The 2008 Ducati Desmosedici RR (a.k.a.D16RR), I finally got to ride this one of a kind motorcycle recently.While I could quote you the specifications and evolution of this bike from world championship track machine to undiluted street bike, I'd much rather regale you with my impression of my ride on this, the world's fastest street legal motorcycle.
In second gear, the Desmosedici will do a 100 mph easily. Crack the throttle at 80mph in second and she will wheelie like a lazy stroll through the park. The bike simply and confidently comes from underneath you and gently lifts toward the sky with complete effortlessness. Next thing you know you are doing 100mph and grabbing for the 3rd. By the time you land the front wheel and look down, you are doing 140 and during the time it takes for your eyes to focus on the digital readout of your speed, you have seen the number rocket from 140 to 150, and it is at this point that your brain kicks in and says "BEEHAVE"! For me, 150mph is all I needed to do to know, without a shadow of a doubt, that this Ducati possesses the most extreme acceleration I have ever experienced.
Impressive stuff by anyone's measure, but the above account only hints
at this machine's personality. Yes, I just inferred that an inanimate
object has a personality. It is rare, but every once and in a while, an
object is obsessed over and so much effort poured into it that it
transcends the sum of it's parts and takes on a character of it's own.
And that is what you notice most about the Desmosedici, this bike knows
more about going fast than you do and if you listen to her, she will
show you how it is REALLY done.
Starting with that stunning power delivery that is so refined and deceptive, you feel like you are dancing with Grace Kelly, but under that refinement is Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Terminator". Behave is the only word that keeps popping up in my head. Behave or get seriously hurt. And this is not just any wheelie loving 200hp engine (any builder can make you a 200hp Hyabusa), no, this is a World Championship Winning 200hp motoGP engine developed over years of race-tested R&D and it is refined to such a high degree that below 10,000 RPM, it feels like a normal, top of the line, Superbike. The V4 engine starts every time you hit the button. She starts in the cold and idles normally, and while the engine runs VERY hot, unless you sit and idle in a traffic jam, she won't overheat. Yet, if you have the courage and the open road to explore the engine above 10,000 RPM, you will experience something completely other worldly. Crack the throttle and more difficultly, KEEP it cracked so the engine stays above 10,000 RPM and the acceleration G forces will pull the bike away from you with such ferocity, that just holding on becomes a task unto itself. It is as if above 10,000 RPM a trap door opens up and the floor falls out beneath you. Congratulations, you just woke up the Terminator, now hold on, if you can.
And that is just the engine, mate that powerplant to a formula 1 race chassis of the highest specification and you know, by the seat of your pants alone, you are truly on something special... In my opinion, this is what makes the Desmosedici a once in a lifetime experience. This Ducati is a complete thought, there is no "weak point" to her, there is no "missing element". It is exactly as advertised, a world class race bike with headlights and a starter and it's all right there in your hands and very little was lost in the translation. A rare thing indeed.
I know, I sound like a Ducatisti Fan Boy, and some of you Rossi/Yamaha fans are thinking, "oh, what rubbish", but on the Desmosedici things are different, you feel very close to being on a race spec motoGP bike and your heart glows each time I see, hear or better yet, recount my ride on this, the mother of all street bikes.
Update 2009:
1) Here is another great review of Desmosedici - http://www.motorcycle-usa.com
2) Here is the MCN video review (~5 mins long)
3) Last but not least, the final word goes to the men who made the Desmosedici. Here is a set of 10 videos (90 mins in total), from Ducati Corse about the technical features and very special construction of the D16RR, a must see for anyone interested in racing or advanced engineering.
Starting with that stunning power delivery that is so refined and deceptive, you feel like you are dancing with Grace Kelly, but under that refinement is Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Terminator". Behave is the only word that keeps popping up in my head. Behave or get seriously hurt. And this is not just any wheelie loving 200hp engine (any builder can make you a 200hp Hyabusa), no, this is a World Championship Winning 200hp motoGP engine developed over years of race-tested R&D and it is refined to such a high degree that below 10,000 RPM, it feels like a normal, top of the line, Superbike. The V4 engine starts every time you hit the button. She starts in the cold and idles normally, and while the engine runs VERY hot, unless you sit and idle in a traffic jam, she won't overheat. Yet, if you have the courage and the open road to explore the engine above 10,000 RPM, you will experience something completely other worldly. Crack the throttle and more difficultly, KEEP it cracked so the engine stays above 10,000 RPM and the acceleration G forces will pull the bike away from you with such ferocity, that just holding on becomes a task unto itself. It is as if above 10,000 RPM a trap door opens up and the floor falls out beneath you. Congratulations, you just woke up the Terminator, now hold on, if you can.
And that is just the engine, mate that powerplant to a formula 1 race chassis of the highest specification and you know, by the seat of your pants alone, you are truly on something special... In my opinion, this is what makes the Desmosedici a once in a lifetime experience. This Ducati is a complete thought, there is no "weak point" to her, there is no "missing element". It is exactly as advertised, a world class race bike with headlights and a starter and it's all right there in your hands and very little was lost in the translation. A rare thing indeed.
I know, I sound like a Ducatisti Fan Boy, and some of you Rossi/Yamaha fans are thinking, "oh, what rubbish", but on the Desmosedici things are different, you feel very close to being on a race spec motoGP bike and your heart glows each time I see, hear or better yet, recount my ride on this, the mother of all street bikes.
Update 2009:
1) Here is another great review of Desmosedici - http://www.motorcycle-usa.com
2) Here is the MCN video review (~5 mins long)
3) Last but not least, the final word goes to the men who made the Desmosedici. Here is a set of 10 videos (90 mins in total), from Ducati Corse about the technical features and very special construction of the D16RR, a must see for anyone interested in racing or advanced engineering.
With 35 years bike experience, and 20 000 km on my Desmosedici RR I agree with you: riding this bike is a totally unique experience.
I shared it with about 60 friends who had the pleasure of riding my Desmosedici :-)