There’s really nothing more human than turning an idea into a reality. The wild concept-turned-reality above comes courtesy of two mad geniuses, Mark Atkinson and Mehmet Doruk Erdem. The former is an OG gearhead from Utah, the latter a boundary-pushing industrial designer from Istanbul with an off-the-wall blueprint for a new BMW bullet.
According to Erdem, that blueprint was inspired by historic Bonneville racer Alp Sungurtekin and the film The World’s Fastest Indian. He calls it the Alpha. “Great white sharks have always been an inspiration to me,” he said in interview with Bike Exif. “So I decided to mimic their anatomy for Alpha’s bodywork. It had to look powerful and beautiful at the same time.
Such a stunner would never go unnoticed, and Mark ‘Makr’ Atkinson was among the many to raise a brow. Unable to get in touch with Mehmet, he embarked on the mission anyway. “In the end, I have every piece modeled, so I can modify it if I need to. I often redo parts over and over, until they are just right,” said Atkinson. “I let the bike organically find its own way: That took years to understand. Bikes have their own personalities, you just have to let them out.”
Uncomfortable completing the project without the blessing of its creator, Atkinson gave one last ditch effort to reach the Erdem … and succeeded. “I didn’t respond at first because, too many times, people have asked me to start a project and it went nowhere,” said the Turk. Then I saw Mark’s images — he had already started! So I believed that he would share my dream, and make it real.”
Over the next 16 months, the two fellas, a Mormon and a Muslim, were united by a shared affinity for two-wheeled excellence. The result? One jaw-on-the-floor Custom BMW K75 — and a new friend — gained.
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