American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 248 March 2020 | Page 22

"King of The Baggers" - Bagger
BRIEFS Racing at Laguna Seca
NEWS
Following news of its
acquisition of J&P Cycles,
RevZilla and Cycle Gear owner
Comoto Holdings of
Philadelphia has hired/acquired
"visionary content producers Ari
Henning, Zack Courts and
Spenser Robert [On Two Wheels
and Throttle Out] to the
company's content and media
team for Comoto's family of
brands to educate today's riders
and inspire those of tomorrow."
Comoto was formed in 2016 by
Boston area based private
equity investor J.W. Childs.
A bipartisan group of United States
Congress House representatives
recently introduced the Recreational
Trails Program Full Funding Act,
which would boost funding for trails
to at least $250 million. The MIC has
worked closely with the Outdoor
Recreation Roundtable in strongly
pushing for this legislation. "The RTP
is a critical program to ensure the
development and maintenance of
trails for motorcycles, ATVs and side-
by-sides," said Scott Schloegel, the
MIC's Senior Vice President,
government relations.
Just as Harley prepares to get
its wheels wet in the ADV
Touring (Dual Sport) market, the
competition is hotting up.
BMW's dominance is well
documented, and the Honda
Africa Twin has pulling up trees
worldwide since it was brought
back into production five years
ago. Triumph's Tiger ADV model
has sold well for many years,
but the British manufacturer has
now launched two new tech-
rich special edition Tiger 1200
models - the Desert Edition and
the Alpine Edition. The 1,215 cc
triple engine delivers peak
power of 139 hp at 9,350 rpm
and maximum torque of 90 lb-ft
at 7,600 rpm. Features include
semi-active suspension and shift
assist.
MIC members elected two new
directors for the organization's
board, and re-elected
secretary/treasurer Jim Woodruff for
another two-year term. Dealernews
Editor Robin Hartfiel, who has served
on the MIC Aftermarket Committee
since 1992, was elected to take the
seat of Eric Anderson, of VROOM
Network, whose term expired. Rod
Lopusnak, General Manager of
Triumph North America, was elected
to take the seat vacated by Mike
Peyton of BMW Motorrad USA.
22
MotoAmerica and Drag Specialties are
to combine forces to make Bagger
class road racing a reality as the highly
customized, ever-booming V-twins will
invade WeatherTech Raceway Laguna
Seca on Saturday, July 11, for the first
ever King of the Baggers event.
Held in conjunction with round six of
the 2020 MotoAmerica Series, the
Drag Specialties King of the Baggers
will be part of the MotoAmerica
Superbike Speedfest at Monterey, "a
weekend packed full of motorcycle
sport and lifestyle."
That means seven classes of racing will
take to one of the most famous
racetracks in the world, the iconic
2.238-mile circuit that’s nestled in the
hills of the Monterey Peninsula – with
the Baggers joining the premier
MotoAmerica Superbike, Supersport,
Liqui Moly Junior Cup, Stock 1000,
Twins Cup and Heritage Cup racing.
“I can’t wait to go watch the Baggers
come down the Corkscrew for the first
time,” said MotoAmerica President,
three-time 500 cc World Champion,
two-time AMA Superbike Champion,
and AMA Hall of Famer Wayne Rainey.
“That will be a sight that I think our
fans will love. I think these guys will
put on a heck of a show and it will tie
in nicely with all the other things we
have planned for the Superbike
Speedfest at Monterey. It’s going to be
an awesome weekend of all things
motorcycling at Laguna Seca.”
The 'King of the Baggers' will crown a
champion, and the competitors vying
for that crown will come from an elite
group of yet to be finalized V-twin
companies. Teams will be showcasing
their V-twin Bagger products both on
and off the racetrack.
“Drag Specialties has been the leader
in V-twin performance products since
1968,” said Jim Matchette, Drag
Specialties National Sales Manager.
"Our company’s heritage comes from
supporting racing and our slogan is
‘We Support the Sport.’ We are excited
to be a part of this ground-breaking
event and look forward to seeing
where this inaugural race takes the
performance Bagger market. Drag
Specialties has all the premier brands
that will make these bikes perform at
their highest level."
Brandon Holstein, owner/builder of
The Speed Merchant, said: “In all my
years of working in the motorcycle
industry, I have never been to Laguna
Seca, so I am beyond excited to be
going for the first time and being a part
of the first ever Drag Specialties King
of the Baggers race.”
AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - MARCH 2020
Additionally, Classic Cycle Events will
produce a motorcycle swap meet and
show at WeatherTech Raceway
Laguna Seca in conjunction with the
Superbike Speedfest at Monterey on
the weekend of July 10-12.
Operators of the Hanford and El
Camino Vintage Motorcycle Rallies for
some 11 years, drawing swap meet
sellers and participants from all over
the western United States twice a year,
Classic Cycle Events’ Marshall Baker
said: “We will have the same great,
enthusiastic staff with the same sellers
and all the motorcycle parts you’ve
been looking for.
We will also have the same great
restorers bringing out their latest
projects to woo the crowds and bring
home a trophy. We are also adding
some contemporary classes to the
show to include many bikes that will
be ridden to this event."
www.motoamerica.com
Don Emde to be Grand Marshall and lead King of
the Baggers parade lap on the restored W3
Former racer Don Emde will be Grand
Marshall for the King of the Baggers
race and will parade the newly
restored Feuling W3 around Laguna
Seca before the race on July 11 -
Corkscrew 'n all!
In winning at Daytona, as a privateer
no less, Emde gave Yamaha its first
ever Daytona 200 win, rode the
smallest ever displacement race bike
to a win there, took the first ever
victory there for a 2-stroke and
created father/son history - his father
Floyd Emde took a flag-to-flag 200
win on the beach at Daytona in 1948
- the last time it was won on an Indian.
Don Emde was himself inducted into
the AMA Hall of Fame in 2011, and
these days he is a magazine publisher
for Parts Unlimited and Drag
Specialties, and in May 2014 he
organized a recreation of Erwin
"Cannonball" Baker's 1914
transcontinental motorcycle ride on
its 100th anniversary.
The W3 was the brainchild of
performance legend Jim Feuling and,
as the name suggests, was, and now
is again, a three-cylinder air cooled
two-valve, triple gear driven cam, 4"
bore by 4" stroke 150 cubic inch
monster. The low center of gravity and
90-degree layout always had a
reputation as an excellent engine,
producing smooth power from what
were, essentially, three Twin Cam
cylinders joined in unholy matrimony!
Thanks to Luke Leatherman, Cameron
Pallet and the team at Feuling Parts,
the Oceanside, California modern day
iteration of the performance parts
business that Jim Feuling founded, the
W3 will ride again - having made a
restored debut at the recent Drag
Specialties booth at their Louisville,
Kentucky Dealer Expo.
www.AMDchampionship.com