We never imagined that the adage “win on Sunday, sell on Monday” could apply to baggers… but here we are. To celebrate their victory in last year’s King of the Baggers racing series, Indian Motorcycle are making their race-spec Indian Challenger RR available to the public.
And we do mean race-spec. The $92,229 Indian Challenger RR is a track-only motorcycle, built by the team at S&S Cycle to the same spec as the bike that Tyler O’Hara won last years King of the Baggers championship on. Limited to just 29 units (because O’Hara’s number is #29), it’s about as niche as you can get.
The Challenger RR is a far cry from the ‘regular’ road-going Challenger, and boasts a spec list beyond the reach of mere mortals. Yes, the lights are fake and the windshield is trimmed—but those aren’t the juicy bits.
For starters, the Challenger RR’s engine sports a 112 ci big bore kit with CNC ported heads, plus upgraded camshafts and adjustable rocker arms from S&S Cycle. The air intake, 78 mm throttle body, clutch cover, chain drive conversion and two-into-one race exhaust are all from S&S too. There’s also a quick-shifter, a fully tunable ECM from Maxx, and an AIM DL2 dash with a built-in data logger.
The chassis hasn’t been neglected either. Adjustable S&S Cycle triple clamps sit up front, gripping a set of Öhlins FGR250 forks. A race-spec S&S Cycle swingarm does duty at the back, hooked up to an Öhlins TTX rear shock.
The wheels are 17” race hoops, shod with Dunlop race tires. A pair of Brembo M4 calipers grip 330 mm discs up front, with a Hayes caliper at the rear matched to an EBC disc. Both ends us SBS brake pads.
Then there’s the Challenger RR’s wild-looking custom bodywork. The fairing is actually a stock part, but it sits on an adjustable fairing mount from S&S.
The lights have been swapped for an aero headlight insert, and the stubby windshield actually extends further ‘down’ the face of the fairing than the OEM part. Together, those parts effectively create a smooth surface to aid in aerodynamics.
As the name implies, race baggers must race with panniers. But on this bike, those panniers are made from carbon fiber, and tucked in high to aid in cornering clearance. A raised race seat from Saddlemen sits up top, with a fiberglass rear fender finishing off the tail end of the bike.
Other S&S Cycle parts include a new belly pan, rear-set foot controls, and peculiar adjustable handlebars that look like a hybrid between touring bars and clip-ons. A number of smaller protective parts are littered throughout the build too.
Added up, this makes for a motorcycle that Indian claims can get you on the King of the Baggers podium—if you have the skill to extract the maximum potential from it. And if you live in the USA, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, the United Kingdom or Japan—because those are the only countries it’s available in.
It’s hard to deny bagger racing’s popularity, and the way it’s exploded over the past couple of years. The question is whether a $92,229 motorcycle that’s designed for one extremely specific purpose makes sense.
Not to the everyman, no. But we can see Indian selling these to teams that want to break into bagger racing—or collectors with very deep pockets.
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