Some rigs turn heads with size and noise. Others stand out by being simple, purposeful, and unmistakably personal. Greg Heath, frame builder at Donkelope Bikes and professional pipeline welder, embodies the latter. His immaculate 2000 Toyota Tacoma SR5 and fleet of purple bikes reflect a philosophy rooted in durability, utility, and a little eccentric flair.

Heath’s Tacoma is no ordinary first-gen. While most have been beaten by years of hard use, his metallic red SR5, powered by Toyota’s legendary 3.4L V6 and five-speed manual, remains strikingly clean, sitting on oversized tires that fit better than stock. It’s a workhorse preserved with care, as timeless as it is practical.

The bikes push in a different direction. All painted in his signature purple, they reveal his BMX roots and inventive streak: wooden fenders, custom bags, Profile Racing components, even faux-fur accents. Against all odds, Heath equips them with Rockshox Reverb dropper posts, notorious for leaks but kept alive by his welder’s patience. His 2012 Oregon Manifest commuter carries particular weight, having survived the crash that left him with broken ribs, a punctured lung, and a long recovery.

Photographed at Bellingham’s civic dirt jumps and the Shire trails he helps maintain, Heath’s rigs are built to ride, not to sit polished in a garage. Clean welds and purposeful details on machines made to last.

We are excited to continue to support this series on The Radavist, written and photographed by Paul Kalifatidi, introducing you to the people, vehicles, and bikes that make our industry “rad.”

Stay tuned for more Radical Rigs coming soon!

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