MOTORCYCLE Review
By JOHN Ogden Jr
It’s
Throughout the day, we swapped
bikes back and forth to get a feel
for the Challenger and see where it
excels. The first thing I noticed was
the immediate acceleration; it
pulled well everywhere, always
feeling like it was in the right gear.
The engine was so smooth that it
took a bit to get a feel for when the
bike was in the higher RPMs.
I give the motor an A+ when it
comes to what is offered for bag-
gers of today. The suspension goes
unnoticed because it never does
anything wrong. Bumps in the cor-
ner never upset the chassis and
comfort is top-notch even on rough
roads. We took an old road with a
few wooden bridges that had tran-
sitions onto pavement that could
buck you off a bike if ridden at
speed. On the typical American
cruiser, those bridges can give a
shock right through your spine and
it’s best to slow down. With the
Challenger, we comfortably took it
at speed with no ill effects. This is a
testament to the time Indian put
into dialing the suspension in for
this bike.
While stopped at one of the
overlooks, the comment was made
that when on the Harley it was
https://www.indianmotorcyclesofoklahoma.com
harder to keep up through the
curves, but when on the Challenger
there was no issue. That really says
when pushing though the curves, I
want to be on the Challenger as it’s
easier to ride when the roads
become fun. The dashboard layout
of the Challenger is newly
redesigned for Indian and I am a
fan. When just glancing down, the
analog gauges are right where they
should be and are easy to read. Just
below the gauges is a big screen
that can tell you almost anything
you want to know; it even has the
ability to overlay a weather map
onto your route and show where
the traffic is. Do you want to know
what the tire pressure is? It’s on the
screen. This bike even has traction
control and ride modes for touring,
rain, and sport riding. The cornering
ABS should save your bacon if you
find a need for hard braking in a
curve. All of these safety features
are something I would definitely
want on the wife’s bike, but are
good for anyone. With more and
more female riders, I would like you
to hear from Holly on her take.
HOLLY’S VIEW OF THE
CHALLENGER
Wow! What a bike! People say
that my eyes light up when they
ask me my opinion of it. Now that I
have that out of the way, let me
explain. I am 5’4” with an average
inseam. I am very particular on
what I want in a motorcycle and
have frustrated my husband more
than once as we have looked at
bikes for me. I want a bike just to fit
me right off the showroom floor
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INDIAN CHALLENGER
rare that we get a chance
to really test out a new
motorcycle when it is released to
the public, but thanks to Indian of
Oklahoma City that is just what we
had the opportunity to do. In
December, I received a call from the
dealership asking if I would like to
test out the new Indian Challenger. I
was taken back for a moment, and
then quickly agreed. They brought
the bike to the CMA
National/International Support
Center and left it for several weeks.
For those that don’t know, this is
Indian’s new water-cooled V-twin
bagger they just released. It’s
meant to take on the best baggers
the market has to offer. I was will-
ing and eager to give the new fixed
fairing bike a ride through the
Ouachita Mountains. With USD
forks and radial mounted Brembo
brakes, the bike should have the
goods for braking and handling
through the curves in this area. The
108” motor is sure to deliver with
120hp on tap.
With me on the new Challenger
and Dad on his beautiful Road Glide
with a built 103”, we set out on a
ride to compare the two bikes.