The Lauge Jensen Motorcycle

How quick can you name a motorcycle manufacturer from Denmark? Okay, I got this, there was this company some time ago who is credited with building the first production motorcycle to have telescopic forks, what was the name? Let me help you, you are thinking Nimbus, right? Okay, you got that right, now name another! I suspect, the name won't come to you, so let me help you. It's Lauge Jensen. Yes, it is by the name of the owner and don't fret if you haven't heard about it. It is a production company but very much in the lines of Confederate and Ecosse. And so, yes, they are very pricey. It caters to the elite or well heeled class and so you won't get to know a lot about it from magazines, etc. How pricey are we talking about? About 32,000 Euro (about 44000 USD) plus taxes. If you think, that particular motorcycle has nothing going for it to cost a bomb, let me remind you, the brand is elusive and it is not for us. And if you think me or you won't buy it even if we had that kind of money, we think alike, but not those for whom the bike caters to. So, let us just enjoy the bike and forget the price. But before that, just let me remind you if unfortunately you are not born in Denmark, the taxes for non Denmark people is 100%, so the bike would cost you 64,000 Euro or around 88,000 USD. Tch! Tch! Tch! as I said, let us not debate about the price, okay, just let it be.

So Lauge Jensen Ltd. is registered in Denmark and owned by motorcycle builder Uffe Lauge Jensen. The man is a very skilled and experienced custom builder. The motorcycle you see here is the first from his production house and he has built it the way he envisages a motorcycle should be and the way it should look like. So, according to Mr. Jensen, a motorcycle should look so stunning that you would probably not want to ride it and just keep it in the living room. His motorcycle is something which those selected customers can demand and Jensen would be able to put through the demand. As such, the majority of the individual parts are designed by Jensen himself and are developed and created especially for Lauge Jensen. Whatever he can procure, he does procure, but only from the best quality available in the world.
Actually the Lauge Jensen motorcycle was launched last year around this period and for its launch, a special place was chosen, the Horsens Museum of Art, after all this is a piece of art worthy of any museum and to do the honors, the Mayor, Jan Trojburg, himself was present. Officially, this is the first production motorcycle from Denmark since Nimbus closed shop in the early 60s. It was the result of four years of development work from Jensen to create a custom built, modern motorcycle. For Jensen, it had to be the ultimate motorcycle and for that he has to not only meet but also to beat the international standards. In many ways, it seems he has been successful. More so considering the fact that he had to come through a lot of the country regulations since Denmark legislations has only bike importers, not manufacturers. That was another battle altogether which he won however. Not that it was easy because initially the Denmark government refused to acknowledge his cause, but then this Jensen guy is also a stubborn lot.

He had to get international approval despite many experts pinning him down, but he overcame all this to the point that he even got sponsorers for the project. Also let me remind you that the Lauge Jensen motorcycle even meets Euro 3 emission norms, a norm so strict even bigger companies are finding it hard to meet. The icing on the cake is that the sponserors for the motorcycle is none other than German Bundesamt (German Federal Office) and their approval means it doesn't need any more approval from anywhere in the world. All the tests have been conducted through the German testing institute TÜV. These exclusive motorcycles are of course hand built and they have started coming to life in a small workshop in Gedved near Horsens.
The bike has quite a few variations in terms of colours, such as black, pearl white, orange, chrome black and recently added a few more like blue and a red-black combo. The frame is a single tube frame with a drop seat with a seating height of only 40 cm. The frame is intentionally made curvaceous, after all don’t we all refer to our motorcycles as ‘she’?. It is very well proportioned and looks to be pretty comfortable. The seat is custom made as per the customer’s requirement based on his/ her height and weight so that the customer can derive the maximum comfort. The tear drop tank is a real beauty. The tank holds almost 20 liters of petrol, good for a distance of approximately 550 kms. The front fork is crafted by mirror polished aluminium milled in one piece. Inside the tank is a newly developed high technology fuel pump that feeds the engine system with fuel under constant pressure. A built-in fuel indicator completes the recognizable Lauge Jensen tank. The single unit console is fully digital with all types of information you seek or need normally.

The engine is a 1792cc V-Twin air-cooled engine and almost the entire engine from the camshafts to valves and pistons are specially made for Lauge Jensen. The engine comes in three colours, highly polished aluminium, neutral aluminium and black. Bore and stroke is 101.6 mm x 107.5 mm with compression ratio of 10:1. You shouldn’t expect a road monster out of such high quality lifestyle bikes and you will not be disappointed. You see those few who can afford it, certainly won’t buy this machinery for burning the road. Power is adequate though at 70 hp@4300 rpm, just as you would expect from a similar size cruiser and the bike has a top speed of 180 kmph delivered by a six speed transmission. The exhausts ends with two separate mufflers with built in catalytic converters. The bike rests on 130/70R 18 and 250/40R 18 tyres in the front and back with rim sizes of 3.5 x 18 and 8.5 x 18.
Uffe Lauge Jensen has created a motorcycle where the customer can connect to his/ her prized possesion because the customer can put his or her personal touch on the design and in this way becomes a co-custom designer. Of course, as per the requirements, prices will vary for each motorcycle but as mentioned before, you can expect at least to pay the said amount. The customer has to pay 13,500 Euro (roughly 18,500 USD) upfront on signing the contract and s/he is allowed to watch the motorcycle take birth from ground up. It of course will come with warranty and free services. And if you only wish to rent the motorcycle for a specific time, you can do so too. Why I do not like calling these kind of motorcycles as 'Custom' is because usually in a custom motorcycle, the engine is usually borrowed where as Lauge Jensen, Confederate or Ecosse uses their own engines, so it is more of a production motorcycle. The engine is also sold separately through Lauge Jensen Parts.

Source of info and pictures - Lauge Jensen website

DERBI Mulhacen - The Thumper Cafe Scrambler

Please note that all images are 3000 x 2500 or higher. This is because you will truely and really appreciate the beauty of this bike. So while I apologize for the size which will take a long time to download, but believe me, you will like what you see!

DERBI is one firm which has been a standout in World Championships in the smaller categories. Derbi has made its status legendary with 10 World Championship titles in the 50cc, 80cc and 125cc categories. In 2008, DERBI claimed back the 125 World Championship title with its Balas Rojas (a. k. a Red Bullets) which was their 19th title including 11 titles for riders and 8 as manufacturers. But these championship titles were very few previous to 2008; in fact the last title before 2008 came in 1989 and that was in the 80cc category. There are not too many Spanish bike builders now but Derbi seems to be holding rather well and it has been well received in the biking community for whom Derbi is actually intended for. Although Spanish, it is now owned by the Italian firm Piaggio.
As such majority of the bikes are within the 125cc range. However there is this other engine of 659cc which has a body to die for, I mean the overall look of the bike that is. Of course, this is the Mulhacen 659. The same engine does duty on three different versions, the regular Mulhacen 659, the Mulhacen Café 659 and the limited edition Mulhacen Café 659 Angel Neito LTD Edition. Pronounced Mull-hass-en, Mulhacen is the name of a mountain in the Iberian Peninsula. From the first time it was displayed at the 2004 Munich show, the bike was very well received and it has also won an award from the Motorcycle Design Association (MDA) winning the third spot for "Best of Show" when it was competing against Benelli's TNT, KTM's RC8 and Yamaha's MT-01.

Among the 3 versions, first came the Mulhacen 659, essentially a scrambler. Then for the many fans of street versions, the bike came in the form of Mulhacen Café 659 and now Derbi have dedicated this new Euro3 version of the Mulhacén Café 659 to Angel Nieto, the man who contributed the most to make the Derbi brand famous in the racing world by winning world championships between 1969 and 1986.
The idea of making a Scrambler came to Derbi as they wanted to bring back the 70s in a modern machine. This is another new-age retro which seems to be the flavour of the decade. By sheer looks of the bikes, it is just magnificent. It’s so sleek looking that you feel like keep on staring at it as it stands still. Now Derbi has gone a step further and launched the Mulhacén Café 659 Angel Nieto LTD version. It is oh-so-beautiful. So elegant and the new colour scheme is absolutely breath taking. Only 50 units of the L.E. which will be built. The Café version differs from the L.E and the regular in its tyre size which are thinner, a slightly longer wheelbase while having a shorter overall length.
Like some other manufacturers (e.g. Aprilia) Derbi gets the engine from the Yamaha-Minarelli partnership and the engine is a single-cylinder four-valve Euro 3 compliant engine. It is the same engine that powers Yamaha MT-03, XT 660 and Aprilia Pegaso 650 Strada. It has a steel tube frame with aluminum swingarm. Basically the models are the same but the ergonomics of the motorcycles have been carefully reworked for the different versions.The engine is a liquid-cooled, fuel-injected, SOHC, four-valve, 659.7cc single-cylinder unit that has a modest 47bhp on tap and 55Nm of torque and weighs around 170kg. Top speed is around 165kmph and a 0 to 100 is achieved in 6.44 seconds. Torque is quite good even at low rpm which helps the rider feel at ease in urban traffic as well as long winding roads. All the 3 models have almost similar specifications, with the difference in tyre sizes that is smaller tyres with a slightly longer wheelbase while having an overall shorter length for the Café version. The Café version has a removable seat cowl and the suspension is kept soft for long distance travel.

Actually the Mulhacen Café looks a little bit of a dual purpose, probably because of its long stance typical of a scrambler, but it is essentially a café racer. Actually no, I mean it is sort of a mixture, but it is also projected as a middleweight sportsbike, so it is actually worth for that category as to go along with the Café Racer category (which is anyway an urban sport bike), it has some typical sportsbike character like the 17-inch wheels (shod with 110mm (front) and 150mm (rear) Pirelli Diablo tyres), 43mm USD Marzocchi fork (non-adjustable), fully adjustable ZF Sachs monoshock and high-spec Brembo brakes with radial-mount callipers at the front. So, it seems it will please a lot of bike fans of different categories from scramblers to café racers to sportsbike and a little of dual purpose. It is a good mixture between these categories albeit you have to compromise on certain aspects on building cross category bikes. Looking at the bike, you know the tyres are definitely gravel friendly and aluminum swing-arm will surely handle well on off roads but it has a soft suspension which is for in alignment for city driving and just might be not that helpful in the mountains. But the good thing is that it is factory set and can be adjusted. The seat height is also lower than one would expect on a scrambler, but good enough if you think you are on a café racer. This might mean that the foot pegs may touch the tarmac though.

The engine is of course the trusted and tried one, but the Mulhacen has its fuel injection is re-mapped specifically for the bike. There is ample torque at the bottom of the rev range for its city riding pleasure.
Opening the throttle in first will have the front arcing up in a smooth controllable wheelie with the second gear perfect for typical town speeds of 30-40mph. Well, it will easily do over 160 kmph and would touch the 175kmph mark. The rear shock is neatly placed, offset on the right-hand side of the swingarm and with the battery at the center of the middle of the frame, it centralizes its weight. The Yamaha -Minarelli 660cc single is known to have a nice pull above 5,000rpm and also known as very satisfying in the twisties and you could enjoy all that to the 7000 rpm. Although the feul injection has been re mapped, power comparision vis-à-vis other models based on the engine (say XT660R), the power has been detuned in the mid range which is probably due to the single silencer and the size of the airbox. Riding style is aggressive with the rider sitting close to the tank.
The digital clocks are small but clearly visible. There are eight different levels of backlight brightness to illuminate the dash with a clinical white glow. The small fuel tank will see you up 138kms (86 miles) before you are being informed to refill or else by another 24 kms more and you will need to start dragging the bike.
The Mulhacen is the baby of one Mr. Klaus Nennewitz, who was previously involved with Aprilia in creating the Tuono and Falco and Mr. Jose Gonzales who was man behind the design. To create a narrow bike, one usually prefers a single downtube splitting into two bottom cradles and that is there, but don’t miss the unique side-mounted rear suspension that has the shock in upright position. Why this is important is because can you think about any other combination which would allow such a narrow and low midsection while still housing a proper-sized air box? It’s probably an overlook by most or all of us, but there are many similar detailing that has gone into the bike for which Mr. Gonzales needs to be applauded, but even if you miss the great detailing, everything comes out as a total picture when you really start appreciating the beauty without knowing what it is that has really taken the cake. From the bodywork to the proportions and the lithe curves, everything seems so well suited.

Now coming to the main part, the looks! Just standing there, it simply looks brilliant, no doubt about it. Those spoked wheels, fat tyres and the sweet exhaust gels so well with the small but very good looking tank which is so in tune with the low-seat and the big massive swingarm! And that massive front disc brake also adds to the overall macho but slick look.All in all, basically it is a fun bike and will suit riders from all ages and categories, it won’t overwhelm you, you won’t be overpowered but you will have the smile of riding a middleweight bike with lots of character and with even much much more style. Derbi probably wants it to feature as a all rounder and as such it has certainly done a wonderful job. Well, it is not actually cheap anyway because at 6,785 UK Pounds or 7,700 Euros or 11,000 USD, you can get a lot of bigger multi cylinder bikes which will be much more powerful. In fact, barring the YZF R1, you can get any of the supersport bike from the Yamaha stable even the R6 or the FZ1, but what the Mulhacen promises you is a stand out anywhere. You will be noticed! This actually is a piece of art, very customized but you can have it. Visit the DERBI website, you will also like the off-roaders and in case you want some further info on the specific bikes, here are the links to the Mulhacen 659, Mulhacen Café 659 and Mulhacen 659 LE.

Specifications
Engine - Single cylinder, 4S, 4 Valve, 659.7cc
Bore x stroke - 100 x 84 mm
Fuel supply - Nippondenso electronic injection with second air system, 44mm throttle valve
Cooling system - Liquid
Compression ratio 10:1
Lubrication system - Dry sump with oil pump
Ignition starting system - Electronic & Electric
Primary & Secondary transmission - Gear & Chain
Clutch - Multi-plate
Gearbox - 5 speeds
Front & Rear suspension - 43 mm. Upside-down fork, 120 mm travel & Hydraulic progressive linkage monoshock, 120 mm travel
Tyres - Front: 110/80 x 17" (for LE & S), 110/60x17” (for Café) & 150/70 x 17" (for LE & S), 160/60x17” (for Café)
Front & Rear brakes -320 mm disc & 245 mm disc
Wheelbase - 1.386 mm (for LE & S), 1.390 mm (for Café)
Total length - 2.120 mm (for LE & S) & 1.998 mm (for Café)
Maximum width - 800 mm
Seat height - 810 mm Fuel tank - 13 Litres

Interestingly, BIKE EXIF featured a deriavative of the Mulhacen (Mulhacen Hot Bob) on their daily feature today. I am a subscriber of BIKE EXIF and everyday they send you a nice motorcycle link of rare bikes and as I was writing the text of the post, I was surprissed to see BIKE EXIF also featuring the same. Here is the permanent BIKE EXIF link to the Mulhacen Hot Bob. From Bike Exif "The great Spanish names of Ossa, Bultaco, and Montesa have gone, but Derbi remains—albeit as a subsidiary of Italian giant Piaggio. Most Derbi motorcycles are sub-125 cc city bikes, but the Mulhacén 659 is an interesting crack at the burgeoning scrambler market. It’s powered by a Yamaha-designed big single, reportedly the largest engine ever fitted to a Spanish motorcycle. At the 2006 EICMA show, Derbi revealed this ‘Hot Bob’ concept: unsurprisingly, nothing came of it, but the Mulhacén is gradually making a name for itself as a respectable scrambler with a strong dash of style. The latest variant from Derbi is the “Mulhacén Café 659 Angel Nieto Limited Edition”, a tribute to a 1970s Spanish roadracing hero. It has a slightly better paintjob than Hot Bob."

The Hot Bob and the Original

In the News - Speed Shop, Viper V10, Kalex, V-Quad

So much has been happening in the motorcycle world recently that it is difficult to keep pace with the new things. Just wanted to put some new 'things' that got attention of the world in the past one and half weeks. I am sure you must have caught the info and news, but in case you haven't, links are provided of the original source for full stories.

After the recent AMD mind blowing beauties, here is another one which should have easily gone to the AMD. It's so beautiful, it is almost unreal and of course credit goes to photgrapher Jim Gianatsis of Fast Dates for depicting the beautiful handcrafted bike in such fine visual delight. OH! the bike... Yes, this is #6 (that's the name of the bike) from Seattle-based Chris Flechtner. And his approach got a big tick from the judges at last month’s Calendar Bike Building Championship in Long Beach as it walked off with the Pro Builder trophy. The bike was three years in the making at Speed Shop Design, and uses many hand-crafted parts. Sitting in the custom frame is a 1978 Sportster motor—a 38mm Mikuni VM carb supplies the gas, and air arrives through a modified horn scoop from a 1936 Ford. The front suspension, an 18” internal springer, is a Flechtner one-off. Chris Flechtner is a builder, has been for quite some time, starting out with RC model cars, then hand built bicycle frames and then a custom from a Honda CB350. The tank is a heavily modified Yamaha RD200 unit. He kept building while earning his MFA in design and metal arts from Cranbrook Academy of Art. Then he apprenticed under one of Japan’s most accomplished sword polishers and restorers, Tatsuhiko Konno, where he is still involved in the restoration of priceless samurai swords and armor. It’s not the usual path to custom motorcycle building but it lays a great foundation. Visit SPEED SHOP DESIGN although currently, it is inactive but has a flickr link for more photos. But you can also vist Chris Blog.

Source: BIKE EXIF & Knee Slider.

Brit bike builder Allen Millyard has launched his biggest and best machine yet - a 500bhp monster powered by a V10 Dodge Viper supercar engine. This is a street-legal motorcycle that’s powered by an 8,400cc motor. The V10 really needs no special tuning to get that output so all you have to do is fit the engine into a frame, Millyard has built a lot of interesting customs over the years, like a V12 Kawasaki from two 1300cc straight sixes, among others. Source: Faster and Faster through MCN.

Well that was the first one. Though not as massive as the Millyard motorcycle, the second one is a Arizona Boss Hoss Viper V10. It was posted in Kneeslider and one of the reader, Nawitus sends the link of the official source of this Arizona Boss Hoss. Apparently, these guys sale a lot of monster bikes and trikes. It’s really amazing how different the two bikes look while using the same powerplant. Visit the Arizona Boss Hoss websit to have a look at their lineup. including a 6000cc, 425 hp freaking liquid cooled V8, made from a Chevy, the 57 Chevy Trike. Sweet!

There is a new Superbike firm in the news and this is something similar ro the HD Roehr firm. Meant only for racing, very very costly as expected and what stunner to look at. A Superbike has hardly looked this good before. The stylish machine is the AV1 from Kalex Engineering. This is a limited production track weapon with space-age chassis engineering—and the Rotax V990R motor from an Aprilia RSV bored out to 1100 cc. Described by Performance Bike magazine as 'The best bike since the Britten', it was created by Alex Baumgärtel and Klaus Hirsekorn for trackday enthusiasts and riders in the European ‘Sound of Thunder’ race series. The AV1 is about to be joined by the Kalex Moto2, which is on a drawing board right now in Bobingen, Germany. It’s being developed for the Moto2 race category, which uses modified 150 bhp Honda CBR600RR engines and will replace the 250cc class in 2010. Source of info: BIKE EXIF and you can visit Kalex Engineering for more details. Pssst! They are also working on a customized Triumph.

And here it is. The fastest bike in the world. this is a V-Quad engine from Nelson Engineering. V-Quad sets new world record at the Bonneville Salt Flats then breaks that record too! The final record speed is now 164.172 mph. Mike Maggio rode his V-Quad bike to the new record on Wednesday 8/12/09. The V-Quad engine, basically a side by side V-Twin, that Greg Nelson produces, was installed in a custom motorcycle built by Brouhard Design for owner Mike Maggio. They took it to Bonneville recently and Maggio ran 164.172 mph for a new record in the APGU class. This is an open motorcycle (no fairings or streamlining), push rod, gas, unlimited engine size above 3,000 cc’s. This is the production V-Quad engine you can buy. Greg says they’re already working on an upgrade with plans for 180 mph in October at El Mirage. Mike Maggio's twin turbo V-Quad is on the cover of September's issue of America Cycle magazine. Check out the V-Quad website for lots of interesting stuff and all the details of the Carl Brouhard built award winning custom and there is also a video of the bike on the Salts.

Source: The Knee Slider

In The News - Nicky Hayden SE, RR Auction, WDW

The following came in my mail through the subscribed newsletter

2010DUCATI 848NICKY HAYDEN EDITION

Ducati North America is proud to announce the 848 Nicky Hayden Edition. This striking livery places a distinctly American stamp on the market's best middleweight sport bike. The 848 Nicky Hayden was publically unveiled at the 2009 Red Bull United States Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, where Nicky’s MotoGP race bike was presented in a matching scheme. There could be no better time or place to celebrate the American World Champion than at his home race on the 4th of July.
This US-exclusive model features an American inspired paint scheme, aptly fit for its introduction on the 4th of July, personally autographed gas tank, and model updates for the 2010 year. Check out the video of the Nicky's photo shoot with the bike below!
The new Ducati 848 Nicky Hayden Edition enjoys all the performance advancements of the entire Superbike family, while adding its own innovations to redefine the middleweight sport bike class.
The words 'agile' and 'refined' aptly describe the 848. At 168kg (369lbs), the 848 is an amazing 20kg (44lbs) lighter than its predecessor.

Type: L-Twin cylinder, 4 valves per cylinder Desmodromic, liquid cooled
Displacement: 849.4 cc
Bore and stroke: 94 x 61.2 mm
Compression Ratio: 12:1
Power*: 134 hp - 98.5 kW @ 10000 RPM
Torque*: 70.8 ft-lb - 96 Nm @ 8250 RPM
Fuel system: Marelli electronic fuel injection, elliptical throttle bodies
Exhaust: Lightweight 2-1-2 system with catalytic converter and lambda probe. Twin stainless steel mufflers.
Emissions: 50-State-compliant
Transmission
Gearbox: 6 speed
Ratio: 1st 37/15, 2nd 30/17, 3rd 28/20, 4th 26/22, 5th 24/23, 6th 23/24
Primary drive: Straight cut gears, Ratio 1.84:1
Final drive: Chain; Front sprocket 15; Rear sprocket 39
Clutch: Wet multiplate with hydraulic control
Notes: Power & torque data calculated using an inertia dynamometer.
Source : DUCATI through Newsletter

THE BIKE WILL BE AUCTIONED AT EICMA

An example of “made in Italy” excellence will be showcased with pride at the G8 summit to be held in L’Aquila. The Ducati Desmosedici RR, a true icon of Italian technology and design, has been prepared with a special livery by Ducati and the Fiera Milano, a unique, one-off design.
The graphics, suggested by the Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, incorporate the G8 logo, emphasizing the choice to hold the upcoming summit, from 8 to 10 July, in L’Aquila, the city at the heart of the earthquake that hit the Abruzzo region on 6th April this year.
Ducati and the Fiera Milano accepted the invitation to design and create a special version of the most prestigious bike that Ducati has ever produced, the Desmosedici RR – a limited, numbered production run of only 1500 machines that sold out before the bikes were built.
A more emblematic and prestigious bike could not have been selected. The Desmosedici RR is a jewel in the crown of Italy’s motorcycle industry, and allows Ducati to compete and win on racetracks all over the world.
A bike derived from the MotoGP machine, it is the first real production bike to benefit from the technology and innovation gained by Ducati during its experience racing in the world MotoGP championship, a championship in which the Bologna-based manufacturer took the title with Casey Stoner in 2007.
The bike will be exhibited at L’Aquila, inside the building reserved for the representatives of the eight countries that will participate in the summit, as a testimonial of Italian ingenuity and technology. Once the summit concludes, the “Desmosedici RR – G8” will be handed over to the Fiera Milano and auctioned during the 2009 edition of the international EICMA motorcycle trade show, to take place from 10 to 15 November, with proceeds going towards the reconstruction of the Abruzzo region.
“We feel a very strong sense of belonging to the Italian community”, declared Gabriele Del Torchio, President of Ducati, “and it makes us very proud to be able to show what we do to the Heads of State and Government that will participate in the G8. At the same time we also want to contribute to the reconstruction of Abruzzo. Ducati and its employees have already shown solidarity in light of the Abruzzo tragedy. This important initiative, carried out with the Fiera Milano, allows us to help in a concrete way. One can count on our prestigious product, and on the strength and notoriety that a brand like Ducati possesses; Ducati is an ambassador of “made in Italy” the world over.”
The General Manager of the Fiera Milano S.p.A., Enrico Pazzali, commented, “we have collaborated with Ducati, to bring the Ducati Desmosedici RR to the world stage of the G8 summit, for two reasons. First and foremost out of solidarity for our fellow citizens affected by the terrible earthquake of the 6 April. The beautiful Desmosedici RR-G8 will be auctioned during the Eicma motorcycle show, to take place at Rho-Milano between the 10 and 15 November, and the money raised will go towards the reconstruction of the Abruzzo region. Our second motivation is also linked to Eicma 2009: to bring a shining example of Italian industrial excellence to the attention of opinion makers and consumers alike. A level of excellence that our company, Fiera Milano, also strives to adhere to.”
Source: DUCATI through Newsletter

World Ducati Week, September 2010. Save the date.

Warm up your engines and get your heart revving! The greatest Ducati gathering is coming back.
The planned date for motorcycle fans of all ages and nationalities to come together is September 2010 at the Misano World Circuit.
Four days of non-stop fun are planned: track sessions, official riders and stunts, evening parties, concerts, motorcycle tours, Ducati Factory and Museum visits, historical bikes exhibitions, conferences, and much more.
The World Ducati Week 2007, the amazing Desmodromic world celebration, was an unprecedented success. There were more than 50,000 presences throughout the event that saw Ducatisti from 28 different nations. WDW means World Ducati Week - the colossal worldwide Ducati rally of thousands of aficionados from dozens of nations.
A veritable legion of motorcyclists and motorcycle fans, meeting at the Misano World Circuit in Misano Adriatico, Italy to have fun and celebrate their love for bikes.
Since its first edition in 1998, the Misano World Circuit is the perfect backdrop for this celebration of everything that is Ducati. For the occasion, given the prevalence of the well-known main Ducati colour, the circuit turns red from tip to toe, reshaping itself into a "Red Planet" where Ducati fans feel completely at home.
The 2007 edition of WDW took place from 28th June to 1st July
Source: DUCATI through Newsletter and WORLD DUCATI WEEK

Supermono - The Very Rare DUCATI Thumper

So rare, that only 67 ever got made. And this is the reason that these bikes are one of the most sought after collector’s item.
I am sure you must have heard about a certain single cylinder Ducati back in the early nineties. Back in that time, we were teens and internet was still alien to me but I vaguely remember reading it in a magazine or probably it could have been a newspaper about that certain single cylinder Ducati. It was not that I was a passionate Ducati fan back then but the beauty of the bike remained a lasting memory. Now I know, I can remember the original Supermono which Ducati released in 1993. At the first look, if you see a strong resemblance with another Ducati legend, let me refresh your memory that you will see the 916 in the mono and that’s because the 916 was inspired from this bike. Of course both these bikes as well as some more Ducati siblings were designed by none other than Pierre Terblanche.

The Supermono was the ultimate lightweight compact racer built with many technical innovations. This high-tech racer which was fitted with a 549cc, four-stroke, liquid-cooled, fuel-injected single-cylinder engine. Being a racer bike and that too a Ducati, it obviously had high spec suspension components and combined with a dry weight of only 118 kgs, the Supermono was an excellent handler. And think about this, the 550cc engine was belting out 75 bhp which was enough to push the machine to a top speed of 225 kmph. The Supermono engine size was later increased to 572cc in 6 for only 2 models which saw an increase in power to 80bhp. On the tracks, when competing against highly modified 4 cylinder bikes, it would beat multi-cylindered 600 cc machines for win after win. Of course, all these features and technology came with a price. It would have cost you US$30,000 way back then in 1993 so you can very well judge how much it is worth now. But then these were not street legal bikes as they were race-bred. Maybe you can’t have those 67 or even if you can catch hold of one, you won’t be able to drive it on road but there is good news.

A certain gentleman, Alistair Wager of Britain had worked with Ducati for many years and also headed the HMC Ducati AMA Superbike team in 2001. Now what he has done is built a whole new Supermono which is street legal. Yes, with some help from Ducati, Mr. Wager has built a brand-new Supermono Strada and the thing is the Strada has a bigger and more powerful engine than the original and to boost things further, the chassis and suspension are also updated. Well building a bike of such stature would never have been easy and especially when it is not a production bike. It took 6 years for Mr. Wager to complete this project with a total expenditure of £50,000 ($76,000+) which included work on many patterns and moulds. What you see here is the 2009 Supermono Strada with an increase in overall cubic capacity to 595cc. The head is borrowed from the 999R and it develops 88bhp. While the original had forged steel con rods, the new one has Pankl forged. Inlet and exhaust valves are of course increased from 37mm and 31 mm to 41mm and 33mm. Other makeovers from the original include timing gear driven water pump assembly and wet alternator in place of exhaust camshaft driven water pump and dry alternator, increase in the air-box volume with a high flow air filter for increased performance. There is the cooling system now fitted with a water expansion tank which was not fitted in the original mono.

New exciting components include a new Magneti Marelli fuel-injection system, standard 6 speed (one-up-fice-down) shift pattern gear box in place of the close ratio gearbox on the race bike. The front brakes comprise twin 305mm discs replacing the earlier size of 280mm on the original bike with four-piston radial-mount Brembo callipers, as fitted to the 1098R. The bike rides on 17-inch Marchesini forged Magnesium ten-spoke wheels, shod with 120/60 (front) and 180/55 (rear) Pirelli Diablo Corsa tyres. Of course a Ducati can never be a Ducati without the trellis frame and Mr. Wager paid tribute to the original by making a replica of the original but is lighter now due to the chrome-molybdenum tubing. The swingarm is similar to the 1000SS. Top and bottom yokes are modified items as fitted to the 999R and of course suspension components are Ohlins.

Other features carried over from Ducati siblings mainly the 999R include ducted air cooling to the carbon cambelt cover, integral fuel pump and pressure release valve assembly mounted to the underside of the fuel tank, electric radiator fans as well as the speedometer instrument and rear wheel pick-up sensor. And yes, it has headlamps and all. It has projector styled twin headlamps, LED tail lamp, push-button electric start, and number plate illuminator lamp also with left/right rear indicators, mounted on a lightweight carbon number plate bracket. Left hand handlebar switchgear with self-cancelling directional indicator switch, horn and high beam pass button. Right hand handlebar switchgear with engine kill switch, starter motor button and main lighting switch as you would find in any street bike. Also like the 749 / 999 series, it has the retractable Aluminium side stand with ignition cut-out switch. In fact the entire dash instrument is from the 749/999 series. And lots of additional components which were not there in the original.

The Supermono, built with power to weight in mind, itself in a way was a derivative of the 888 Racing. The liquid cooled double overhead cam shaft four valve desmodromic cylinder head, the horizontally placed 550cc cylinder utilized a "dummy connecting rod" that acted like a second piston were all features of the 888. By the way, the racer originally had the exhaust exiting on the left. So, if Mr. Wager is out there to sell this highly desirable bike to us, why didn’t Ducati take it on them to make it a production bike? After all, there has been a demand for the same since the early 90s. Mr. Wagner says that the factory cannot risk putting such a lower spec bike into production, with no guarantee of success. Well, if the curiosity of bikers towards the Supermono Strada is any indication, Ducati might just go back to their drawing board and plan it up for mass production. The Supermono was even designed as a race bike that could be converted to a street legal bike without much hassle. But nothing came out of it. Anyway the new bike has gained a few kilos with the new clothes and has tips the scale at 133 kg.

Yes, although Mr. Wager had spent a lot on the first bike, expected cost for customer models are around 35,000 UK pounds (about $52,000). But the original Supermono is now selling in excess of $80,000, so see, you are after all getting a good bargain, a race replica bike with updated components and more features and you still can save enough money! The most fascinating thing about the original Mono is the sound. Yes, we know the sound of a big single is something really different and very infectious, but listen to the Mono in the video and you will say that it is ‘really different. And at high revs, it hardly sounds like a single. As per as riding comments go, the select few people who have ridden these have all complimented the race qualities of the Supermono Strada. Unlike other big bore singles, the Supermono starts to breathe only after 6500 rpm and reveals its true identity over 7000 rpm. The Ducati goes from less than 20 horsepower to almost 40 between 5700 and 6500 rpm, burbles through a 500-rpm plateau, and enters its real powerband at 7000 rpm. Near to the 5 figure rpm, the Weber fuel-injection provides immediate, crisp response to your right hand.

And the most surprising thing is the lack of vibrations which are common in a thumper, riders say its like riding a V-Twin! How is this? Well, that was the innovation of the 888 inspired "dummy connecting rod" that acted like a second piston. As for outright performance, it it IS fast: 11.44 seconds at 195 kmph through the quarter-mile will match the best of the four-cylinder 600 range and top speed is an impressive 225 kmph. And it’s a SINGLE! Mind it! But where did the Supermono use to race? After all it was built for racing right? In the 90s, a European Supermono Cup existed (Sound of Singles) which was a side event to the World Superbike Championship. The Supermono was a "test bed" for the World Superbike racers. And so now you know Ducati named the bike after the event which means it was specifically made for the Supermono Cup. Other tit-bits - New Zealander Robert Holden was the most successful of all Ducati Supermono racers. In 1994, Holden came in second in the Isle of Man TT and then in 1995, won the Isle of Man TT.

The new model with 595cc will weigh 134 kilos only. Of course at the offered price, it doesn’t seem to take on the mass market, definitely not when you think it’s a single cylinder engine but I am sure it will find its own fans and not only Ducati fans, because there is a certain section of bikers who yearn for a decent thumper and who will not want a thumper that is a Ducati and that too, a limited edition? If you have the money, that is!

Source of pics and info – DUCATI, Ducati News Today.
The beautiful pics of the Supermono Strada designed by Alistar Wager has been captured by Maximus Photgraphy while a very good article is available in CYCLE WORLD (You will love it!) about the original Mono and you can reas about the Strada in Motorcycle Daily
Specs
Engine - 549cc, Liquid cooled, 4S, Single cylinder, Desmodromic DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder.
Bore x Stroke & Compression Ratio - 100 x 70 mm & 11.8:1
Induction & Ignition /Starting - Weber Marelli fuel injection/ Weber Marelli electronic
Max Power & Torque - 75 hp @ 10000 rpm & 37.5 ft-lb @ 8000 rpm
Transmission /Drive - 6 Speed /Chain
Front & Rear Suspension - 42mm Öhlins inverted telescopic forks, 110mm wheal travel, compression and rebound damping. spring preload adjustable & Öhlins monoshock 140 Wheel travel Front & Rear Brakes - 2x 280mm disc 4 piston calipers & Single 190mm disc 2 piston caliper
Front & Rear Tyre - 3.10/80 R17 & 155/60 R17
Fuel Capacity & Dry-Weight - 15.1 Litres & 125.6 kg
Top Speed & Standing ¼ Mile - 227 km/h & 11.4 sec / 197.5 km/h