Dennis Bolduc crop.jpg

Dennis Bolduc is the President of the newest Indian Motorcycle franchise in Westfield. Sitting on one of his vintage Indian Motocycles he shows off the 2014 catalog for the new line of Indian Motorcycles.

(The Republican / John Suchocki)

WESTFIELD - You don't sit on an Indian Motorcycle, said Dennis Bolduc, owner of a soon-to-open Indian Motorcycle dealership on Southampton Road.

You sit in it, Bolduc, the owner of 15 classic Indians and of the new Indian Motorcycle of Westfield dealership, said.

The seats on the Springfield-built Indians gave in under the rider's weight , cradling that person down with the rumble of the motor instead of holding him upright like on most motorcycles.

It's a defining characteristic of the Indian brand and and one Bolduc once only hoped that engineers from Polaris Industries Inc., the most recent company to try to revive the Indian brand, got right. After all, he'd already invested a lot of money in the dealership before he finally got a chance to ride a new Polaris-built machine.

"I was terrified," Bolduc, who lives in Chester, said. "I mean what if they were bad. Then I got on one and just grinned. I told the engineers they nailed it. They got all the details right."

Details and modern innovations, like more space for cooling air to get around the engine. To meet modern clean-air standards, motorcycle engines have to run hotter and at higher compressions. That can make it uncomfortable to ride on if the air doesn't move well.

Getting those details right is important for Bolduc. His grandfather worked for the old Indian in Springfield from 1939 until the company shut down in 1953. Two of Bolduc's Indians belonged to his grandfather, include one his grandfather bought right off the factory floor.

He's got a picture of his grandfather acting as an unofficial test rider, trying out the new gadgets that came from the famous "Wigwam" factory on upper State Street.

When its done, Bolduc's dealership will have brickwork reminiscent of the Indian Building that still stands on Mason Square.

So for Bolduc, the details had to go beyond the name, which now includes the name motorcycle instead of motocycle like Indian used, to the look and feel of the motorcycles. the classical line, the "war bonnet" logo and the chief's head on the front fender that lights up.

Bolduc, whose main business is called Bolduc Mechanical Services and outfits car dealerships, hopes to get his first Polaris-built Indians on hand in a week or more. His dealership, in the former Lou's Fuel building, must be open Jan. 1 under his franchise agreement.

"The goal is bring Indian back to Western Massachusetts," he said. "Indians are such a part of the culture here. Everyone has a story."

There are three new models: Indian Chief Classic starting at $18,999, the Indian Chief Vintage for $20,999, and Indian Chieftan at $22,999. That's for "Thunder Black."

You can upgrade them to "Indian Motorcycle Red" or "Springfield Blue" for an additional charge.

One customer already dropped off his trade-in Harley-Davidson as down payment on a new Indian.

"We were working on the building here and I had people climbing over the debris to give me their business cards," Bolduc said.

Polaris, a $3.2 billion company, is the third company to try to bring back the Indian name. But Bolduc said previous companies lacked the manufacturing muscle of Polaris, which makes the Indian Motorcycles in its factory in Iowa. The company is best known for its all-terrain vehicles, snowmobiles and victory motorcycles.

But the new Indian is not just a re-branded Victory .

"If you want to compete with Harley-Davidson, you have to spend money on design," Bolduc said. "They gave the engineering term $100 million. They were like kids in a candy store. All of these are blank-paper, from th ground up designs."

Indian Motorcycle Indian Vintage Springfield

Designs largely based on rising vintage Indians. They also spent a lot of time with the extensive Indian collection at the Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield history, said Guy A. McLain, director of the museum.

"We have the earliest Indians right up to the Indian Arrow, one of the last motorcycles they produced," he said. "The Indian Arrow was very forward thinking. It looks like a lightweight Honda or Yamaha from the 1960s."

The collection includes a classic 101 Scout from the late 1920s, considered the pinnacle of Indian design.

Engineers got a look at board-track racers and learned of Indian 's rivalry with Harley-Davidson.

The engineers also learned of Indian's marketing history. After all, the real name of the company was Hendee Manufacturing Co. But that's not the name the used to sell the motorcycles.

"They chose the Indian name to represent the freedom, getting out on the open road," McLain said. "You could go out there and go where you wanted to go. It wasn't that way with other modes of transportation in those days and Indian represented that. Today, companies do it all the time. But back then it was unique."