Scores of people flocked to the ASI/Kestrel Interbike booth in September, to catch a glimpse of ‘the bike everyone was talking about’: Pip Taylor’s custom-painted Kestrel 4000.
As noted by Kestrel brand owner Advanced Sports International (ASI), ‘Pip’s 4000 is a true work of art.’ The bike is ‘embellished with glimmering gold graffiti paint strokes atop an iridescent black base coat that, in the light, refracts every colour in the spectrum.’
Earlier in the season, Kestrel Brand Manager Steve Harad approached sponsored triathlete Pip Taylor about pursuing a “different” project and using the 4000 – Kestrel’s flagship, A2 Wind Tunnel-designed, all-carbon aero bike, as a canvas.
“As a professional athlete, you get to do some pretty cool things – and the opportunity to have a custom-painted bike is not something I’m going to turn down!” joked Pip. “Working with Kestrel and Steve is great. If we can leverage exposure for the brand and have some fun with it at the same time, I am all for it.
“Plus, I like bringing something new to the sport, something that breaks with the stereotypical view of triathlon yet stays true to the sport always being forward-thinking.”
Pip and her team got to work on a concept. “We wanted to take a new approach to traditional ‘custom’ paint jobs, bringing both an element of fun, as well as modern urban elements to what is a high-tech canvas,” explained Pip of her vision for the project.
Enter Ube Urban, the creative genius behind Ube’s Icecream Shop, a San Francisco-based international design firm specializing in custom paint jobs – especially bike frames.
It took approximately three 2-hour graffiti sessions – meticulous sessions devoted to a different region of the frame each time – to complete the work of art because as Ube explained, “I took it to the next level, canvassing every nook and cranny.”
Pip couldn’t be happier with the final product. “I love the way it balances being over-the-top glam and industrial/urban at the same time.”
“I’m ecstatic about how it turned out,” added Ube. “The public response has been that they really appreciate the amount of work and effort that went into it.”
