Naturally, the rivalry continued over to the asphalt as the King of the Baggers class – originally slated to be a one-off race at Laguna Seca – became such a hit that MotoAmerica tapped it to become part of select rounds on the calendar. With that, the game was on. Harley struck first, winning the 2021 championship with Kyle Wyman aboard the Screaming Eagle Factory Road Glide. Then, in 2022, Indian struck back, taking the title with Tyler O’Hara aboard the Challenger Bagger.
Transforming an Indian Challenger into not only a race bike, but a championship-winning race bike able to fight – and win – against the might of Harley-Davidson is no easy task. Indian teamed up with S&S Cycles to build these bikes, with S&S Head Honcho Jeff Bailey also the Chief Engineer of the project. In terms of the modifications and engineering, these are full-on superbikes. Just in different clothes. Per the rules, the main frame is still stock. The shape of the frame-mounted fairing is also the same but is made from lighter materials. The headlights themselves are gone and a vinyl sticker application gives it the appearance of having the stock lights. And that’s just the start of where the line gets blurred between stock and modified.
