DUCATI 1299 PANIGALE S
RIDING IMPRESSION
P88
And that means using all the
features as they should be used.
An example being, if you don't
use the Ducati Quickshift System
the way it needs – clutchless up
and down shifts – gear changes
can be notchy and difficult. The
Ducati requires you to pay atten-
tion to what you're doing –lazi-
ness is punished quickly. You
only have to look at how hard
Chaz Davies has to ride his
1199 R racer to get the most
out of it; the standard bike isn't
anything close to that recalci-
trant, but there are traces of
this persona in the 1299.
It hates stopped traffic.
Gets all hot and pissed off,
and the svelte Slovenian
Akrapovic piping under the
seat suddenly turn the Pani-
gale into the world's fastest
barbeque, with your thighs
the appetizer and your ass
the main course. Here it's just
like any old Ducati superbike,
and a reason why you'd not
buy the 1299 if it were to be a
commuter.
But for the most part, the
1299 is miles, miles better
than the old 1199. Especially
in the ride and stability. The
electronic Öhlins components
provide a constantly smooth ride
front and back, and the Brembo
M50 calipers up front match to
provide not just phenomenal
stopping prowess but feel and
stability. M50s can be found on
a few bikes now, but that doesn't
make their performance on the
1299 any less impressive. This
bike stops as fast as it goes,
and it's all backed up by an ABS
system that's about as unobtru-
sive as it gets. Cornering ABS is
one of the best things to come
out of motorcycling in years (for
a full look at how the system
mode disconnects rear ABS and
because I was generally riding
the bike as a commuter there
was really no need to go back-
ing it into corners other than for
my own stupid enjoyment. Race
mode does give the Ducati more
oomph in everything from throttle
response to firmer suspension
and less DTC intervention, to the
no rear ABS, but Sport is fine for
everyday road use. Wet mode
knocks everything down a peg or
two, and as SoCal is in the midst
of a devastating drought, I didn't
use it other than just to see if it
worked, which of course it did.
Two weeks of living with the
1299 dispelled one thought I'd
always had about Ducati su-
perbikes for the road. "Nice,
but you can have it back." The
improvements to the midrange
power, better throttle response,
nicer ride comfort and exhaus-
tive electronic controls make this
a very good road superbike. If I
put the cash down for one (and if
I could ever afford one!), I'd wrap
the piping to save the rump, put
the stickiest tires I could buy
on it and go blitz up and down
the canyon near my place each
morning before work because,
above all else, the 1299 makes
you feel special when riding it.
There're other bikes out there
that are better road bikes, no
question of that, but few make
you feel as damn well good
about yourself as the 1299.
Suppose you'd want to feel
good if you dropped $25K on a
bike! CN
"THERE'S OTHER
BIKES OUT THERE
THAT ARE BETTER
ROAD BIKES, NO
QUESTION OF
THAT, BUT FEW
MAKE YOU FEEL
AS DAMN WELL
GOOD ABOUT
YOURSELF AS
THE 1299."
works, click here), and having it
on a bike like the Panigale, that
is capable of insane lean angles,
is very handy indeed. But to hell
with trying the system's limits
on the road! At least I know it's
there, it works, and that's good
enough for me.
For the majority of the test I
rode around in Sport mode. Race
