“BARN FIND OF THE YEAR” (or whatever it was…)
Sometimes improbable things happen in life. Some time ago there was boring administrative work in the office and in a short and much-needed break there was a login to the Swedish sales site “Blocket”. This is of course under the Motorcycles category and after only a few seconds a new ad appears which normally would not interest me, but from the ad it appears that it is a Kawasaki W 650 1999 that has done zero miles and has never been in traffic. A quick email and within a few minutes I have the phone number of an older gentleman who confirms the ad and that it is by definition a new motorcycle with 23 years behind it. The price is reasonable and the deal is settled immediately and a little over a week later the object is picked up in Stockholm. Salvatore Grimaldi is a well-known Swedish industrial magnate and when these retro bikes appeared he owned the Swedish Kawasaki agency (Monark Motor) and took a liking to the bike and a bike was purchased and parked at home in the warm and dry garage under the magnificent villa in the “Diplomatic quarters” in the center of Stockholm and it has been there for 23 years until it now has a new owner. The Grimaldi couple are incredibly likeable people and we had a lot to talk about. Salvatore is known as the “Cycle King” due to his great involvement in the cycling world and it was a real pleasure to meet him. The picture below shows when a handshake confirms the change of ownership. The ravages of time take their toll and after such a long time, a lot of efforts were required before the “patient” could walk on his own. The carburettors got the love they needed as well as changing fluids, filters, battery and fork seals. Of course only Genuine Parts and everything was done with the utmost care. The beauty has now been started up and the engine runs wonderfully. Zero miles on the odometer and it will stay that way as it is believed to be one of a kind.
