Who wants a sporty Harley? It's a question
that's been asked since time immemorial,
or at least since the 1950s. The original
Sporty Harley, the Sportster, was suppos-
edly considered a precursor to the modern
superbike. Its continued presence in Harley's
lineup is a testament to its success. In the
late 70's, ol' Willie G tried to get in touch with
the Sportster's roots, while tapping into a
trend with the Cafe Racer. It was a total flop,
but—like most flops—has a dedicated cult fan
base to this day. The Super Glide Sport was
a modest success at the turn of the cen-
tury (again, spawning a cadre of dedicated
fanboys), while the VRSCR Street Rod (not
to be confused with the current Street Rod)
was a VRod spinoff that went absolutely
nowhere. Some would say the tumultuous
couple decades of Harley's ownership of
Buell says much the same thing: It's a niche
within a niche.
Which brings us to the FXDR 114. It looks
like a stripped-down custom, popular the last
decade or so. It cuts a profile like a cut-down
Fat Bob: more bobbed, one less headlight,
pipes tucked in more. But, despite starting
with the bigger version of H-D's Milwaukee
Eight motor (bored and stroked out for seven
more cubic inches over the base model), and
despite being a cruiser (ish), the bike was
designed for performance.
A HARLEY WITH
A TAIL SECTION?
A SOFTTAIL OPTIMIZED
FOR PERFORMANCE
STORY AND PHOTOS BY BILLY BARTELS
HARLEY-DAVIDSON
FXDR
2019
2 019 H A R L E Y- D AV I D S O N F X D R 114
FIRST REVIEW
P94
