VooDeeVoo 2014 & WPM- Il Presidente Review

[RobbieT]

Day 1 & 2

Day 1- Friday 11th July
For the sake of much cheapness I opted to fly down to London on the Friday night and stay over.
BIG Mistake (although it did work out at half the price of the direct option...not sure if I would do the same again.
Arrived at London City airport and got the tube over to Heathrow (thanks for directions DJ) which took just as long as the flight down!
Arrived at Heathrow just as everything shut for the night except one coffee bar, so couldnt even get a decent pint!

Day 2- Saturday 12th July
Settled down on one of the seats in the arrivals lounge after removing the armrests only to get 1 hours shut-eye before the maintainence men started hammering and drilling all night. Suffice to say I checked into the flight to Vienna on the Saturday morning at 5 am pretty damn shattered. 9am on the plane took advantage of the free drinks service and by 10am was feeling pretty spaced out!!!
Arrived at vienna to be met by Gery (Ducati representative) and some other world presidents, where we were drive back to the hotel, checked in, and some free time.
We went and had a look in the garage to see what bikes we were given (names were on the tanks). *Check out this sidecar owned by Fabio & Lili (amazing story about this bike and its owners but for now just note the lack of stickers on the sidecar and then compare at the end on Day 10)

I found my bike in the corner...thats mine on the right......monster 1200, 10 kilometers on the clock...couldnt wait for the instructions on how to use it!!!

then time for a pizza and some beers in the hotel garden with some new friends...they were very welcoming to me as a newbie as they all knew each other very well from previous events.

then the meeting for finding out which group we were riding in (Red, Yellow or Blue) and the trip itinerary, rules of the week, and key handover!

The off out to Vienna city centre

*no he isnt touching my ass...althoguh it does look it!!!

for Dinner

Before catching the bus back to the hotel (via a pub to try to catch some of the World Cup Semi Final)

What I was hoping for was an early night, given how shattered I was. It didnt happen.

:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

Day 3- Sunday 13th- Vienna to Linz

Sunday 13th July
I got woke up by my new friend and room mate Luis (president of DOC Portugal) shaking my foot and asking I f I wanted a shower or breakfast before we leave I better hurry up as it was 7.30am and departure time was 8.30am.

I couldnt find my phone or room key...then found them stuck to my chest.
It appears I had got into bed and fallen asleep whilst trying to set the alarm!!!

I somehow managed to pack everything except riding gear into my bag which was to be given to Claudio and taken in the van every day from location to location.
I somehow rushed a shower, breakfast, then downstairs and onto the bike and then outside to join the groups.
I was put in the Red group
getting ready to leave Vienna=

After a quick fuel stop and then out on the roads I was still knackered, struggling to get used to the monsters position, handling and power delivery compared to my 749. And there hadnt been an introduction tutorial for us....
We stopped for lunch in a lovely wee Austrian village

my new friend Alberto and others who made me sit with them....

One of the staff (no names mentioned) managed to get stopped and fined for speeding on this leg of the journey...TWICE, once for just going too fast but the second was trying to catch up with everyone after the first ticket! The Polizia didnt buy his story about being VIP and having to catch a group!
This also set something up as a theme for the trip...everything happened in TWOs...see if you can spot them later!!!

we watched some of the the MotoGP (what was that start all about? crazy)
before heading of for the final leg to Linz.

The pace of the Red group was pretty fast, although again we were still getting used to the bikes and each other. So much so that we arrived at the hotel in Linz a good 30 to 45 mins before the other Blue and Yellow groups...so I was able to watch them arrive from my hotel room.

Hotel was on the banks of the Danube

It also gave me a chance to charge my phone...having not been charged the night before...hence not many pictures for the day!

In the Evening we had a few drinks in the hotel

before waling a few short meters to the museum

where we were treated first of all to dinner organized by DOC Linz (thanks Uwe & Silvia)

then some evening entertainment

Again, I was hoping for an early night given the early start before and coming up.
Again, it didnt happen.
:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

Day 4- Mon 14th- Linz to Kaprum

Day 4

Again another early start of 7.30am and again being woken by my roommate, which confused me as I had set my alarm for 8.30am plenty in time for the scheduled 10am depart time. Apparently not...they had changed the departure to 8.30am and written it on the info board in the lobby...I hadnt noticed.
Another rushed morning packing!

Before setting off I was asked to switch with someone from the Yellow group.
It appears whilst in the red group the day before I had lived up to my reputation as 'captain slow' ...although I could be forgiven given the circumstances.

We headed over to the museum for a group photo for the local press and Ducati PR

at this point we realised I wasnt the only one who had missed the time change so we wasted some time so that Jorge & Co didnt fall too far behind during the day..they were still in bed at 9am!

a quick fuel stop

I introduced Gaby to Eric

Another stop to kill some more time...and to chat with my new riding buddies

before lunch

and another stop in the afternoon

We arrived in Kaprum without rushing the day.
Overall I was much more happy with the riding and pace of the yellow group (the 'slow group') than the red group (the 'fast' group), and so decided that the move in the morning was a bonus racther than an insult. I was more comfortable with the pace and could get to see some of the scenery as well. I was also impressed with the organisation, with 1 leader, one at the back and one sweeper who marked every junction. The group ride was very relaxed, and I was happy for that despite being the last group to arrive everywhere.
It was, however, evident that a couple of people throught the day in all 3 groups had never ridden in large numbers before, and some appeared to have never seen or experienced rding around a corner. Some countries must only have straight roads!!!
There were some twisty mountain sections and only one person in the blue group (the big group) got caught out and had a very low speed 'off' at about 5mph just laying the bike on its side having panic braked on one of the corners. luckily the only damage was a snapped wing mirror and it wasnt one of the loan bikes!
It also appeared the leaders of that same group had little experience riding in a big group, despite being good riders, which resulted in some scary riding apparently, with the group struggling to stay together and no junctions being marked, something that would have consequences the next day.

We had a very nice meal in the hotel, followed by a treasure hunt at night won by the Yellow team led by Gabby (and Luis).....

Tomorrow...we cross the dolomites into Italy.

:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

Day 5- Tuesday 15th- Kaprum to Bolzano

Another early start but this time I got up in plenty of time to prepare and pack for the day.
There was a wee bit of nervous tension in the air as today we were going high up in the Dolomites from Austria crossing into Italy....and apparently the air temperature was gonna be cold...enough perhaps for some Ice on the roads....according to the Austrians and Italians it was gonna be VERY cold up in them there hills.
Never mind, us Brits had packed thermals and winter gear and had been advised to wear it for the first leg as this was going up to the Grosslockner

First thing I had to do after breakfast was get Claudio to sort the suspension on my Monster as it seemed to be racked up to the hardest setting...obviously whoever had done the first 10k delivering the bike must have been a 'big' lad.
With loads of time to spare before the 9am departure, folks were hanging around in the parking area and as the morning temperature rose it started to get a tad hot for those in extra layers so we were just desperate to get on the road!

Ready to climb???

Near the summit we noticed a few of the other (blue) group parked at the side of the road and didnt think anything of it until we found out that one of the staff had an 'off' coming round one of the corners.....the same staff who had got 2 tickets the previous day!!!
Youtube clip of the climb = (see especially 11m15s for culprit)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSPP0Oux4Fs&feature=youtu.be

The road up

Near the Grossglockner summit

SDC Selfie

group photo

We then set off for another mountain pass that took us down then up to the summit from another angle...this one including what remains of the old Grosglockner Glacier.
Another SDC Selfie

After descending the first stop I ran straight into the toilet to strip out of my extra layers.....cold???? my ass...the lowest temp the bike recorded was 10oC so for the high parts I was comfortable at best....for the climb and descent I was positively roasting.

Later, we stopped for lunch at a beautiful location and did the handover from Autsrian guides/escorts to Italian ones.

Only to discover that we had to delay departure for the rest of the journey (eg wait around for about and hour and a half extra) becuase one of the (guess which colour) group had missed the turnoff at a roundabout and ended going all the way back to Kaprum...so someone had to go get them.
The omens from the day before had come true!

At which point we realised we would have to push very hard to make it to the hotel for any decent time, as a go kart race was scheduled for the evening along with Dinner.

A quick stop at another viewpoint..

before stopping at the Pordio Pass

for a phot of Eric

and a selfie of the SDC on our Yellow Group Leaders (Roberto) helmet

I had taken a lot of footage on my Silvercrest on-borad bike camera (Lidl's go-pro version) and at this stop removed it to film the others...and it appears I hadnt clicked it back into the handlebar mount when we setoff from here as a few bends later the camera dismounted and bounced down the road after I accelerated a bit too hard....luckily traffic was light and I was able to turn around and retrieve it...surprisingly undamaged and intact apart from a couple of scratches to the case edges...and it still worked!!!

Another stop

Arty shot of Air Force One, or the Batmobile....

Luis flashing his SDC t-shirt

FAbio & Lili in the Batmobile

then we noticed some rain in the distance

so we hot-tailed it to Bolzano and boy did it rain...not for long but a proper downpour.

Arriving in Bolzano the groups tried to fill with petrol at a few stations up but with so many bikes and unmanned self service it was proving very tricky, which delayed our arrival at the hotel further.

ETA at the hotel was originally 6.30pm.....but by now it was nearer 8pm so we were instructed to park the bikes at the hotel and just get on the buses to the go-kart track. A few people were not happy about this...all they wanted to do was go to their romm and shower and change.....but everything was booked so we had no choice.

Luckily the support van with all our luggage also went straight to the go-kart track so when we arrived we were given a drink, food and also our luggage to change if we wanted.

I had opted not to take part in the race, but 2 of my new friends (Alberto & Luis)were about to go out on track and I couldnt resist a selfie with them in our limited edition SDC t-shirts:-

Funny thing was, Luis came 1st and Alberto 2nd...I like to think the t-shirts had some luck in them...twice!!!

1st Prize as winner for Luis was a lap of Misano in the passenger of the Lamborghini
nice one!!!!!


The other highlight of the evening was laughing so hard that it made me cry...twice...

The track normally shuts at 10pm but we were still doing the final qualifying rounds at that time.
Only someone forgot to switch of the automatic sprinkler irrigation systems for the surrounding grass....which came on and also watered the track half way through one session.

A few of the drivers struggled but one of them in particular spun of onto the grass and got their tyres soaked so from then on almost every corner they were losing it.
One corner right in front of us he spun of so badly it was like a scene out of supermario kart when they spin on a dropped banana. The first lap he did it I was laughing.
The next lap same corner same again I was in sticthes.
The next lap again the same corner we had a bet on if he would learn from the previous 2 laps....guess what...nope....spin spin spin....
at this point I had to be picked up off the ground and it hurt so mush my sides were in agony.

Anyway

Tomorrow was looking to be an easy one but all we wanted to do was get back to the hotel for a shower and then bed...but it required 2 buses...unfortunately I was allocated the second bus with a few others...didnt complain...we had a few more drinks and danced away to the band that was laid on.

A nice end to a long day

:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

Day 6- Wednesday 16th- Bolzano to Verona

Finally a relaxed morning, no early start, and a relaxed journey ahead of us...the shortest and quickest so far.

The first leg saw the curse of the Two's strike again as just before our first rest break we discovered Mike was missing/delayed.
Turns out his Go-Pro mount had snapped and the camera survived the intital fall but just as he was getting off the bike to go pick it up a car ran over it and smashed to bits. Despite an extensive search they found everything but the memory card.
That really sucks for Mike, who had been really looking forward to showing his wife all of the on board footage.

Heading towards Lake Garda saw some stunning scenerey

Unfortunately coming down the hill (past Vila Del Monte) I had left the monster in sport mode which was too snatchy for many of the corners in 2nd gear and the short straights didnt leave time to switch riding mode to urban or touring. I opted to use 1st gear for the corners....but it appears the engine then overheated as arriving in Riva Del Garda the bike suddenly lost all grunt, felt like running on one cylinder, and the exhaust note changed drmatically deeper.
Managed to limp it to a junction where I flagged down the group leader (Roberto) and then the rider behind (Mattia) came up and pointed out it sounded horrific and he could see glowing red in the exhaust.
Then the bike cut out and wouldnt restart.
We sat for a few minutes and eventually the bike restarted...100% fine again nothing wrong with it so we made it up to lunch about the same time as everyone else...not bad for the 'slow' group.
Lunch was in a lovely castle style building overlooking the lake, and during this time Claudio had a look over my monster and reckoned there was nothing wrong with it,...just it overheating and the lambda sensor in the exhaust cutting the power to reduce any damage......

Before we set off to climb up over the hill and head for Verona

We arrived with plenty of time to relax (in the pool)

and some couldnt even wait to get changed before diving in

We then headed out for a guided tour of Verona

we also had a funny photo moment...you had to be there at the time...

then had dinner in the main square near the arena

and a group photo

before back to hotel and bed...again
:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

Day 7- Thursday 17th - Verona to Venice to Misano

For some reason somone thought a good lunch stop on this trip would be Venice.
Yes it was fantastic, an awesome experience, was fantastic to see this city, but for the problems it caused? hmmmmaybe not.

First of all when we setoff from Verona at 8.30am we (yellow group) immediately got lost, and had to take a slight detour to backtrack and find the right road to Venice.

Then hitting the motorway at speed overtaking a truck my bike suddenly lost all grunt again, started growling, and the engine management yellow warning light came on. A bit scary, but I managed to limp it to the entry point of the paid section of the motorway where the ticket booths were with Mattia helping escort me.

having switched the engine off to go through the ticket collection, the monster started fine and ran fine all the way to the next petrol station, where the whole group was waiting in preparation for the next bit. Word of mouth soon spread that the organisers were gong to attempt a 3 lane group ride (essentially blocking the motorway) to get some good footage for the camera/video car.

At this point I was praying the monster behaved, as in a group of 75+ bikes within feet of each other at speed an engine suddenly losing power doesnt bear thinking about!

Anyway the bike held p fine, we got the footage and then all met up again at the motorway pay point.
It was after this, having paid, that disaster struck, as when we all left as a group (I was still riding at the back trying to get some good footage on video) that I didnt even get into 2nd gear and the bike just died and I limped to the hard shoulder.
Luckily we (Stephano, Guiseppe a few others on bikes and Claudio in the support van) managed to get the bike going again and caught up with some of the other riders, but then in the 3rd lane going at about 170kph overtaking some cars and trucks it lost grunt again...then completely died!!!!
Pulling in the clutch and swerving across 2 lanes of traffic to reach the hard shoulder in afety avoiding other cars, trucks and the following motorbikes is an experience I would never hope to repeat again.

It was obvious there was something seriously wrong with the bike so Giuseppe instraucted me to swap with him...he would try to ride my bike to Venice followed by the van and I would ride his...Diavel...something I have been avoiding for a long time and this couldnt have happened at a worse time...unfamilair roads....rush to get to lunch....seperated from my main group of riding buddies...on a bike I never thought I would ride.

Anyway I arrived safe on the Diavel but the monster kept cutting out for Giuseppe.
Lunch in Venice (on the boat) and the free time to tour the center was relaxed....and LONG.....

Getting back to the bike park I was issued with the keys to a spare bike....a Diavel.
After we got changed, all the groups left together this time for the first time. Another big mistake.
All of a sudden there were people riding with unfamiliar people around them in unfamiliar circumstances and it turned a little chaotic to say the least trying to get out of venice as one big group, although the city traffic and other itlaian drivers didnt help.

To arrive at Misano at a decent time (initially planned as ETA 6.30pm) the group leaders then pushed exteremely hard and the pace was very fast.
I have to say it scared a few of the other delegates present, myself included, but I was conentrating more on getting to know the Diavel as opposed to the surrounding dangers!
Lane splitting as the Kiwis called it, but travelling at 160kph on the white line going between 2 lines of trucks on a A class road and ducking to avoid their wing mirrors...both directions...on a bike Ive never ridden before....well that was an experience!

We arrived at the hotel in Misano at 8pm.
11 and a half hours. Tired. Hot. Sweaty.
Another group had arrived at 7.15pm. good for them.
We were scheduled to leave and get the bus to the WPM gala dinner at 8.45pm.
Are you kidding I thought?
45mins to unpack, shower and change?
still made it with time to spare for a quick drink in the hotel garden

before heading out to the gala dinner to meet all of the other world presidents

where we were presented with a banner of all our logos

for all presidents to sign.

another 30 min wait on the bus home (for the italians and spaniards)
and bed kindly awaited......
unfortunately it was to be a horrible nights sleep...the bed was very small and very hard.

:thumbs:

WORLD PRESIDENTS MEETING=
2 countries
6 days
75+ bikes
109 presidents + Many more representatives/other delegates
over 1,500 km

at this point the realisation the World Ducati Week was about to begin the next day...and speaking to manuy of the Ducat staff teh penny dropped for a few non-europeans....

WDW is just a s long to say in english as world ducati week...go on try it...

but the italians pronounce WDW as VooDeeVoo...and that is what they had been saying we were going to all week...the penny dropped...

 

[jim@southwales]

looks like a you enjoyed a great saga holiday......no really you lucky swine

 

[Cateran]

You been away pal?


Nice Pics

 

[miloVanMultistrada]

Sounds like an amazing trip Robbie!

Group riding on Italian autostradas... always a few problemos

Can't believe you thought sleeping overnight in Heathrow was a good idea - people have been sent to Guantanamo Bay for less!

 

[RobbieT]

Day 8- Friday 18th WDW 1

Having had such a busy schedule up to now with lots of 'deadlines' being set for us but never kept, the Americans, Kiwis Germans and Brits were getting pretty fed up by now of being told to be somewhere by, say 8am, only to be there for exactly 8am then have to hang around for 30 to 45mins waiting for everone else. When given times we started astikng the staff "is that UK 8am or Italian 8am".

We were told in the morning we were leaving as a whole group at 8am so that we could ride together as a group and arrive at the circuit as a group, in time for the WPM at 10am.

True to form we were in the hotel car park all ready to go (luckily with less riding gear this time...shorts & t-shirt!) at 8am...only to stand around until 8.30am before we left...not for the circuit...but now it transpired to a viewpoint less than 3 mins ride away for a group photo.

Another 30mins stood around waiting for everyone to get sorted and finally again back on the road!

WPM 10am to 1pm

from the press office

where the now signed clubs banner was presented to us

good view

Map in the international village gets tagged

and a walk around to see some cool bikes

including Air Force One the "Batmobile" from Fabio & Lili had entered it in the custom bike garage contests...*note the stickers now!

The 801 Monster contest

Friday night saw us take part in a a parade lap of the circuit, down to Riccione for the Scrambler Launch Beach Party, followed by a visit to Dolce Vita to continue the party into the early hours of the morning.

Viedoe of whole lap=
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IavXzFpRwP4

Myself and a few of the others had volunteered to help Giuseppe and the other staff run through the program for the Sat Night Show back at the track, so instead of going straight to the beach party after the ride out of the circuit we headed back up to the track for 10pm. True to form we had to force our way back into the circuit as the security guards wouldnt let us in, then it was at least 10.30pm before we got onto the track where the show was to meet the organiseres, then another 30mins before all the instructons were given in italian, spanish and english.
Our job was to then pass these very clear instructions onto the other presidents.
OK so now down to the beach party....

which took us at least another 30mins when it was only about 10 mins but we had to take a detour to avoid the road closures at Dolcha Vica...so we arrived at the beach party at....11.45pm and it finsihed at 12pm

Never mind...time for some food (pizza) at last, then on to Dolce Vita

at this point (it was about 1 am) most others had been here for a long time but those of us that had missed the beach party were tired and werent in the mood to party.
So headed back to the hotel opting to have a few beers there instead...a nice relaxing end to a long day....and this time with no deadline to (not) meet in the morning.

:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

Day 9- Sat 19th WDW 2

I opted to have a lie-in in the morning, having a relaxed start to the day and just taking my time...there was no hurry to get to track today.
Getting up at 9am and going for breakfast at 9.30am it became apparent that almost everyone else had the same idea so we spent the morning down at the hotel beach taking it easy.

When we did head towards the circuit it was by now luncthime, so myself and Luis decided to try a local village resteraunt ("Buffet") just past the circuit, recomended by our friendly DOC Kazakhastan delegates.

Then back to the circuit to meet a few members at the UK part of the international village

take some pics of more bikes

then back over to the international village...look who I bumbepd into!

some exhaust fun

Sat eveening saw us have dinner (courtesy of the owner) at Dolca Vita

Then back to the circuit to get our club flags

Then time for the show

Then back again to Dolce Vita to take part in their DOC club 10 year anniversary party

This time we managed to last until about 2am before heading back to the hotel for a few beers.

:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

Day 10- Sun 20th- WDW 3

Again sunday morning was a bit more relaxed...we didnt have to be at the circuit until 1pm but I opted to head down for 11am.
As a promotion for the Scrambler Launch, Ducati had laid on a Tattoo parlour with 2 artists doing FREE tattoos. I had popped in on the saturday and they were busy so I was told to keep coming back on the sunday and they would try and squeeze me in.

No joy at 11am, come back at 12.

So I went for a wee wander, signed the wall then a visit to the store and bagged a few discounted clothing items.

Back at 12, hung around in the blazing heat for 20 mins, nope, still busy, come back at 2.30pm.

1pm we were scheduled to have a session with the riders, which turned out to be at 1.30pm, but we didnt get into the room until after 1.45pm.
again...typical Italian time.

back over to air force one to see how the tagging was going..

No joy at the tatoo place at 2.30pm, but I hit lucky at 3.30pm and got in!
Air conditioning too.....and then the marching band came over for some entertainment right in front of me...talk about good timing.

I cam out about 4.30pm to meet my DOC Jordanian frined and we had a game of table football.
Glad to report the score was
Scotland 9 vs 3 Jordan

Then back to the hotel to relax by the pool

before heading out

to a local resteraunt

I opted for a few beers at the hotel so ended up going pillion (something i NEVER normally do) with my good friend Luis, suffice to say he is a good rider and the journey home after the meal was, erm...interesting...especially after we lost the rest of the group!


So..... VooDeeVoo (WDW) 2014 came to an end at last.

Thanks to all the club members who came over to say hi in the Village, I met 16 out of the 32 members who attended=

Jim, Paul & Gillian, Shaun, Tony & Pauline, Norrie & Frank, Andy & Jan, Richard & Mark & Norman & Matt, Kay and Rob (and Abby & JJ)

Sorry to all the rest whom either didnt make it over (Nathan & Bob?) and those I didnt get a chance to see/meet...it was really difficult for me to stay in one place at one time given everything goin on.

:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

Day 11- Mon 21st- Back to Bologna

Another early start....those remaining as a group had to leave back to Bologna asap as some had early afternoon flights to catch, so we had a 9am departure time.....and guess what...nope...didnt stick to it.

Anyway, waiting in the car park gave us chance to say some goodbuys.

Claudio, my mechanic to my right, and Gery 'The fixer' to my left.

Luis, Josito, Jorge, Qaurto & Me

Saying goodbye to my bike back at the factory...I had really grown to love the Diavel

With Giuseppe & Claudio

With Allesandro & Luis

and farewell to Air Force One

Then across to the museum

conference room

Then to the hotel, a quick nap, shoewr then out for farewell dinner

my good buddy & Ducati staff member Stefano with a prope glass of beer

:thumbs:

and Ciao

 

[dexx]

well i am glad you had a great time ( well jell).what did you think of the monster

 

[miloVanMultistrada]

A tattoo and a photo op with Foggie - you won't forget that trip!

 

[RobbieT]

A tattoo and a photo op with Foggie - you won't forget that trip!

if you were to ask me for 20 memorable things that happened on the trip they wouldnt even come into the top 20....it was that awesome....the other stuff going on, you know the little things, were what made it special. The foggy photo op ...funny story....was just standing chatting to the DUK staff on the desk and he came over to us and started chatting....next thing you knew he was mobbed so I just left everyone to it.....was only after he got a bit of peace I asked for a pic with the bike and my t-shirt signed...although there are about 100 other photos of selfies of people with foggy with me in the background just watching....

it is a trip I will never forget....for many reasons

:thumbs:

 

[RobbieT]

well i am glad you had a great time ( well jell).what did you think of the monster

Good question.

Monster 1200
It was the bike I had requested (after a quick test ride up at the green wellie) but got thrown on it into the deep end on the first day, tired, strange environment and I just fell in love with it immediately.

Everything was obvious about it, quick, sharp, nippy, agile, comfy.

the power delivery in sport mode was unbelievable, I was wheelying it out of corners without even trying (hence why my camera fell off the mount).

I loved that monster so much and was gutted to have it go sick on me.

only negative is the right hand footrest being too close to the exhaust, or vice versa, as my heel kept sitting on the exhaust and I couldnt always get a good grip on the footrest.

I was very glad to be on it during the mountain twistys as i thought i would struggle with the diavel.

in comparison

Diavel Carbon
I think fate had intervened as I had been anxious about being given this bike, so when I got the monster I was well pleased. But the monster breaking forced my hand.....and then I fell in love with the diavel....and everyone around me knew it and commented on it too.

The power delivery in sport mode isnt as quick as the monster, but is still quick enough.....and the agility of the thing when you get going...wow...I was doing stuff in heavy traffic and on twisty roads I wouldnt have even done on a pushbike!!!

The height for the diavel is perfect for me and I have to admit I adapted to riding the diavel quicker than the monster.

ask me now which one I would choose if I could have one for free?

I couldnt decide!!!!

:thumbs:

 

[Sam749]

Looked fantastic - You'll be glad to be back home for a rest!

 

[monster_998]

The power delivery in sport mode isnt as quick as the monster, but is still quick enough.....

Erm.... Sorry Robbie, but I beg to differ.

The Diavel is the fastest accelerating bike (to 60MPH) that Ducati make, including the Panigale; are you sure it wasn't in Urban mode?

I have never heard anyone describe the Diavel as "still quick enough" - 162hp V's 135hp - Are you really suggesting that the Monster 1200 can beat the Diavel's 2.6 secs to 60? At 3.4 secs, I'm afraid the answer is "no".

I have ridden both and the Monster 1200 is a very good and quick motorcycle but it's not "Diavel" quick.

 

[RobbieT]

Erm.... Sorry Robbie, but I bet to differ.

The Diavel is the fastest accelerating bike (to 60MPH) that Ducati make, including the Panigale; are you sure it wasn't in Urban mode?

I have never heard anyone describe the Diavel as "still quick enough" - 162hp V's 135hp - Are you really suggesting that the Monster 1200 can beat the Diavel's 2.6 secs to 60? At 3.4 secs, I'm afraid the answer is "no".

I have ridden both and the Monster 1200 is a very good and quick motorcycle but it's not "Diavel" quick.

:dunno: about the stats mate am just giving my opinion how it felt riding the two bikes!

and no, it wasnt in urban mode that I am making the comparison to, I had it in all modes for different times for both bikes.

I rode both bikes for 5 days each in very similar conditions and all I can say is it felt like the monster picked up quicker. just felt like, :dunno: why?

:thumbs:

 

[miloVanMultistrada]

:dunno: about the stats mate am just giving my opinion how it felt riding the two bikes!

and no, it wasnt in urban mode that I am making the comparison to, I had it in all modes for different times for both bikes.

I rode both bikes for 5 days each in very similar conditions and all I can say is it felt like the monster picked up quicker. just felt like, :dunno: why?

:thumbs:

Gearing can make bikes and cars feel quicker (and can actually make them quicker within a limited range).

 

[RobbieT]

Interestingly enough all of the group leaders and rolling sweepers were on monsters.

 

[miloVanMultistrada]

Interestingly enough all of the group leaders and rolling sweepers were on monsters.

Probably 'cos they are new and Ducati have a load of press bikes from the launch?

 

[dexx]

i have to agree with you robbie about the right hand footrest and its proximity to the exhaust and the footrest hanger.i think its the only down side to the bikes riding position and i have ridden the diavel and it does have more power than my monster,which is quicker who knows (who cares)depends on the riders bravery,but having ridden an mts1200 i would say that this bike felt stronger than both of the above.i could definitely feel the extra power on the green wellie test day.

 

[iconic944ss]

What a great ambassador for the club Robbie!

Our ride was Great fun but riding brand new bikes in elite company organised by Ducati themselves has got to be unbeatable.

Roll on 2016 ;-)

NB - Our Factory tour guide (Sabine, I think) kept calling WDW, Woo-Dee-woO, we wet ourselves laughing but adopted the phrase instantly.

 

[RobbieT]

 

[Cateran]

Crackin' !:thumbs:

 

[iconic944ss]

You got a great segment there Robbie, nice one.

Brought a tear or two thinking of how bloody good it is!

 

[RobbieT]

You got a great segment there Robbie, nice one.

Brought a tear or two thinking of how bloody good it is!

It's a very emotional video for me, not just becuase of the people in it whom I spent all week bonding with, but also especially as most of the action shots of the bikes were taken just in front of me and I remeber the film crew taking these shots at the time so the first couple of times I watched the video I was looking formyself on the bike so much I hadnt even noticed I had a relatively big speaking part!
DOH:doh:

 

[RobbieT]

a summary of my experience.
a wee bit long at 17 mins but it kinda captures the best of 10 days in that time.

:thumbs: