There is this misnomer in motorcycle design that because a machine is powered by electricity, it has to provoke some sort of design aesthetic from the far future – like there is some notion that this next-generation powertrain can only exist if it looks like it fell out of some sort of science-fiction novel.
I suppose, that trap is easy enough to fall into when you consider the great hope that is being placed into electric motorcycles for our industry’s future, but it surprises me that so few electric motorcycle designs are capable of transcending the tastes of several generations of motorcyclists at once.
A rare machine that did this well was the Mission R from the now defunct Mission Motors, and Tim Prentice from Motonium Design crafted the Mission R to look like a real motorcycle, not a science-fiction protagonist, but yet we only have to look at the Mission One prototype to see how even skilled designers can misjudge the conservative nature of motorcyclists.
Today, I offer you another design that can be mentioned alongside the Mission R as “electric done right” as Walt Siegl has once again added a chapter to his ongoing book, entitled “two-wheeled perfection.”
A collaboration with Mike Mayberry, the man behind the stunning Ronin 47 project that used leftover Buell 1125R motorcycles, this drool-worthy performance is simply called PACT.
