‘Australian’ Chopper

By Erik Fearn

Every once in a long while, when the stars align and the global pop culture Zeitgeist is just right, television producers create a show that quickly grows into a monster hit and takes on a life of its own.  

This is exactly what the lucky producers at Discovery Channel have on their hands with the global runaway success of American Chopper – The Series. 

For those of you who’ve been hiding under a rock these past four years, this reality TV show follows Paul Teutul Sr, his sons Paul (Paulie) Jr, Mikey and their motley crew of motorcycle fabricators around their workshop as they design and build some of the most outrageous custom motorcycles on the market today. 

Chopper men: (From left) Mikey, Paul Teutul and Paul Jr were in Sydney recently. — ERIK FEARN

But what is it about American Chopper that consistently makes it the highest rated programme for Discovery Channel? The answer may surprise you. The gang at OCC are just regular guys with regular dreams and conflicts – especially between Paul Sr. and Jr. 

Yet it is exactly because these are such regular guys that mostly male viewers – and a growing number of women – from all walks of life can so readily identify with them.  

No airs, no pretences. Just regular guys like us with potbellies and a penchant for pranks – except they get to build the world’s sweetest bikes. The show is everything Sex and the City never was. Real. 

In more recent episodes, the Teutul family has blended travel into their once strictly workshop-based show. This is partly to keep the show interesting but serves another important purpose: inspiration. 

And so, for the start of their much anticipated fifth season, the gang at OCC have decided to go all out for inspiration. In conjunction with Tourism Australia, the boys went Down Under for two weeks earlier this year to seek inspiration to build a uniquely Australia-themed chopper. 

The Best of Oz tour included exploring the Outback, learning how to surf at world-famous Bondi Beach, climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, diving with sharks on the Great Barrier Reef and visiting actor Russell Crowe, a fan of the show, on his farm. And of course plenty of choppering around the gorgeous countryside. 

So, after touring the continent, eating dust and flies, getting sunburned and generally having the time of their lives, we sat down and asked Paul Jr, who is OCC’s lead designer, what impressions he’s taken back to the workshop with him in preparation of building an Australia-themed bike. 

Weekender: So while you were on the road, literally, did you see any of the iconic animals which have helped shape Australia’s image to the world? 

Paul Jr: Yeah, seeing kangaroos definitely helped (for inspiration). In New York, we’re used to seeing deer, but when we went there, the kangaroo were like deer, so that was pretty amazing.  

But I think the Great Barrier Reef helped. Also, being in Sydney and experiencing the sights and sounds of (this amazing city), and all the different things that we did there. It really took the whole two-week trip to be inspired to build the bike and, I think, to do an accurate job of summing up all of Australia inside one bike.  

Weekender: Without giving too much away, what are some of the sights and experiences that you’ve included in the Australia Bike? 

Paul Jr: I think we did a really cool sissy bar on the rear fender for the Sydney Harbour Bridge. I think that was a pretty standout feature. Also, you have the three-dimensional carving of Australia on top of the tank. All the different experiences and the different landscapes and areas that we visited really made up what Australia meant to us, as far as doing the bike. And the bike pulls it all together. 

Weekender: So what’s been the biggest challenge in coming up with something stunning and original for the Australia Bike? 

Paul Jr: The biggest challenges when it comes to chopper customisation are always the same thing. You’re always trying to outdo the last bike. You only have so many frame styles. That’s why we started building frames. And just being really innovative and creative so one bike doesn’t look like the next. You’ve got to keep trying to keep it fresh. 

Even though you have the theme, you still have to come up with different looks for the bike.  

Weekender: And lastly, how long does it take to produce each bike? 

Paul Jr: On a show, we usually have about three weeks to do a bike. Off air, it depends on how much time we’re allowed. But generally a show bike that’s done on air will be three weeks. 

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