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Of the 24 motorcycles I have owned over a period of nearly 40 years, the one that I have until now always regarded as “best” was my RD400E, collected new on my 20th Birthday in 1980. That bike was brilliant. Not the fastest I have owned, (that would be the XJR1300 Yamaha), but just the most FUN. Sharp throttle response, light weight, good handling. Just go for a ride and have a ball.
Of course, being 20 and indestructible my rides often went beyond just fun and approached lunacy from time to time. I still retain mental images of fleeting "red mist" moments captured by my “head camera”, (the one IN my head), such as the 40mph wheelie that was PERFECT, but no-one else saw.
The second-best bike I have owned until now was my Harley Davidson Sportster Sport, bought new when I was 37. Dynamically this was nowhere near the RD of course, but it went well enough, and by that time in my life the frenetic two-stroke thing had been long-superseded by a more sensible father-of-three perspective, whereby I could ride a bit more slowly but still enjoy the passing scenery. The noise it made was just brilliant, and the quality of fit and finish really made ownership a joy. I kept it for six years.
I’ve also had a Triumph Thunderbird, (nice but heavy and rather ponderous), and an original ’71 Bonnie, (Christ - No wonder the British Bike Industry went under – a truly woeful machine.) For about a year I had a Laverda Mirage, which was fast and whilst evidently well-engineered, the recurring adjective was “agricultural”.
I’ve enjoyed my biking immensely but I never regained the simple pleasures of the RD400. I kept looking at Ducati’s though….
To backtrack a bit - When I was 18 I had the centrefold of Bike Magazine’s test of the black and gold 900SS taped to the wall next to my drawing board at work. The one of Bill Haylock stopped next to a drystone wall; he was hand-rolling a cigarette, resting his baccy tin on the seat. I could just sense what he was feeling after a fast ride. Oooh I wanted one of those, but I needed my bike as transport at that time so didn’t pursue that idea.
Then when I was about 22 I test rode the then-new Ducati Pantah 500. I could have bought one, having just inherited just enough money from my Grandmother, but felt it a bit underpowered and overpriced at the time, so I got a Suzuki Katana, which actually served me very well.
But I always harboured a liking for Ducatis – the whole Italian cool plus the engineering thing - y’know - desmo valves, engines as stressed members, lattice frames… Lovely!
So having lately acquired the financial wherewithal to replace my 2007 Triumph Scrambler (a very good bike) with something new, I initially looked about and strongly considered a Moto Guzzi V7. I’d seen the pics of the Ducati Scrambler but for some reason it didn’t quite look right. But when I saw one for real I was hooked.
So I’ve had my yellow Icon for 8 weeks now, and i'm about 1200 miles up. It’s such a great all-round package, but ironically doesn’t feel in any way compromised by that. If I want to bumble along the local lanes at low speed, it does it, (pulls from under 40mph in top). If I want to hoon around on A roads at, shall we say, speeds above those we should legally restrict ourselves to, it does that too.
Being a Ducati of course, the steering is very precise and confidence-inspiring. Ground clearance is adequate, comfort is OK for long enough, riding position upright and relaxed. It even has a clock and and a temperature gauge, (this is a bit “optimistic” though, I think if it displays the temperature in Bologna…)
The sharp throttle response people have complained about is fine by me - part of the fun - reminds me of my two-strokes. (People have said that this aspect detracts from its appeal as a first bike, but I confess to having a bit of an issue with the idea that this is a good bike to learn on… Surely 70 hp is too much to learn with? )
So yes, I’ll say it now. My icon is the best bike I’ve ever had.
Jonny
Of course, being 20 and indestructible my rides often went beyond just fun and approached lunacy from time to time. I still retain mental images of fleeting "red mist" moments captured by my “head camera”, (the one IN my head), such as the 40mph wheelie that was PERFECT, but no-one else saw.
The second-best bike I have owned until now was my Harley Davidson Sportster Sport, bought new when I was 37. Dynamically this was nowhere near the RD of course, but it went well enough, and by that time in my life the frenetic two-stroke thing had been long-superseded by a more sensible father-of-three perspective, whereby I could ride a bit more slowly but still enjoy the passing scenery. The noise it made was just brilliant, and the quality of fit and finish really made ownership a joy. I kept it for six years.
I’ve also had a Triumph Thunderbird, (nice but heavy and rather ponderous), and an original ’71 Bonnie, (Christ - No wonder the British Bike Industry went under – a truly woeful machine.) For about a year I had a Laverda Mirage, which was fast and whilst evidently well-engineered, the recurring adjective was “agricultural”.
I’ve enjoyed my biking immensely but I never regained the simple pleasures of the RD400. I kept looking at Ducati’s though….
To backtrack a bit - When I was 18 I had the centrefold of Bike Magazine’s test of the black and gold 900SS taped to the wall next to my drawing board at work. The one of Bill Haylock stopped next to a drystone wall; he was hand-rolling a cigarette, resting his baccy tin on the seat. I could just sense what he was feeling after a fast ride. Oooh I wanted one of those, but I needed my bike as transport at that time so didn’t pursue that idea.
Then when I was about 22 I test rode the then-new Ducati Pantah 500. I could have bought one, having just inherited just enough money from my Grandmother, but felt it a bit underpowered and overpriced at the time, so I got a Suzuki Katana, which actually served me very well.
But I always harboured a liking for Ducatis – the whole Italian cool plus the engineering thing - y’know - desmo valves, engines as stressed members, lattice frames… Lovely!
So having lately acquired the financial wherewithal to replace my 2007 Triumph Scrambler (a very good bike) with something new, I initially looked about and strongly considered a Moto Guzzi V7. I’d seen the pics of the Ducati Scrambler but for some reason it didn’t quite look right. But when I saw one for real I was hooked.
So I’ve had my yellow Icon for 8 weeks now, and i'm about 1200 miles up. It’s such a great all-round package, but ironically doesn’t feel in any way compromised by that. If I want to bumble along the local lanes at low speed, it does it, (pulls from under 40mph in top). If I want to hoon around on A roads at, shall we say, speeds above those we should legally restrict ourselves to, it does that too.
Being a Ducati of course, the steering is very precise and confidence-inspiring. Ground clearance is adequate, comfort is OK for long enough, riding position upright and relaxed. It even has a clock and and a temperature gauge, (this is a bit “optimistic” though, I think if it displays the temperature in Bologna…)
The sharp throttle response people have complained about is fine by me - part of the fun - reminds me of my two-strokes. (People have said that this aspect detracts from its appeal as a first bike, but I confess to having a bit of an issue with the idea that this is a good bike to learn on… Surely 70 hp is too much to learn with? )
So yes, I’ll say it now. My icon is the best bike I’ve ever had.
Jonny
