Background: A few months ago, my brother-in-law (and lifelong friend) Alex mentioned his company, All Balls Racing, was sending him to EICMA in Milan, the largest motorcycle trade show in the world. I gushed in envy, in response to which he asked me to join him. I can still recall distinctly his exclamation, “It would be totally crazy to rent bikes in the middle of November, right…?”
“Yes-“ I logically replied, as riding around in a foreign country in the middle of the winter just sounded dumb, not to mention incredibly uncomfortable. But I made inquiries to friends, which turned into correspondence with companies, and as September turned to October, and October into November, the temperatures in Northern Italy were hovering in the high 60’s / low 70’s, perfect for motorcycle riding.
Most of our routes...
I had reached out to HP Motorad, and MotoTouring.com, but I received a rather lackluster response from both outfits, with unenthusiastic email responses coming around 48 hours after my inquiries.
Originally we had wanted Italian bikes, ideally Ducati Scramblers, but as the forecast for the week after EICMA loomed in the mid 40’s we decided heated grips would be necessary.
Milano's famous Duomo
I was worried we had left our reservations too late, but the last day of EICMA I managed to get in contact with Claudio of CIMT.IT, who had two brand new 2015 BMWs for us, an F800GT and a F800GS, and the heated grips would prove to be the saving grace of the trip. Our costs were about $230 for three-ish days, and $0.20 / per km after that. Including insurance, we paid about $400 each for one of the most incredible experiences of our lifetimes.
Ducati's new entry-level racebike is now a litre-bike (...shaking my head a little).
Ducati booth at EICMA
I have a number of friends with 899's and most of them agree it was plenty of bike, but Ducati took the 899 engine and bored it out to a 959cc displacement, increasing the horsepower from 148 to 157.
This awful looking exhaust will only be present on the Euro models, as American imports will have the typical exhaust, ending at the bottom of the scoop.
The Panigale is a beautiful bike, but Ducati's "bigger is better" mentality (1300cc anyone?) doesn't always seem to be the most original innovation.
2016 Multistrada 1200 Enduro
Ducati's new enduro/offroad crossover bike is powered by the 1198cc Testastretta 11° V-twin equipped with DVT variable valve timing for 160 bhp and 100 lb.-ft. of torque 2016
The new Multistrada Enduro looks cool, though who but a rich playboy would really take this bike in the dirt?
At the same time, if you want to go adventure-touring in style, this Ducati is the way to go.
2016 DUCATI XDIAVEL CRUISER
Honestly, the XDiavel was a little weird, with my feet about parallel to my hands in riding position.
However, Ducati's first foray into the cruiser market brings a belt-driven Testastretta 11° 1198cc V-twin, enlarged to 1262cc, with 156 horsepower.
2016 DUCATI SCRAMBER FLAT TRACK PRO & SIXTY2
Ducati's new line of 399cc Scramblers is all about the youth market.
The new Ducati Sixty2 Scrambler will conform to Europe's A2 regulations, making it attractive to young riders with only a junior motorcycle license.
Even though the Pantah-based engine only puts out about 41hp, the pricetag will only be a few hundred dollars less than its bigger brother.
However, most of the people I talked to assured me there was plenty left in the engine, and easily tuning the new Scramblers was going to be part of the game.
The Scrambler brand is also an accessory / fashion line now, and the marketing was in full effect, with the booth constructed out of several stacked shipping containers,
with games and branded collateral everywhere.
2016 Monster 1200R
The new Monster 1200R is the most powerful naked bike ever built by Ducati.
At over 160 horsepower, this will rip on the street, though there isn't too much added to the 1200S.
The "Esposizione Internazionale Ciclo Motociclo e Accessori" (EICMA) is only a week away, and I have my bags packed and ready to go to Milan! This is the largest motorcycling event in the world, put together by the Italian Association of Bicycle and Motorcycle Industry Manufacturers.
Ducati is rumored to be launching up to nine new models, and I'll be there (at least by Friday). More to come!
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