Here's What King Of The Baggers Needs To Do Next Year. Open It Up

It's true that Harley-Davidson had a big part in the creation of the King of the Baggers series in MotoAmerica, and that it also had a significant say in the rulebook for the series. But now, with significantly less notice than the folks at MotoAmerica or its only serious competitors at Indian Motorcycle may have wanted, the Bar and Shield has announced that it's leaving KotB behind to go pursue its one-make MotoGP support series instead.

On the one hand, from Harley's point of view, you can sort of see why it's doing this. The promise of greater international attention via the Liberty Media/MotoGP team-up seems well nigh irresistible. While it's true that one-make series, broadly speaking, are usually best at showcasing rider talent rather than manufacturers, it's still also undeniable that every racer in that series will, in fact, be riding a Harley.

So every race winner will, in fact, also be riding a Harley. And every season champion? Also riding a Harley. The math there is quite simple.

Of course, this leaves MotoAmerica and Indian Motorcycle in the lurch, more than a little. Time is short, and if you're developing bikes for racing, it's even shorter. If the past few seasons have proven nothing else, they've shown that King of the Baggers, a series that was once regarded as a bit of a joke when it first started because baggers aren't usually seen as purpose-built race bikes, is a pretty compelling fan draw.

I've commented before on how the weekend racing schedule flipped from one year to the next at what's the closest thing I have to a home race up at Road America (located in Harley's home state of Wisconsin). One year, KotB was like any other support series on the MotoAmerica roster, and the races took place prior to the Superbike races.

But by the very next year, KotB was the headliner, and every other race category that weekend was seemingly there as a supporting act.

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Never miss a chance to recontextualize a movie quote, I say. But at the same time, it's true. While a lot of seasoned racing fans (myself included) had a bit of a giggle when the concept of King of the Baggers first arose, as I've also noted before, it's something you have to really see in person to understand that it's way more than just a joke.

Americans love a spectacle (I mean, duh), but another thing that seems to be baked into our DNA is our love of (and appreciation for) the forbidden. Things that shouldn't work, but do.

Watching Kyle Wyman or Troy Herfoss hustle this incredibly chonky machine around the likes of a track like Road America, both hearing and feeling it as they muscle those beasts through corners, is exhilarating in a completely different way from watching a sportbike or a supersport do the same thing.

Why? Easy. Because somewhere in the back of your mind, there's a little voice telling you that they're not supposed to do that. And yet, as all your senses are screaming very loudly at you, they very clearly ARE doing exactly that.

With King of the Baggers, Harley busted down a lot of perceptions that people might previously have had about what can (and should) constitute a racing series. Sure, competing with Indian and reviving the aeons-old American V-twin rivalry for a new generation certainly helped. But it was primarily Harley banging those doors down, and now it's Harley that wants to take its ball and go play across the pond instead.

So Here's What MotoAmerica Needs To Do Next

Undoubtedly, Harley has its fans. American V-twins have their fans. But neither of those categories are the only 'forbidden race bikes' that have a loyal following.

What would be absolutely incredible is if MotoAmerica (obviously with buy-in from Indian Motorcycle, which would absolutely be necessary here) were to take this opportunity to open King of the Baggers up to non-American manufacturers with machines that meet the technical specifications (which could also be revised to broaden the category).

I'm talking BMW K 1600 Bs. Honda Gold Wings. Triumph Rocket IIIs. That insane Souo S2000GL flat eight. Buell Super Cruisers. Kawasaki Vulcan 1700 Vaqueros. There is truly no shortage of massive, honking touring bikes that most people would probably think have absolutely no business being hustled and muscled around a race track!

And while these OEMs might not have the same over-a-century-long rivalry with Indian that Harley does, if it's an insane, borderline-inappropriate racing machine lineup that you want, all of that is right there. You've got innumerable storylines just waiting to be spelled out, from both established manufacturers and up-and-comers. Sort of make it like a bagger/big bike version of the Super Hooligan class.

Who else wants to see this happen? Raise your hands below.

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