VOL. 50 ISSUE 42 OCTOBER 22, 2013
P91
BY PAUL CARRUTHERS
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MILAGRO
I
'll argue all day long that MotoGP
bikes should have less electronic
aids. After all, who amongst us
doesn't want to see Valentino Rossi
vs. Marc Marquez with at least some
of the traction control taken away?
Old school vs. new school. But as I
splish-splash my way around the Autodromo Enzo E Dino Ferrari in the
rain, I want to get down on my knees
and thank Ducati for the big "WET"
display that's staring back at me from
the LCD dash on my Panigale 899.
You see with every bit of ABS, DTC,
DQS and EBC turned up as high as it
will go on my 899, I'm fairly confident
that I'm not going to end up on my
ASS. And that's a good thing.
Like you, I'm neither Rossi nor
Marquez. But what we are, however,
is the people Ducati built its new 899
for. The 899 Panigale is what Ducati
calls, "the more accessible platform."
As in more accessible than the ultra
high-end Panigale 1199… a motorcycle that most definitely isn't accessible to the majority of us.
So Ducati is hoping that the new
899 Panigale is a "step up" motorcycle for those currently riding a
Japanese 600cc sportbike; a "step
down" for current owners of Japanese 1000cc sportbikes; and/or an
entry point for "premium" sportbike
customers.
Ducati is also pushing the notion
that the 899 is "more at home on
the road than on the track." In other
words, don't be scared to buy this
Ducati sportbike. It's not just a race-
