Harley-Davidson Announces AFT
SuperTwins Team
H
arley-Davidson an-
nounced the three
riders who will make up its
factory flat track race team
in 2020. Just one rider,
Jarod Vanderkooi, returns,
and he'll be teamed along-
side to new members,
former champ Bryan Smith
and SuperTwins rookie
Dalton Gauthier, who took
the AFT Singles title this
year. Brandon Robinson
and Sammy Halbert are no
longer with the team.
In other big news, Smith
brings with him long-time
racing associate Ricky
Howerton, who tuned for
Smith when Smith won the
AFT Championship in 2016
on a Kawasaki. Howerton
will now be Harley's new crew
chief.
"I think the Harley-Davidson
Factory Team has all the ingre-
dients in place to field bikes that
can win every weekend, and
the resources are there," said
Howerton, who will be partnered
with Vance & Hines Motors-
ports. "We'll have everything and
anything we need to move the
program forward."
The team will field an updated
Harley-Davidson XG750R flat
tracker for 2020, according to
Vance, powered by the liquid-
cooled, fuel-injected and race-
tuned 750cc Harley-Davidson
Revolution X V-Twin based on
the production engine initially
designed for the Harley-Davidson
Street 750 motorcycle.
"We don't plan to make many
significant changes to the race
bikes for the coming season,"
said Vance. "We are focused on
improving power delivery and
grip, especially on slick track
surfaces. Ricky Howerton and
Bryan Smith bring years of setup
experience to the team that will
be valuable in that regard."
"We are excited to have Ricky
Howerton joining the Harley-
Davidson Factory Team," said
Terry Vance, owner of Vance &
Hines Motorsports. "He brings a
wealth of knowledge and cham-
pionship experience to an effort
that already includes the tuning
talent of Byron Hines and engi-
neering resources at the Harley-
Davidson Product Development
Center. With our trio of great
riders, I think we'll be bringing a
formidable team to the track in
2020." CN
IN
THE
WIND
P52
Dalton Gauthier will make up part
of the new Harley-Davidson Factory
Flat Track Team in 2020.
