As you can imagine, he relished the challenge of Hyper Modifying the new TMAX...
“When I first saw the new TMAX I thought it looked really sporty, like a MotoGP bike or the YZF-R1,” explains Lazareth, “but I wanted to take this impression one stage further and push the boundaries even more."
“A lot of my designs are influenced by the high quality technology and engineering techniques that are used in the aeronautics industry. When Hyper Modifying the TMAX I tried to exaggerate the bike’s existing aerodynamic lines using materials and components that you would find within cutting edge airplanes – which where the idea of using a supercharger came from!"
“As soon as I started working on the Hyper Modified TMAX I had one goal – to go faster than 200kph. To achieve this I fitted the supercharger, which has increased the TMAX’s power by around 30% to nearly 60hp. It is now very rapid and sounds incredible.”
Better known for creating hardcore cruisers, the chance to break new ground and Hyper Modify a maxi-scooter proved too tempting for Walz to resist. Having already featured on the front cover of over 60 magazines and had more than 600 articles written about his custom bikes, Walz wanted a new challenge so he approached Yamaha for the chance to Hyper Modify a TMAX. The result speaks for itself…
“With the Hyper Modified TMAX I have tried to keep the bike very clear and recognisable as a TMAX, I didn’t want to create a spaceship out of it!” Explains Walz. “I concentrated on keeping the stock lines and optimising every detail while reducing the bike’s weight.”
“I have also modified the handlebar area of the bike to give it a radical naked bike image and mounted the mirrors on the end of the bars to give it the impression of a café racer when in town.” “I hope to keep this bike for myself as it is a perfect bike for the city and is totally cool because it is so different.”
If this Walz' hyper modified TMAX has inspired you, just contact him through his website link.
