American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 228 July 2018 | Page 33

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RUSSIAN IRON
e here at AMD Magazine like Ironhead Sportsters, and we like
the bikes that Yuri Shif brings to the AMD World Championship
from his native Belarus. Put the two together and you get
‘Ducky’ - 10th place in the Freestyle class in 2016 and a build
worthy of the reputation Yuri has for creativity, first class engineering
finish and attention to detail.
Yuri has entered one or more bikes into the ‘AMD’ most years, at Sturgis and since
the event moved to Europe - indeed if we did the math we’d probably find he is
one of the most prolific of our regular competitors.
The bike was built in 2015 but the engine is a modified 1000 cc Ironhead from the
1970s, with a modified 45 ci Flathead WLA drivetrain - during WWII Russia was
the largest recipient of WLAs shipped to allies under lend-lease, with some 30,000
examples shipped via arctic convoys.
The frame and 27-degree rake front end are one-offs hand crafted by Yuri, as are
the 3.00-21 Avon Speedmaster shod matching aluminum 21 inch front and rear
wheels, the front and rear drum brakes, exhausts, primary drive, oil tank, gas tank,
fenders, electricals and detail components.
Yuri described ‘Ducky’ as an homage to the bravery of the riders and the great
designers of the bikes from the legendary Board Tracker era; it works as an
homage to his own design and engineering skills too.
W
www.AMDchampionship.com
AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - JULY 2018
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