VOL. 51 ISSUE 29 JULY 22, 2014 P97
ride) the new water-cooled bike
is a good bit heavier than the
385.5-pound air-cooled desmo-
due Monster 796, but it seems
quite the reverse the way it
changes direction so effortlessly.
To start with, though, it was
strictly a matter of survival, as the
heavens opened as we climbed
the historic Futa Pass out of Bo-
logna. Imagine having one of the
world's great riding roads at your
disposal, and a bike well suited
to get the most from it – only
to spend it diesel-coated, ice-
rink slippery roads. How unfair
is that? However, what this did
was underline the effectiveness
of the aptly named Ducati Safety
Pack/DSP fitted as standard to
the bike, incorporating three-lev-
el ABS and eight-stage traction
control that are both switchable
as well as capable of personaliza-
tion. That's if you prefer not to go
with the default settings in any of
the three separate RBW Riding
Modes delivered by the Magneti
Marelli ECU – all of which you
can switch to while on the move
by closing the throttle before
making your selection.
Dialing up a custom map later
in the day took a bit of time and
some head scratching, but the
good thing is that the settings
are retained when you switch the
engine off. As for the factory set-
tings: Urban Mode is really Rain
– it's better to use Touring in town
for added zest away from lights,
while still remaining smooth and
controllable in pickup, whereas
Sport is strictly for – well, what it
says on the label. I found the Rain
(sorry, Urban) mode kept me safe
and sound in the Futa downpour,
and when the ABS (set at Level
Three) did kick in, it did so con-
trollably and not too aggressively.
And Level Seven DTC kept
the wheels in line until the rain
stopped and the roads started to
dry, when normal service could
be resumed. Really, the new
Monster has a much broader
well-proven package of electron-
ic rider aids than other bikes it's
competing against (and Ducati
has been working with Marelli
for so long to evolve the class-
leading package) that it's nearly
flawless for a real world road bike
like this one.
Thumbing the starter button
on the Monster 821 was the sig-
nal for a concert performance
from the 2-1-2 exhaust of the
