Flat track bikes are “less popular” to say the least, here in India. The sport, Flat track racing, around which the bikes are based is not even known by many people in our country, so it’s not a surprise that we barely have any knowledge about the upcoming FTR 1200. Despite all that the Indian Motorcycle Company, are going to change the game. I’ll explain why.The FTR 1200 is a prototype flat-track bike which is based on FTR 750, which is famous for winning flat-track races across America. Flat-track races take place on a small dirt covered track with several turns and straights. The specialty of this motorsport is "Rear wheel drifting", as a result, you can compare flat-tracking to Drifting, the only difference is that it’s limited for motorcycles and takes place on a dirt flat track. Riders use the rear disc brake to slide the motorcycles in the turn and steer with their rear wheel. I am not going to into much detail because “Flat-tracking 101” needs a whole article dedicated to itself that you can read from the below mentioned link-
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Now let’s talk about the bike, Indian Motorcycle company is performing really good in Flat-track racing because of their capable riders and amazingly engineered racing bike, the FTR 750. It features a 750 cc engine with a 53 degree V-twin. It is in a DOHC setup and the crank is made out of a single piece to minimize vibrations. The overall design of the engine is “Oversquare” meaning the Stroke (61.5 mm) is shorter than the Bore (88 mm). It makes sense to design the engine that way as the bike is expected to rev quickly and higher while coming out of a turn, so the presence of low down torque shouldn't hinder a good mid-range. It is also counterbalanced to further curb the vibrations produced on higher revs.
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The engine is just the tip, the rest of the Chassis is where the delicious cream is. The frame is a Trellis frame paired with fully adjustable Ohlins at the back and only conventional suspension at the front. The seat, suspension, and handle height are adjustable and the rear section of the bike is designed for two reasons, to steer from the rear wheel and to remain stable while doing so. The FTR 750 is a race bike so it lacks a proper heat shield, seat, headlight and many catalytic converters. Thus it isn’t possible to ride the bike on the road, yet still, people wanted to experience it’s madness first hand, Enter the FTR 1200.
First a prototype, the FTR 1200 adorns all the street legalities on the FTR 750 chassis along with a 1200 cc engine from the Indian Scout Sixty. The 1200 version still uses Ohlins suspension and a race Chassis along with all the necessary parts to make it road legal. Not much is known about the production Variant of the bike but Indian has promised to keep it true to pure American nature of the sport.
On to the part, “why it is a big deal”. The FTR 1200 to American flat track racing is what Yamaha R1M is to the Moto GP, a bike born and bred on the track and handed over to the masses. Except for this time the sport involves drifting along with going fast. The bike will also be company’s first attempt at making a road legal flat tracking machine. Indian Motorcycles have decided to break out of the safe bubble of making Cruisers and enter into an entirely different territory. Although they have a racing experience to help them in their endeavors, the requirement of the public and the rider often do not match. FTR 1200 also proves the company’s passion for motorcycles, because the bike is solely the result of massive fans which were busy filling Indian’s Facebook wall to make FTR 750 into a road legal reality. In an era of cold statistical analysis, a bike which is being made just for the fans because their demand shows the commitment of Indian motorcycles towards their riders.
I have never ridden an any flat track bike, but because an established company like Indian chooses to make a bike as a passion project, gives a motorsport fanboy like me, a lot of hope in this cold and calculated world.
By: Yetnesh Dubey
