Ductalk

Sometimes you just need to push the boundaries. Like Ducati did with its power cruiser, the Diavel.

So we took a Diavel Cromo the desert, and in the best spaghetti Western tradition, let the horse run free. We hope you like the ride....

No more stuffing your suitcases with delicacies bought in Italy, hoping the sniffer dogs at JFK or other American airports won't detect the banned-in-the-USA foodstuffs inside your luggage.

In the U.S., they're called cured meats, the French say charcuterie and in Italy, the word for cured-pork products is salumi.

Starting May 28, a four-decades-old ban on the import of many Italian salumiwill be lifted.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced that the Italian regions of Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, Veneto and Piedmont, and the provinces of Trento and Bolzano, are free of swine vesicular disease. Imports of pork products from those areas, says the USDA, present a low risk of introducing the disease into the U.S. The disease was first detected in the 1960s and can survive cooking and even long curing.

For the whole article click HERE

Ducati has built and brought to market another extremely successful piece of engineering with the new Hypermotard SP.

Beautiful to look at and exhilarating to ride, the dramatically updated 2013 model of the Italian company's supermoto bike is fast and fierce, and equal parts demanding and rewarding.

It's basically a race bike, which means it's not a cozy mount for a cruise up the coast. The ready-for-the-track set-up means stiff suspension, an unforgiving seat, increased seat height, plenty of engine heat and a muffler growl that will wake the neighbors.

While he hadn't yet been named CEO when this photo was taken, Claudio Domenicali has long been a force of nature inside Ducati. From the days when Ducati Corse was just formed to his later progression into production, Domenicali's hands are all over nearly every aspect of Ducati as a company. His love for racing is well known.

WELCOME TO 'PERFORMANCE'

Öhlins Racing is excited to invite you to view the latest edition of PERFORMANCE, the exciting online magazine that gives an intriguing insight into the diverse world of this legendary suspension brand.

You will have free, exclusive access to stories from around the globe on two and four wheels, racing, street, dirt and even snow...

In this edition we look into Öhlins' racing successes, the challenges of the Dakar, the big bucks world of Supercross, the firebreathing 550bhp Volvo Polestar machine and two readers specials; a gold leaf retro US Ducati and an ultra trick Fireblade from Croatia of all places.

Click on the magazine below and enter the World of Öhlins...

The motorcycle industry is littered with Minnesotans. People from the midwest who are offered positions in the bike industry usually gravitate towards the west coast where the local weather allows for more than 3-4 months of decent riding a year.

Ex-Minnesotan Jason Chinnock worked his way up the ladder at Ducati USA--he's been based in their Cupertino office for several years--and although bikes are undoubtedly his first love, a chance to move up within the VW/Audi Group was something he could not let pass....

Bomber gets his first race on a Bologna bullett

British Superbike veteran Karl Harris has switched to Ducati power for this year's North West 200 and will stand in for Lee Johnston on the Moto Rapido Sport 1199 Panigale in the Superstock and Superbike races next weekend.

Harris' PR Kawasaki squad weren't able to field a bike for him at this year's first roads international but he will now use Lee Johnston's bike as the Ulsterman is still injured. He tested the bike yesterday at Kirkistown.

‘I have never ridden a Ducati before but the Panigale seemed very strong for a Superstock machine," said Harris, who will race the bike in four outings - the Superstock event on Thursday evening and again in Saturday’s Superstock race as well as both Superbike events on race day.

Our man Melling spreads a juicy bit of gossip about the state of Ducati in MotoGP and posits some interesting scenarios for the 2014 season.

Ducati Dealers Rank 2nd in the 2013 Pied Piper Prospect Satisfaction Index® (PSI®) U.S. Motorcycle Industry Benchmarking Study Results

For those of you that know me, it’s no secret that for many years I was a Ducati dealer.  I believe that after running a restaurant (which has to be the hardest mainstream job ever) running a great motorcycle dealership is, well, really hard work....

Developed by The Colorado Department of Transportation, Crashed features a 25 year-old Colorado motorcycle rider receiving a "crashed" makeover to depict the most common injuries

Ben Spies will be back in action at Mugello later this month, Pramac Racing confirmed from the Jerez test on Monday evening. For the preceding Monster Energy Grand Prix de France, Michele Pirro for cover for the recovering American.

Meet in the  Middle is also our first Passport Event of the year details of which we will be posting soon.
This starts ride from several corners of New England and met for an excellent BBQ lunch at  Curtis' BBQ  in Putney VT. This is an excellent place to hang out and chat with your fellow Ducati enthusiasts.  Riders of other makes are welcome too, it will give us a chance to show them the light   . Afterwards you can head home or hook up with others to take advantage of some local knowledge of some great New England Roads.

More details HERE

That MotoGP is too Iberocentric – too many Spanish races, and too many Spanish riders – is obvious to all who follow the sport, with the possible exception of a blinkered Spanish journalist or two. The series has to change, to move away from having four races a season in Spain, and to explore new markets in South America and Asia.

This is exactly what is to happen, according to an interview Dorna boss Carmelo Ezpeleta gave to the Reuters news agency on Friday. Reuters reporter Alan Baldwin spoke to Ezpeleta at the Barcelona circuit, where the Dorna CEO was attending the Formula 1 race.

Fresh off of last weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix and Monday’s post-race test at Jerez, Ducati Team riders Andrea Dovizioso and Nicky Hayden were back on track Wednesday and Thursday, this time at Mugello.

Bernhard Gobmeier found himself with a tough nut to crack in the hands. Bringing back Ducati to the old glories, after two catastrophic, both for results and image, years with Valentino is an adventure that would make heads turn to more than one manager.

Maybe his purely teutonic concreteness and tranquility help him, but the General Manager seems sure of the road taken and he even finds time to joke. Maybe in the troubled waters of Borgo Panigale, what was needed was just a lighthouse insensitive to storms. Also because, Gobmeier, doesn't hide the problems at all.

Read more: http://www.gpone.com/en/2013050810136/Gobmeier-sbagliato-usare-solo-5-motori.html#ixzz2SjdGIUNr

Andrea Iannone is recovering following 'arm pump' surgery at the Dexeus clinic in Barcelona on Tuesday.

The Italian MotoGP rookie, who also sustained a knee injury at Jerez, admitted he wasn't feeling at his best after the operation and will remain under observation for all of Wednesday. Although recovery time is still uncertain, his prognosis is positive in terms of a return for the forthcoming French round on May 17-19...

It is not an easy year, speaking about sport, for Ducati. In addition to the developing difficulties of MotoGp project, significant problems occurred in the SBK area (historically a land of conquest for Borgo Panigale's Production House).

After the initial enthusiasm with the clinched Superpole in Phillip Island, the 1199 Panigale has always struggled in race. Neither the effort of Carlos Checa were useful enough, never on the podium and twelftht in the general ranking with 29 points, nor those of a skilled team like the Alstar one. General manager Berhnard Gobmeiertried to explain the problem of the last emilian superbike.

Read more: http://www.gpone.com/en/2013050710132/Ducati-Monza-alarm-for-bike-and-driver.html#ixzz2Sci5sdin