If you’re going to tear into a modern performance Harley, you’d better have a point of view. But never fear, Thor Drake of See See Motorcycles and the One Motorcycle Show is no shrinking violet, and his latest Sportster S isn’t a bolt-on exercise or a catalogue flex. It’s a full systems rethink, working with Gates to show off their new Belt Drive system, and built in the spirit of a factory racer. Crafted using premium off-the-shelf components where they make sense and engineering the rest from scratch, Thor has taken Milwaukee’s most controversial Sportster and given it a proper ‘Super-Tracker’ transformation, and he intends to unleash it on the street.
Let’s rip in. The bike now sits roughly six inches taller than stock, with a seat height to match, transforming the ergonomics for a 6’1″ rider and shifting the visual weight upward into proper flat-track territory. A two-inch front lift kit works with a GSX-R front end that’s fully adjustable and tunable, dialled in with help from Giga Cycle Garage and clamped by a custom triple tree set. Out back, a three-inch lift via shorter torsion bars and a Sean Brown built rear kit drops the swingarm angle and rebalances the chassis. It’s not just taller, it’s re-proportioned.
The wheels are a clever nod to Harley’s own parts bin. Using one-year-only “paperclip style” Sportster S rims, Thor doubled up, running two front wheels, one at each end. That symmetry allows the use of matching hubs and simplifies the rear setup, which mounts via spacers to barn-style race rotors and sprockets. Braking is anything but subtle: oversized twin Galfer rotors with floating discs and Tokico calipers up front ensure the added ride height doesn’t compromise stopping authority.
Then there’s the final drive, a centrepiece of the build. The Gates Carbon Belt Drive Moto X9 system replaces the conventional setup with a narrower, lighter, centre-mount package and custom rotor integration. The stainless front sprocket improves corrosion resistance, while Gates’ CenterTrack™ design manages debris more effectively than traditional side-flange sprockets. Crucially, belt and sprockets were engineered together as a unified system, not pieced together from mixed sources. The result is improved alignment, long-term durability, and the low-maintenance reliability that makes belts popular in the first place.
Power was never the issue with the Revolution Max engine, but restriction was. The stock exhaust is notoriously choked, so Thor partnered with Sawicki Speed on a hand-built two-into-two full race system inspired by old Woods flat trackers. Thor bent the pipes; Sawicki handled welding and finishing. With a Dynojet Power Vision 4 managing the recalibration, output jumps to 121+ horsepower at the rear wheel. Anti-lock brakes were electronically bypassed, left plugged in to keep the ECU happy but functionally deleted, while traction control remains, requiring careful integration of stock bearings and resonator pickups to maintain signal integrity.
Up top, it’s purposeful without being precious. Renthal CR-HI fat bars sit in the clamps, wrapped in Biltwell Pan America grips. Adjustable shorty CNC levers sharpen the interface, while factory brake and clutch hardware stays for reliability. A dirt bike steering stabiliser mount, intended for a Honda, now centres the display. Mid-controls from Harley shift the rider’s weight forward, paired with Bates flat-track pegs for grip when things get loose.
Visually, the bike walks a fine line between factory prototype and back-alley race special. The rear subframe is heavily modified but retains a trellis aesthetic, with stock electronics discreetly tucked inside. A Gopher Glass “knight style” tail caps the frame, and a carbon belly pan with titanium fasteners adds functional edge. The CNCPT radiator swaps in as an all-aluminium upgrade, while over 100 pounds of brackets, plastic and bulky lighting have been eliminated. Small LEDs now handle illumination duties. There’s even a ghost graphic cutout placed in front of the brake controller, Thor’s tongue-in-cheek way of keeping prying eyes off the remaining hardware.
Paint by Andy Debrino ties it all together, layered over Porsche Silver powder from Blakely and Cerakote-treated aluminium components. Ginger at New Church Moto shaped the seat, tailored to the bike’s new attitude and altitude. And the ‘1911’ detail? A quiet nod to the founding year of Gates. This isn’t just a lifted Sportster S. It’s a re-engineered performance platform, lighter, taller, sharper and unapologetically mechanical.
In Thor Drake’s hands, Harley’s modern muscle bike becomes something closer to a homologation special: a machine that feels less like a product launch and more like a race team got bored after hours and decided to build it properly. Want to see it up close, then grab your tickets to the legendary One Motorcycle Show, where man and machine will be on full display.
[ See See Motorcycles | Photography by Tommy Spencer ]