Twisty Tracker

Styled to look like their FTR750 which white-washed the American Flat Track championship in 2018, the new Indian FTR1200 is set to take American V-twins to a new level…

- Paul Lance

As with any launch, the first thing is a briefing for details of the bike we’re about to ride, why they made it and where it fits into the market. Plus, the usual trumpet blowing about how well the said manufacturer is performing. Only a couple of slides into the presentation it became evident that Indian – despite only being in the game since 2014 – have a lot to shout about, with sales across the globe showing double-figure percentage increases everywhere except North America, where they still managed growth despite the market shrinking.

And it’s only going to get bigger, with the FTR1200 set to turbocharge those sales figures. This unique model will open up an entirely new genre for the Polaris-owned brand. Until the release of the Scout a couple of years ago any Indian showroom would be crammed with large capacity fully-dressed tourers. That was all they did. But now the young, the sporty and the custom lovers all have a reason to visit an Indian store and we reckon they’re gonna love what they see.

DIRT TO ROAD

Flat track racing is big in the States. Flat track in the States consists of 750cc V-twins, loosely based on road bikes, battling it out on mile-long ovals. And, as it turns out, Indian are rather good at racing. They kicked butt and won 17 out of 18 races in 2018, taking back-to-back AMA titles in the process. But would the racer make a good road bike?

Well, the team from Indian made some mock-ups and went alll around the world asking dealers and focus groups what they thought, and the resulting whoops and high fives (this is America after all) showed they were on the right path.