Ductalk

It's not often I receive two customised versions of the same motorcycle in less than a week. This second example of a customised Ducati Sport Classic named "La Rage" comes from custom workshop FCR in France. In this build though the donor bike didn't go through as much trauma as Andy's custom Sport Classic I featured last week, but it's every bit as unique....

Ducati, the iconic Italian motorcycle brand from Bologna started by three brothers in 1926 has had its fair share of ups and downs. As of April this year, it was purchased by Audi in hopes of reviving the brand and increasing its sales market just as it has done throughout the decades. Back in the early 70s, Ducati was in the forefront of motorcycle engineering resulting in numerous victories including the most notable of a one-two finish at the Imola 200 on April 1972. The motorcycle that won that iconic race during a very muggy day was an untested Ducati 750 twin designed by Taglioni and the racer was of course, the British born Paul Smart. That day is engrained in Ducati history books as it set forth the new era of the iconic big-bore twin sport bike for the Italian manufacturer....More Here

Another one for Paul Smart Week...

This build comes from the Moto Corse dealership of Tokyo, Japan. The bike started as a 2006 Paul Smart 1000 L.E.. The Ducati Paul Smart 1000 L.E. is inspired by the 1974 Super Sport 750 and is a tribute to the 750 “Imola” bike that English racer Paul Smart took to victory in the 1972 Imola 200. On a cloudy day in April 1972, Paul Smart rode a new untested Ducati 750 twin to a historic surprise victory at the Imola 200, beating all competitors; more-so, in the same race the Italian racer Bruno Spaggiari, also riding a Ducati 750, crossed the finish line in second place. Inspired by these results, Fabio Taglioni decided to introduce production motorcycles with the styling and the latest technological solutions of the 750 “Imola“....lots more details, specs and photos, on the headline link above

From a pure engineering standpoint, Walt Siegl is one of the top bike builders in the world today. Anyone who would argue against that statement is unworthy to ever sit in the saddle of a motorcycle.

The level of craftsmanship that goes into a bike like this one, the WS Sport Classic, is clearly evident. If you don’t think so, read on. The bike is essentially the prototype for a small scale production run and almost everything about the original Ducati Sport Classic has been replaced, rebuilt or re-thought. See that frame? It isn’t the original Ducati tubular steel, it’s a handmade chrome-moly chassis built in Walt’s workshop, the fuel tank and seat are all hand fabricated by Walt, the brakes are now 4-pot Brembos and those front forks are fully adjustable Showa’s. The rake angle was increased by half a degree from 24.0° to 24.5° and Walt added 39mm flatslide carbs on top of handbuilt manifolds.

Now you see what I mean by craftsmanship, this build was a hell of a lot more than a paint job and some mail order parts....more

Since 2012 is a "WDW Year" we've decided to share some of our favorite WDW shots taken over the years (Ducati.net has attended every WDW back to the first one) to highlight what a really wonderful time the "party on the red planet" always is.....

About this shot |  WDW is a much different party at night then in the daytime, and this shot, taken at about 8pm was appealing to me because of the colorful backdrop of the typical Italian sandwich stand that dot the landscape all over Italy and especially in the seaside towns...

Photographer: Vicki Smith

Date: June, 2010 

Location :Misano Adriatico Italy at Misano World Circuit 

Camera: Nikon D90

For sale is my 2006 Paul Smart 1000 LE. I bought her brand new in the fall of 2007 from Salt Lake Motorsports. She was originally prepped by Matt Spencer, master Ducati mechanic/tuner & three time KTM Paris-Dakar crew chief for Chris Blaise. All subsequent service has been performed by Matt, (then SLMS/ now speedbyspencerdotcom).
Matt set her up with a Power Commander III, Termignoni slip-on, DP ECU and Ohlins spring upgrade – 00698-06/44 L136. The stock Ohlins spring is under-sprung. The upgrade provides a much more compliant and plush ride. I removed the stock mirrors in favor of a left bar mount CRG and installed a dpcars fender kit – dpcarsdotnet ~ (The stock mirrors and stock tail light/ license plate assembly are included. The stock exhaust is no longer available).
She originally resided in Chicago and is currently located with me in Denver, (garaged in both places). 2224 miles are currently on the clock.

For the rest click HERE

This is a cool build by Alain Wicki, the swiss luge champion and initiator of the 1996 Lamborghini Raptor project. Thanks to Gilberto, from Narrow Lanes for taking the pictures and letting me use them exclusively on here. Gilberto took the pictures last weekend – 25th-27th of May – during the 2012 Concorso d’Eleganza at Villa d’Este in Lago di Como, Italy. Alain Wicki is a three-time luge medalist and aficionado of things that go fast – I mean this guy goes head first down an icy half-pipe at speeds of around 140km per hour..  http://ilducatista.wordpress.com/2012/05/29/alain-wicki-ducati-hillclimber-study/

"Coming back from a San Diego trip on my new Ducati Sport Classic 1000. I call her Mrs. Vader"

Niigata, Japan