Photo: Eric Stahl
For the fans of Harley-Davidson and Indian, the recently-born King of the Baggers series was a godsend, as where else can you see bikes made by two of the world’s most iconic companies go after each other in heated races? For the riders taking part, pitting these baggers against each other will probably become the highlight of the year as far as their careers are concerned. Provided, of course, they have something to race.
There are not that many riders taking part in King of the Baggers just yet. Seven of them lined up for the first battle of the season back in May, and six finished. The standings were a faithful replica of the inaugural 2020 race, with a Harley-Davidson sandwiched between two Indians on the top three positions of the podium.
Three other Harleys and their riders came after that, and among them was Jiffy Tune Racing's Eric Stahl. Like all others taking part in the series, Stahl was hoping the second race, scheduled for this weekend, to be better, but an incident that involved a Dodge truck with the trailer out back bursting into flames almost ruined all that.
As the team was headed to Road America, where the race is scheduled to occur, the truck caught fire, which engulfed and burned everything to a crisp, from the pickup truck to the Harley-Davidson Electra Glide, the team’s tools, and their hopes.
Mind you, the incident happened at the end of last week, so Stahl had mere days to do something about it. He set up a Go Fund Me campaign, hoping to raise $10,000 and rebuild the bike. At the time of writing, people pledged significantly more than that, but there’s probably not enough time to rebuild anything.
Luckily, there may be a way out of this for the team. According to MotoAmerica, Harley-Davidson itself, through its general manager of global brand marketing, Jon Bekefy, said it would step in and help, with a bike and parts waiting at the track for the team to take possession of.
So, get ready this weekend for a full lineup at Road America, as it seems not even fire can stop King of the Baggers.
Three other Harleys and their riders came after that, and among them was Jiffy Tune Racing's Eric Stahl. Like all others taking part in the series, Stahl was hoping the second race, scheduled for this weekend, to be better, but an incident that involved a Dodge truck with the trailer out back bursting into flames almost ruined all that.
As the team was headed to Road America, where the race is scheduled to occur, the truck caught fire, which engulfed and burned everything to a crisp, from the pickup truck to the Harley-Davidson Electra Glide, the team’s tools, and their hopes.
Mind you, the incident happened at the end of last week, so Stahl had mere days to do something about it. He set up a Go Fund Me campaign, hoping to raise $10,000 and rebuild the bike. At the time of writing, people pledged significantly more than that, but there’s probably not enough time to rebuild anything.
Luckily, there may be a way out of this for the team. According to MotoAmerica, Harley-Davidson itself, through its general manager of global brand marketing, Jon Bekefy, said it would step in and help, with a bike and parts waiting at the track for the team to take possession of.
So, get ready this weekend for a full lineup at Road America, as it seems not even fire can stop King of the Baggers.
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