Harley-Davidson Prepares for Daytona

Admin · March 1, 2023

Joining Harley-Davidson for a preseason test in preparation for the MotoAmerica King of the Baggers, Kevin Cameron gets an inside look at the factory effort. (Brian J. Nelson/)

Action from the starter becomes action from the engine—BAP-BAP-BAP, making conversation impossible in this work tent, attached to Harley’s big transport truck. Each “BAP” is 1,073cc (more than a liter) of burned idle mixture from a single cylinder, expanding into the fat 2-into-1 pipe. One cylinder fires alone at first, joined as the parts warm to their work by the second—ka-BAP-ka-BAP. This is one of the modified 131R crate engines that will power this year’s Harley entries in MotoAmerica’s King of the Baggers roadracing class. This was serious business: Harley’s pre-Daytona test, taking place just southeast of Phoenix, Arizona.

We know there have been spec roadracing classes for Harley-Davidsons before now, recall the 1200 Sportster class and, before it, the 883 class that gave so many youngsters a start. But how long has it been since Harley entered a Daytona class in which inter-brand competition takes place? KOTB is that class, and there’s plenty of competition from Indian, Vance & Hines, and others eager for a share of the public attention it’s pulling.

The maturing of the XR-750 dirt-tracker coincided with the end of Harley’s long participation in national roadracing. We know Harley recently ended a long and successful relationship with Vance & Hines, who designed the special Pro Stock Motorcycle drag race engine that won many championships. But in an era before that, Harley had its own racing team, employing mechanics, fabricators, and machinists—enough people that it needed its own foreman. In 1968 the team went to the Caltech wind tunnel and developed a fairing that raised the top speed of every bike it’s ever been put on. Serious business.

Related: Harley-Davidson’s Screamin’ Eagle Road Glide Factory Racebike

Harley-Davidson has returned to an in-house racing effort. (Brian J. Nelson/)

That tradition ended with the business principle that special expertise is more cheaply had from consultants than from one’s own staff. The problem with consultants is that they add little to corporate know-how.

What we are seeing now, with Harley-Davidson personnel designing, building, and operating its own King of the Baggers racebikes, is the closest thing to that old and tight relationship between racing and production. We know that today’s Big Twins have more durable crankshafts because of what was learned in the ‘70s from the XR-750; forging the main shafts in unit with the flywheels made a stronger assembly. Using a straight, pressed-in crankpin of large diameter made a stronger, longer-lasting assembly. And today, the factory volunteers who are making Harley’s KOTB effort work are pleased to see that things they have discovered in racing-modified versions of the 131R crate engine are now being applied to the just-announced new 135R version (both fit without modification into the Road Glide frame).

Never once, in a day of intermittent conversation with Harley employees at this test, did anyone get it wrong: They all said “crate engine.” When I was a little boy, my uncle explained that internal combustion power comes from engines, but motors are electric.

My journey was far from over when my second flight of the day touched down at Phoenix. A 50-minute ride to the southeast followed, leaving city lights behind. Arriving at last in Casa Grande (“Big House”) I found this message: “Meet in the lobby 7 a.m.”

A Western-style breakfast later, we exited Interstate 8 at the bleak 169 exit and here we were at Podium Club raceway. The land was perfectly flat as far as the distant mountains in all directions. Surely an ancient lake bed?

Tire warmers are in place on both KOTB bikes (Harley’s CEO, upon seeing the show at Laguna Seca months previous, had asked, “What’ll it take to have a second bike?”), the little red displays say, “89.” That’s 192 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s cold and windy—56 degrees. The sides of the tent are secured. Tire warmers make sure that there’s at least some grip as soon as rubber touches track. Cold slicks are nothing you’d want for at least the first three laps.

On the warmers and ready for a test session. (Brian J. Nelson/)

Bikes roll onto the circuit by 1:15 and in time-honored fashion, the two riders—brothers Kyle and Travis Wyman—do laps, come in, consult with crew, then do more laps.

At a point, one of the bikes comes in making a noise. There is consultation. Don’t think of this as a setback. Think of it as something the team infinitely prefers to discover here than in practice or race at Daytona. The purpose of being here is to ask difficult questions of what they’ve created, and maybe to get useful answers. This is definitely worth the cost of fuel (800 gallons!) to run the big truck the 1,800 miles out here and back. And to fly in 10 or more staff. Plus three journalists, myself among them.

Test days like this find the answers to questions and uncover issues not thought of; it’s an important part of any successful race team. (Brian J. Nelson/)

Getting solid information during development has immense value. When the US National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics completed the expensive Altitude Wind Tunnel at Cleveland in the spring of 1944, it was said that the first 10 days of instrumented B-29 engine testing there was worth the whole cost of the facility.

Here comes team principal Jason Kehl with a little black suitcase—the borescope. Off with the tank, out with the rear cylinder’s spark plug. They ‘scope the inside of the cylinder and find nothing, replace plug and tank, and restart the engine. Diagnostics continue while the other bike continues to circulate.

Hot coffee comes, and sandwiches. I see laptops displaying multiple overlaid curves—normal trackside stuff. Suspension movement, throttle angle, oil temperature. Among all the obvious effects, where are the causes? There is screen-staring and discussion.

Outside, a cutaway 131R engine has been set on a rickety table. There is a lot to study here.

Much to study on the 131R engine. Details soon… (Brian J. /)

A decision has clearly been made, for the spare bike—the 2022 racebike with its welded-on cooling fin extensions—is now readied by tire and sprocket changes, then gassed up. Soon out it goes, and the crew of the funny-noise bike begin pulling its engine. There are more in the truck. One appears on a little wheeled cart that is rolled over to the bike.

As the sun neared the mountains, the action shifted from laps to standing starts—an extraordinary number of them. It’s normal for a racebike to make one or at most two hot-starts on a set of clutch plates. Now many such starts are made—by bikes whose class rules set a minimum weight of 620 pounds! Think of what a rider gains from a strong start—not wasting laps trying to get past others who know how to make themselves wide. Burning up stacks of clutch plates is small change compared with the value of leading from the start.

Every ray of light is used at the track. Every second counts when testing—and racing. (Brian J. Nelson/)