Rev Keeper: the spark plug story behind the design

My first motorcycle was a 2012 Honda CBR600RR. I bought it in 2020 with about 2,000 miles on it. It had spent years sitting in somebody's garage. With so few miles, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what I was getting.

As I became more comfortable with the bike, I started to notice something at higher revs: the power would fall away just when I expected it to keep pulling. I didn't know what was causing it, and spark plugs weren't the first thing that made sense to me. How could plugs with so little use be the problem?

The change I could feel

Eventually, I had the spark plugs replaced. In my case, that resolved the problem. The difference felt enormous. The bike pulled in a way I hadn't experienced before, and it felt almost new to me. I remember being surprised by how much performance I hadn't been getting.

I don't have a before-and-after power measurement. This is the experience I remember from riding the bike, rather than a measured horsepower claim. What stayed with me was the feeling: a small component had made a very noticeable difference.

What that experience means to Rev Keeper

That is the personal connection behind the spark plug in Rev Keeper. When I look at it, I think about the part I had overlooked and the moment the motorcycle finally felt right.

The design brings a spark plug, a gloved fist and tachometer imagery together in cream and red. For me, the spark plug gives those racing and garage references a specific memory. It stands for paying attention to the machine, including the parts that don't get much attention until something goes wrong.

I developed the artwork using generative AI, guided by the motorcycle imagery and feeling I wanted it to carry. The process wasn't a hand-drawn sketchbook project. The story behind it, though, comes from my own first bike.

The lesson I took away

Low mileage didn't tell me everything I needed to know about that motorcycle. I had focused on how little it had been ridden and hadn't understood what might need attention after years of sitting.

I also wouldn't use my experience as a diagnosis for another rider's bike. Power loss at higher revs needs proper investigation; replacing plugs was the solution in my case. The lesson I carry is to understand the condition and maintenance history of the whole machine, rather than relying on the number on the odometer.

Rev Keeper is my reminder of that first-bike discovery: the frustration of something not working as expected, then the satisfaction when it finally does.

See the artwork on the Rev Keeper Back Graphic Tee, or explore more garage-inspired designs in the Road collection.