Several types of motorcycles can be called ‘trackers.’ The original is the board tracker, named after the machines that raced on board tracks in the USA in the 1910s and 1920s.
In the 1930s, as the board tracks faded away, flat track racers appeared: street bikes modified to race on dirt or clay ovals. Past icons include the Harley-Davidson XR-750, but others include flat trackers from BSA, Norton and Triumph. This style is still popular today, with interest spurred by an intense rivalry between Harley-Davidson and Indian.
Flat track motorcycles (or dirt trackers, as they are sometimes known) do not have front brakes, but the slimmed-down style has been copied by builders of ‘street tracker’ customs.
It’s been a challenging year for most people. But the restrictions that have come from the worldwide pandemic have sparked new forms of creativity. For hooligan flat track racer Andy DiBrino, the result was a wild drift video titled ‘HooliGhana,’ with a BMW E36 and a KTM 790 Duke—both piloted by him. Based in Tualatin,…
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There are a few builders we watch like a hawk, because everything they touch turns to gold. One of them is NYC Norton, run by the affable Kenny Cummings. He’s one of the top Brit bike specialists in the States, but he doesn’t build a bike up from scratch every week. When he finishes one,…
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The flat track bug seems to have permeated all corners of the motorcycling world—including Sweden. We love this very sharp Indian FTR 1200, which comes from Blixt & Dunder, a parts and lifestyle shop in Malmö. Friends Jonathan Falkman and Mattias Malmgren opened the shop two years ago in Sweden’s third-biggest city. Their shelves are…
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Flat track racing is still going strong in the USA and Europe, and we’re starting to see customizers building personal track bikes between client projects. This chunky Triumph T100R belongs to Hookie Co. founder Nico Mueller—and despite its age, it carries the same sharp aesthetic that the German shop has become known for.
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Read more »A classic Triumph flat tracker from the race director of the Wheels & Waves festival, a Virago influenced by 90s Japanese import…
Read more »Building a custom bike is often beset with difficulties: there can be unreasonable client demands, unforeseen technical issues, cashflow problems, and in…
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