The Winner of the $200,000 Fantasy Garage Contest Is…
Firstly, THANK YOU all for participating in this fun contest! The spirit was one of fun and fantasy to be enjoyed by all. I think we accomplished that with help from you, the readers!
Read all the submissions at the bottom of the original article.
I enjoyed reading your responses so much and discussing the merits of each list with my friends and colleagues here at WebBikeWorld. It wasn’t easy to choose a winner from the 11 finalists chosen, but we did it!
Paul Cypert!
You’re the big winner!
We’ll be reaching out to get your contact information soon and arrange to get you the $1000 Revzilla gift certificates as promised!
Send us a photo of what you end up buying with the money, and we’ll share it on our FaceBook group.
Honorable Mentions
Special mention goes out to these finalists. All of you gave it your all with the lists provided and got my initial vote to make the final cut from the pool of other enthusiastic entries.
- John Laity (very solid choices for a complete and varied motorcycle garage.)
- TPB (You share my love for the RC30! Good taste!)
- Travis (I’m not sure it’s legal to have an RC30 and an RC45…)
- Vitalii Sychov (Your charitable attitude is praiseworthy, sir!)
- Gregory Payne (Very well written!)
- Kale Pominville (“a bunch of beat-up old KLR’s and some weird race bikes” made me howl.)
- Alan Squires (you must be some sort of writer yourself, eh? the ‘duality of man’…)
- Oscar Garcia (I hope you someday get your jet bike to melt Prius bumpers with, LOL!)
- Joel Bauman (I think you had the most bikes on your list of anyone.)
- Brenda Sanchez (the SKOAL can for a gas cap!)
If you didn’t read their entries, I encourage you to do so at the original Fantasy Garage article here on WebBikeWorld. Some are funny; some are smart and insightful; some are downright humbling to read due to the generosity they exhibit about the writer. The common thread is that they’ve all got a personal story and touch to them. All are well done to the point they stand out from the crowd.
Why did we choose Paul’s list as the winner?
Balance and the full exhaustion of his budget is the gist of it. His choices called out to the majority of voters on our panel because we could picture having the most fun riding the hardware in this collection if given a chance. European, Japanese, and American iron were all present… even a Russian Ural!
Here are some links and photos below to learn more about his bikes:
1. Regular Daily Ride – The Kawasaki Z900RS
We love that Cypert called it ‘the perfect everyday bike’…Old school cool with a bit of zest in the saddle to keep you grinning like an idiot? Yes, please.
The 2021 Kawasaki Z900RS starts at $11,299 USD / $13,499 CAD (rounded down to 11k)
2. Touring – The Kawasaki Ninja H2SX SE
Balanced supercharged engine with a turbo boost, multiple riding modes with life-saving tech, durability until the cows come home…and have we mentioned it manages to do all this and still be luxuriously stylish? Check, check, check.
The Kawasaki Ninja H2SX SE goes for the nifty price of $25,500 USD / $32,000 CAD (the list puts it at 22k)
3. Hooligan-ing – Ducati Hypermotard 950 SP
In Cypert’s words: “Every rider has to have a Ducati, and this is the only one that won’t roast your balls off.”
We agree on both fronts – besides. What’s not to love about a bike with premium components, like 74 ft/lb of torque attached to cornering ABS, as well as wheelie and traction control?
The 2021 Ducati Hypermotard 950 SP starts at $17,195 USD / $19,500 CAD. (listed as 17k)
4. Grocery Getter – Vespa 946
Audrey Hepburn, on her way to the nearest Walmart, with her teeny purse and teenier dog in the baggage trunk. Cute and also surprisingly functional with a 100-mile range and ABS/traction control.
The Vespa 946 is currently available with a beautiful hand-stitched leather seat for $9,946 USD / $12,500 CAD…although if you’re looking for the pretty pert thing in the photo above, the ‘Christian Dior’ title will have you handing over something more in the neighborhood of $22,000 USD / $28,500 CAD. (The list ballparks at 11k)
5. ‘Best Boy’ Transport – Ural Gear Up With Sidecar
Have you seen these three-wheeled bits of fun in action?? I didn’t even know that it was a thing to avoid curbs and small children by lifting up the sidecar like a shoe avoiding a puddle.
However you decide to get airborne, we like the thought of a comfy canine canister. A win!
The Ural Gear Up currently can be had from $16,499 USD / 20,600 CAD. (19k from Cypert’s list)
6. Vintage – A 1941 Indian Four
A four-cylinder 40’s Indian motorcycle nicknamed “The Duesenberg of motorcycles” seems like a heck of a lot of fun for parade duty.
Fun fact, Indian Motorcycles released this bike after getting their paws on tech packages for an inline-four motorcycle from Ace Motor Corporation, which they bought out in 1927. The bike hit it off, and the rest is history.
Cypert cites this Motorbike as being “25k for a ‘good’ model”, so we’re going to go with that.
7. Flat Track – Indian FTR750
A proven powerhouse motorbike with a racing pedigree and the capacity to increase in value…while still crapping the pants off of anyone raring to get it back on a dirt track.
We’re sold.
The Indian FTR750 currently goes for a whopping $50,000 USD / 62,500 CAD. (50k on the list)
Custom Build (And chance To Meet Keanu Reeves) – Arch KRGT-1
And here we quote Cypert again because we really like how he said it: “One of the biggest benefits of being wealthy is enabling small builders to innovate and push the industry.”
ARCH Motorcycles completes this via vitae in spades – and the KRGT-1 is a prime example of quality done right. We’re talking a 2032cc V-twin producing 122 horsepower and 122 lb-ft of torque (for those of you who don’t have those numbers at the front of the brain).
Pair that with Ohlins suspension, BST carbon-fiber wheels, Bosch ABS, CNC-machined billet aluminum fuel cells, and you’ve got yourself a pretty beastie indeed.
The ARCH KRGT-1 can be had for $85,000 USD, although we have complete faith that Cypert will really hit it off with Keanu Reeves and he’ll be able to get a wee bit of a discount on this one, fitting it into the rest of the $200,000 budget.
Well, that’s it, folks.
Paul also included just enough personality in his list’s explanations for us all to think: I would enjoy going riding with Paul. It was endearing, if you will, and we hope somehow Paul gets to fill his garage with at least some of these fun machines someday!
We’ll do this again, and I hope even more people will join in the fun next time!
I kept thinking about this after I posted. I have one small regret on the list.
I overlooked a small sportbike for track days. I said initially it would be rare that you could make it to track which is true for some. But I think everyone should have a 300-400 sportbike that they don’t mind dropping or won’t be too scared to really push on the track. I couldn’t recommend 99% of us get a 1000cc screaming beast…we’re just never going to squeeze everything out it offers. But a beat-up old bike that forces us to really ride well, not just twist the throttle and catch up on the straights….that’s pretty sweet. And for 2-4K how can we not squeeze that in the list?
Congrats again Paul!
I agree a small sportbike would have slotted in well with your list. I think I would have put in a Ninja 400 or something like that in lieu of the scooter, maybe?