Rolling South, Part II: “RS 2.0” Beta Street Tracker from Buenos Aires!
Argentina has become one of the great hotbeds of the 21-century custom motorcycle scene. Perhaps it’s no surprise that a country with a rich history of horsemanship would connect so deeply with the iron horse. In the city of Buenos Aires — “the Paris of South America” — motorcycles are everywhere, many of them modified according to the rider’s tastes.
Earlier this year, we featured one of the bikes from the 2020 Argentinian Builders Challenge (ABC), a Beta 200 Street Tracker built by Rodando Sur Moto Garage — a group of friends who rented a space to work on their own bikes, but soon found themselves branching into customer builds:
“Suddenly people started asking us if we build bikes for other people. Now we have a lot of happy customers.”
Rodando Sur translates to “Rolling South,” and the team has kept rocking-and-rolling, returning in record time with another build: “RS 2.0.” Again, their donor was a Beta Motard 200, a street-legal 200cc four-stroke supermoto the Italian manufacturer used to offer for the South American market. The bike featured 17-inch wheels, front/rear disc brakes, inverted forks, electric start, and an output of 15-16 horsepower. No speed demon, perhaps, but an affordable, versatile donor for a custom build — in fact, it’s the platform chosen for all participants to use in the Argentinian Builders Challenge.
This time around, the RS crew opted for a burly, blacked-out look. They rebuilt the subframe, made a matching seat, and opted for a slimmer metal tank. The exhaust was built in-house, and the team also painted the full bike themselves.
Below, we get a few more details on the build along with more shots from photographer Diego Abella (@diego_nikph).
Beta Street Tracker: Builder Interview
• Please tell us a bit about yourself, your history with motorcycles, and your workshop.
We’re a group of friends who we rent a place to build our bikes. Suddenly people started asking us if we build bikes for other people. Now we have a lot of happy customers.
• What’s the make, model, and year of the bike?
Make: Beta
Model: Motard 200cc
Year: 2009
• Why was this bike built?
We build this bike to prove that we can do really nice bikes.
• What was the design concept and what influenced the build?
We love to build this style of bike.
• What custom work was done to the bike?
We modified the sub-frame, built a new seat, and changed the gas tank. We made a 3D mask for the headlights and the exhaust was built by us in-house. Also we painted the full bike.
• What’s it like to ride?
It’s a really fun bike to use daily.
• Does the bike have a nickname?
Yes, we call it “RS 2.0.”
• How would you classify this bike?
It’s a street tracker.
• Was there anything done during this build that you are particularly proud of?
We are proud of the teamwork it took to put together this creation.
Follow the Builder
Instagram: @rodandosur
Facebook: @RodandoSur
Photographer: @diego_nikph
What was the tire and rim size
This bike proves that big engines have it all their own way.
#Don’t
Very nice. I’d like to see it with dirt bikeish fenders.