'Fast and Loud' Harley completely made over

The license plate on Ted Nesmith's 2013 Harley-Davidson Street Glide reads "FST & LD" — Fast and Loud.

"Like the plate says, it's fast and loud," Nesmith said. "It describes the bike perfectly."

Nesmith is a retired U.S. Marine and currently attends Great Falls College Montana State University as he is works toward a career as a physician's assistant. He was also elected student body president.

No stranger to motorcycles, this bike is Nesmith's fourth Harley-Davidson. When he bought it back in 2013 at Big Sky Harley-Davidson, it looked completely different.

"I knew I was going to customize it," Nesmith said. "I wasn't sure to what extent, and I never thought it was going to be quite to this extent."

The bike is custom from the front to the back. The front chrome forks have been raked out to accommodate a larger wheel and tire. The stretched tank, fenders and side panels are all custom, as well as the seat, saddle bags, back fender, intake and exhaust. All the electronics are LED in a dashboard decked out in chrome between a set of tall handlebars.

"When building this motorcycle, I thought that everything is better with chrome, so anything I could do in chrome, I did," said Nesmith.

The bright green paint is called Synergy Green and the paint job was performed by Mitchell's Crash Repair.

"I did everything on the bike except the actual spraying of the paint, because with a bike like this I didn't want an amateur paint job," Nesmith said.

Of all the bells and whistles he put on the bike, Nesmith is especially proud of the rear air-suspension. Adding a compressor under the seat and airbags under 6 inch saddle bags, he has the ability to raise and lower the height on the rear end of the bike with the flip of a switch.

The biggest challenge he faced during the project was having the patience to see all of it take shape in his spare time, when he wasn't in class or studying. The long hours spent in his garage have paid off.

"I've had plenty of offers to sell it but it's not for sale," Nesmith said. "I have too much time and energy into it. Projects like these are never completely done; there will always be things I want to finish on it."

To suggest someone for Why I Drive, contact Jessica Gray at jessicagraymt@gmail.com.