Once everyone in my group had arrived and role was called, we had a brief introduction and rundown of bike controls, then we were lead out for a short ride through Laureles Canyon (sorry, no track time). This road was actually a very nice route, with plenty of curves in it. At no time did we exceed 50 mph, but with the high torque factor of the L-twin, it didn’t matter. Plenty of fun to be had from 3,000 to 6,000rpm. Wheelies were not allowed, but you almost couldn’t help but lift the front tire on any of the gear changes, with a bit of agressiveness with the throttle.

I had a blast riding these machines. Coming from a background of 4 cylinder 600cc sport bikes, these bikes were super easy to ride with plenty of grunt everywhere. And the SuperMoto styling and layout provided an atmosphere of fun. I’ve been eyeing the new Monster 1100, but I’ve got some rethinking to do!

All in all, the route took about 40 minutes. Our particular group was about 8 people, but they could handle fleets of a dozen or more. All the staff involved, from the ladies organizing the paperwork, to the guys leading and sweeping the rides were all very friendly and knowledgeable.

Ducati provided much needed shade and had free water in the demo area and the other main Ducati booth in the Expo area had free fresh fruits, granola bars, and coffee/expresso.

As good as it was, I think the event would have been a lot bigger success if Ducati North America had:

1.) promoted the fact that they were going to be at the Sea Otter Classic better
2.) provided loaner helmets, boots, and jackets

Several industry people I talked to would have also liked to have participated in the test ride, if they only knew that they should bring their gear with them.

But many thanks to Ducati for running the demo fleet. Some may question why a motorcycle manufacturer is displaying at a mountain biking event, but to a rider like me, this kind of cross over promotion makes plenty of sense. I enjoy two wheel passion, with or without a motor.

-gregg, Site Manager Mtbr.com

If you would like info about the rest of the Ducati Demo Truck schedule for this year, check out:
http://www.ducati.com/od/ducatinorthamerica/events/detail.jhtml?eventId=25061

Ducati website: www.ducati.com

Trivia #1: Jim Carrey rides a Ducati Hypermotard in his movie “Yes Man”

Trivia #2: The Ducati Hypermotard can be seen in the upcoming blockbuster movie starring Christian Bale - Terminator Salvation

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 28th, 2009 at 10:45 pm and is filed under ExpoCoverage, Photos, Press and News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.