STURGIS, S.D. — The superstars of Progressive American Flat Track, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, are preparing to undertake a full-scale invasion of the 85th Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, with three rounds to be contested in a five-day span.
The first two of those three come in the form of the Jackpine Gypsies Short Track I & II doubleheader, which will take place at the Jackpine Gypsies Motorcycle Club Aug. 4-5.
Over the decades, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally has grown to become a cultural phenomenon of global proportions, attracting some half-million two-wheeled enthusiasts on an annual basis. Somewhat obscured in that rise, however, is the rally’s intrinsic, founding relationship to racing.
Progressive AFT has done much to reconnect the rally to those roots in recent years, and reconnecting with the Jackpine Gypsies Motorcycle Club is an important step in furthering that mission.
The rally was first launched in 1938 by local racer, dealer, and race promoter J.C. “Pappy” Hoel by way of the Jackpine Gypsies Motorcycle Club which he’d founded just a couple years prior. The rally was based around a Half-Mile dirt track race that was won by Johnny Spiegelhoff, who would later go on to win the Daytona 200 and earn himself a slot in the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame.
Approximately two hundred people attended that first year, which was enough to convince Hoel and the Jackpine Gypsies that it was an event worth continuing.
The Grand National Championship too, has important historical ties to Sturgis. The series raced in Sturgis in its first two years as a season-long endeavor. The victory in ‘54 was taken by six-time Grand National race winner Al Gunter on a BSA, while Bob Tindall rode his Harley-Davidson to the ‘55 win – the first and only triumph of his premier-class career.
Of course, there was much racing history made between 1938 and 1954, with even more added since, especially in recent years.
Tthis week’s Sturgis triple will kick off with the second Mission Triple Challenge, which will be featured in the Jackpine Gypsies Short Track I.
The format – which ramps up the intensity, pressure, and drama via three increasingly lengthy and important Main Events to determine the night’s ultimate victor – proved a smashing success in its Lima debut.
Briar Bauman (No. 3 RWR/Parts Plus/Latus Motors Harley-Davidson XG750R) comes into the week with a narrow Mission AFT SuperTwins title lead built in large part on his Short Track prowess.
Bauman has stated that Rick Ware Racing elected to field the Harley-Davidson XR750R in 2025 in part due to their estimation that it would prove a strong mount for this year’s Short Track-heavy calendar. They’ve been proven prescient in that regard, with the team racking up four ST victories already this season.
Those wins have shot Bauman’s career tally up to nine Short Track wins (earned at seven different venues, by the way), putting him equal with ST masters Chris Carr, Henry Wiles, and Jared Mees for most all time in the discipline.
Considering his current form and the fact that he has two cracks at it in Sturgis, it would almost be an upset if Bauman leaves this year’s rally not standing alone atop that particular career leaderboard.
While career achievements are nice, Bauman’s focus is obviously on the championship fight at hand. Fortunately, those two go hand-in-hand, as the three-race run in Sturgis will no doubt have massive title implications.
Between them, Bauman and Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) have accounted for all nine wins in 2025.
The most recent went to Bauman by 0.329 seconds over Daniels, although that short summary does a poor job of conveying how things actually played out at Lucas Oil Speedway.
Over the past two-and-a half-seasons, it’s been Bauman who has endured more than his fair share of roller-coaster days, struggling to find pace only to pull it all together at the last minute and salvage whatever he might.
Daniels, meanwhile, has traditionally been historically steady, at or near the front throughout. On his good days, he wins. On his bad days, he finishes second, or third, with little indication the result will be anything less than that in the lead up to the Main.
Almost all of his race-related drama took place out of sight when a training accident most likely cost him the 2024 Grand National Championship.
Ignoring the races missed to injury, he’s racked up a nearly unthinkable 22-race podium streak.
Even if you don’t like being charitable and consider that streak null and void due to the rounds him missed while healing up, it still splits into a ten-race streak (which would rank as the fifth longest of the reunification era (2010-present)), and an active 12-race streak (which would be third best and just two short of Mees’ alt-history record of 14).
However, Daniels saw that streak (whichever one you view as legitimate, 22 or 12) put in serious jeopardy at Lucas Oil Speedway. There he was well off his usual pace, hovering around tenth throughout qualifying, finishing fifth in his heat, and opening the main event from Row 3.
Daniels pulled a Bauman, however, slicing and dicing his way to the front and very nearly running Bauman down at the checkered flag.
While he’d likely want to avoid a repeat of that day, he also probably feels comforted knowing that he and his Estenson Racing crew can pull it off if necessary.
The once-maligned Harley-Davidson XG750R now leads the Grand National Championship fight with five victories in nine races.
Of course, all have come courtesy of Bauman, while Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Harley-Davidson XG750R), who has an extensive history with the machine, is still gunning for a first on the bike.
He’s come awfully close, but now he’s starting to feel the rounds tick away as he aims to finally accomplish a goal nine years in the making.
Robinson, who has scored two or more wins in five of the previous six seasons, has no intention of going winless in 2025. And a victory in Sturgis would be hugely popular with the droves of Harley faithful expected to arrive in town, generally, and at the racetrack, specifically.
A win or two would also do the Mission Roof Systems pilot quite a bit of good in the battle for third in the championship standings, a struggle that tightened up considerably after he ran into mechanical issues last time out.
He’s now just seven points clear of Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing KTM 790 Duke), and 15 points up on Jarod VanDerKooi (No. 20 Fastrack Racing/Wally Brown Racing KTM 790 Duke) after the KTM-mounted duo enjoyed bounce-back weekends at Lucas Oil Speedway.
