Episode 4 brought to you by Broenes Furniture. A compelling story. That’s one of the main driving forces in sports, including racing, and everyone loves a good one. Cody Gilmore has a good one too—after overcoming cancer he got back in the saddle and worked his way into becoming a main event regular in the 450SX Class. But that’s not what we’re here to talk about—this interview is dedicated to Gilmore’s next chapter, racing big, heavy V-Twins on pavement in the relatively new Bagger Racing League [BRL]. If there’s one thing moto fans love, it’s when MX/SX racers are successful in other forms of racing, and so far, Gilmore has been resoundingly effective in his first few outings in the BRL, despite having very little time on the bike. We rang Gilmore this week to find out more about his new endeavor, and what it’s like going from dirt and knobbies to big, heavy Harleys and triple-digit speeds.
Racer X: Dude, every time I’m on social media it seems like I see you on a podium somewhere holding up what looks like a UFC belt. What is happening?
Cody Gilmore: [Laughs] Yeah, the league I’m racing in, Bagger Racing League, has those belts for trophies and I won a couple.
How many of these have you raced?
I had a local type race to get a license to race the series, but I don’t really count that. But in the Bagger Racing League, which has all American bikes, like Harleys and Indians, I’ve been to two rounds, but the first one in Milwaukee was a double-header. So three races, really.
So you’ve raced three races, and you’ve won two?!
Yeah. The one I lost I led until the last lap, two corners to go, and I washed the front end. That was pretty dumb. I should have won that. Ten laps in and two corners to go. I was not pumped on that one.
What exactly is the BRL? It’s pretty new.
It’s all American-made V-Twins, so it’s pretty much Harley Davidson and Indian, then there’s Buell, which has a Harley engine. There are four or five different classes. The main Bagger GP Class has a bunch of pro road racers in it. There’s also a Big Twins class, and the Lightweight Twins class, which I was in, which has like Sportsters and stuff.
Credit: RacerX
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