Hangar Zéro 1: Drag Racing, Custom Bikes, and Mechanical Splendor

“Three days of smiles at the heart of mechanical passion…”

Sometimes the smaller bike events are some of the best on earth, and that’s certainly the case with France’s Hangar Zéro 1 Festival, which takes place each year at Aérodrome Jean Coutty in Arbent-Oyonnax, France.

The airfield, replete with neat old flying machines, makes the perfect setting for a weekend of drag racing, flat track, fellowship, and the heart of the it all: the custom bike show.

Our friend and builder Tom Boissel of RAGE / Cus’Tom Motorcycle, whose builds have graced our pages many a time, was one of the invited builders and offered to act as our photographer and correspondent for this year’s show.

Hangar Zero 1 — From Tom: Yamaha RD350 “The Old Fox”

Below, Tom gives us a little report from the show along with lots of photos from the weekend’s action, including many of the custom bikes on display. Look for full features on some of these in the future!

Hangar Zéro 1 Event Report: Tom Boissel, Cus’Tom Motorcycle…

This weekend saw the 4th edition of the “Hangar Zero 1” festival in France (located on the Swiss border) at a former airfield. It’s a festival themed around extraordinary machines, focused on custom culture and vintage style.

The festival is quite small, but it’s a showcase of all kinds of beautiful custom builds. The atmosphere is very friendly and relaxed, almost like a family gathering, thanks to the entire Hangar Zero team led by Franck Gailly, the creator of this event.

There was plenty of entertainment over the three days of the festival: demonstrations of FMX, trials, and flat track with vintage motorcycles, horse vs. motorcycle races, drag races, and even a demonstration of a jet-powered dragster.

And of course, exhibitors around the theme of vintage, custom and 23 motorcycle customizers came to display some of their creations, including an exclusive, the latest creation from an incredible customizer Bernard Mont.

The rapport between the two speakers, Pauline Elvis and Bertrand Lejuge, who specializes in this type of event, contributed to the general good mood of this event, which seemed almost timeless.

For my part, I received a “wild card” from ARTypic Run (those who were in charge of the drag demos), so I got out my racing suit and rolled out the 1000 Big One Senna and especially the 350 “for you old fox” whose performance surprised many more.