Issue link: http://cp.revolio.com/i/1160177
WheelsOfGrace.com | Volume 11 Issue 1 | 25 holding stable lines through curvy roads. The modern engineering comes packaged in a classic-looking bike with more rounded angles than a Harley Street Glide, from the front fender to the V-twin to the saddlebags, making it immediately distinguishable—familiar yet different. I've never been a big fan of touchscreens on bikes—you ride a motorcycle because you don't want to be in a car—but the GPS was intuitive and easy to follow. I certainly enjoyed rolling into Kennedy Space Center with Sturgill Simpson blasting on the handlebar-mounted stereo system a little too loud." While Indian and Harley duke it out in the bagger market, they are also taking their rivalry back to the dirt track with custom-built Flat Track racers, the Indian Scout FTR and Harley XH750R. These performance versions of the Scout and Roadster are also designed to entice younger riders looking for more action at a cheaper price. The Chieftain has an MSRP of $21,500, and a Street Glide runs about the same. A Scout or Roadster will run you about $12,000. That's all great for successful middle-aged riders who are looking to fill up the four-door garage, but for younger riders, dipping into the double-digit thousands for a motorcycle usually isn't an option. Next Generation "My dad has a 1999 Harley Road King Classic. I grew up around that bike. I knocked it over with my bicycle as a kid, an event that left me frantically scrambling in a futile attempt to lift it back up as I feared for my life. I rode it for the first time when I was 17, swapping my Triumph America with my old man as we made our way from Seattle to Yosemite and back. A couple years ago, that Road King, with more than 30,000 miles on it, had an overheated bearing burst to shreds and tear up the insides of the cylinders. After test riding new bikes and considering his options, my dad had a custom shop called Cyclepath bore out new cylinders and fit a new crankshaft into the same engine, increasing the displacement from 88 cubic inches to 103. He hung the old pistons on the garage wall. In other words, dad's a Harley rider. He'll probably put another 30,000 miles on that Road King before he trades it in. But the next generation of cross- country haulers might be Indian riders. Dropping off the Chieftain in Orlando, the shop employee who gave me a ride to the airport in his truck told me about how Victory Motorcycles had moved in on one of Harley's historically loyal markets: cop bikes. Police departments from Florida to Oregon have purchased Victory fleets in the past few years. Polaris offered greater versatility, repair support, and customization options for law enforcement, according to the bike mechanic, convincing many local police forces to jump ship from Harley." Take a look at our previous issue's article on the Indian Motorcycle Police bike from Hollister Powersports in Hollister California. "Harley is very hesitant to change anything, kinda stuck in their ways, and Harley riders don't want anything to change. Polaris is a lot better at being adaptable."