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Tyler O’Hara shatters Bonneville record on Indian Challenger

By Bruce Brown Sep 24, 2025 9:21 AM

Tyler O'Hara standing next to S&S-built Indian Challenger on Bonneville Salt Flats. — Indian Motorcycle

Bonneville Salt Flats has a new name in the record books. Tyler O’Hara, best known for his success in MotoAmerica’s King of the Baggers series, just pushed an Indian Challenger to a verified 194.384 mph. The run secured him a new AMA record in the 2000cc APS-AG class, breaking a benchmark that had stood untouched since 1972.

The attempt was part of a project between Indian Motorcycle, S&S Cycle, and Mission Foods, with O’Hara serving as the rider. The result was a clean, official run across the Salt Flats that now stands as one of the fastest ever for a bagger-based race bike.

O’Hara’s record run

The record O’Hara set—194.384 mph—eclipses the previous 2000cc APS-AG record of 169.828 mph, established in 1972 by J. Angerer on a Triumph. That’s a gap of more than 24 mph, a huge leap in land-speed terms and a significant moment for the category. The attempt brought together S&S Cycle’s race-engineering experience and Indian’s Challenger platform, tuned to withstand the unique demands of Bonneville’s salt surface.

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O’Hara’s run also came close to hitting the 200 mph barrier, an elusive mark in this class. While it didn’t quite break through that number, the speed he achieved was enough to reset the official record by a wide margin and confirm the bike’s capability outside of the King of the Baggers racing circuit.

Honoring the legacy

Bonneville is inseparable from the story of Burt Munro, the New Zealander who set world records in the 1960s on a modified Indian Scout. His 1967 run of 184 mph on a streamlined 1920 Scout became legendary, later immortalized in the film The World’s Fastest Indian. Munro’s achievements gave Indian Motorcycle a permanent place in land-speed history, and O’Hara’s record continues that connection more than half a century later.

Bruce Brown Contributing Editor As a Contributing Editor to the Auto teams at Digital Trends and TheManual.com, Bruce… Read Full Bio

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