Jan is quite simply an extraordinary 'sculptor' of wood and has created one of the most beautiful bikes we've ever seen. Jan normally works on restoring old car dashboards, or creating interiors for yachts, but he loves bikes, and wants to turn this into the mainstay of his business. "I started with tables and a chest and a couple of boats. But since I was a boy, I’ve needed something to challenge me, something I could work on until the end. Well, that’s the bike!"

Also in the stable is a more utilitarian mountain bike, but we've fallen head over heels for this road bike. "Wood is stronger relative to its weight than metal. It took me about 200 hours to get it right. The race bike is made from one piece of laminated birch, 34 layers, and the joy is that I can shape it and craft it. You can’t do that with aluminium or carbon. Every bike is individual."

Of course this is truly art, or an artisan at the top of his game, and you'll expect to pay for that. These astounding pieces run to between €14,500 and €16,000, so not everyone is going to be clamouring for one.

Indeed Jan himself says, "The things I make are unique. You choose them because you want to be special, the only boy in the street to have one. You can ride them, you can race them and you don’t have to treat them differently from any other bike. They’re practical but they’re jewels, the playthings of someone who has the money to stand out and be different."

We can't have it yet, but there never was anything wrong with looking...