VOL. 52 ISSUE 16 APRIL 21, 2015 P59
BY ALAN CATHCART
PHOTOGRAPHY BY GIGI SOLDANO
T
he Multistrada has been a
seriously profitable model
for Ducati over the past
decade. And current manage-
ment should be thanking the
dogmatic intent that inspired
its then-chief designer Pierre
Terblanche to push through the
creation of the first such proto-
type to carry that name back in
2002.
Created by him away from the
Ducati factory at the IDEA De-
sign studio in Turin, and pow-
ered by the air-cooled 1100DS
desmodue motor, it took almost
three years to reach produc-
tion. That's mainly because
the South African designer
conceived it very much against
the wishes of certain members
of Ducati staff (probably the
same people who didn't think
the company should be doing
cruisers any more than sports
tourers, when it came to con-
cocting the Diavel).
After Terblanche's departure
in 2007 the Multistrada was
completely revamped by the
Italian firm's current design
chief Gianandrea Fabbro to
encompass a revised version
of the 1198 Testrastretta Su-
perbike motor with RBW (Ride
By Wire) throttle, selectable
engine mapping, eight-stage
traction control and 11-degrees
valve overlap (reduced from 41
degrees) for greater flexibility
and all-round performance. On
its 2009 Milan Show launch,
the Multistrada 1200 was a bold
step into the unknown for the
Italian marque, and essentially
created a whole new motor-
cycling sub-category with its
blend of adventure bike styling,
generous suspension travel,
Building
On The Best
DUCATI'S NEW MULTISTRADA
1200S—BUILT TO TAKE ON
ITS GROWING LIST OF SPORT-
TOURING CHALLENGERS