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Ride Report 8-5-07
Ride Report 8-5-07
Ride Report 8-5-07, By Mike Elpers
BIKES TESTED:
2008 Hypermotard 1100-S
2007 GT 1000 Sport Classic
The Ducati Hypermotard is insane.
When Ducati Indianapolis’ Service Manager and Co-Owner Matt Carr (age 35, Öhlins Certified technician, race bike builder and racer with multiple podium finishes in the CCS Great Lakes Expert Supertwins and GTO Team Challenge Championships) entered my office last week and asked me to join him on a experimental road test piloting a few of our demos, I smiled ear to ear as I eased back in my chair. Oh yeah, I pinch myself realizing I have one of the best jobs on the planet; sell Ducati’s by day, and demo ride them as well. We decided to meet the following Sunday afternoon and ride the twisty roads south of the city near Bloomington. This would be an excellent opportunity to network the new Ducati Dealership, and hand out some business cards to the riders we meet while fueling up or grabbing lunch. Hell, it’s an achievement in my book to get a thumbs up from appreciative enthusiasts who admire the newest style bike.
Along for the ride was my good friend Erik Hess (age 33, ASE Master GM mechanic with over 13 years of wrenching experience on bikes and cars…Erik also holds the premier credential of being the only certified Pedders Suspension Technician at Reeves Buick Pontiac; the only authorized GTO Pedders Suspension dealer in the Midwest) riding his fuel injected 99’ Honda CBR1100XX blackbird, complete with full Two Brothers race spec exhaust, upgraded Race Tech fork springs and a shimmed rear Showa mono-shock. Erik had just returned from a 2500+ mile trip spanning 5 states on the ‘Bird, he is an advanced road rider as well. Erik boasted on the Hypermotard’s dirt bike like riding style, and loved the futuristic styling of the bike. He did get some seat time on the Hypermotard prior to a downpour of rain, and switched back to his Blackbird afterwards. He was grinning like a kid in a candy store after experiencing the new Ducati, this was his first time riding Desmo power; I am working on converting him to the club.
Completing the trio of riders was myself (the youngest at age30, Sales Manager of Ducati Indianapolis) a motorcycle enthusiast with over 25 years of riding experience on all types of machines. Over the years I have owned various MX and dual purpose woods bikes, as well as a handful of metric sport bikes. My current bike is a carbureted 98’ Honda Blackbird (the tame version of Erik’s FI model) with upgraded Race Tech fork springs for improved handling. Otherwise it’s a bone stocker, however it rides very well.
I was lucky enough to secure a demo bike of the first production run Hypermotard, most dealers had a wait list from paying customers; no demo's. This 390 lb super-moto bike sits/ rides/handles like a 4 stroke MX race bike, the only difference is the power plant… a potent two-valve, air-cooled, Desmodromic Dual Spark engine, with a massive 98mm bore and short 71.5mm stroke to produce 95 horses and 76 pounds of torque. Did I mention this bike is insane? Our demo bike is the upgraded ‘S’ model which offers adjustable Marzocchi 50mm front forks with DLC (diamond-like carbon) black coating on the sliders. Out back is an Öhlins Monoshock with remote reservoir. The suspension is fully adjustable for compression and rebound damping as well as spring preload.
We also rode our 2007 GT1000 demo bike as well for Sundays test ride. This bike feels as comfortable as it looks, with upright handlebars, low 32 inch seat height, and classic 70’s retro design. The only difference between this bike and a retro/old technology/needy vintage bike is masked beneath the tank and trellis frame:an L-twin cylinder, fuel injected, 2 valve, Desmodromic air cooled 992 cc engine. The power plant boasts 92 HP with over 67 pounds of torque. This machine is a sleeper, crack the throttle in first gear and the front end rips through the air like a nimble street fighter. I was impressed by the throttle response of the somewhat heavy bike (410lbs).
My first impression of the Motard was this: Insanely fast. Getting used to the clutch pull was tricky from a standstill; it seemed to have extremely high gearing. After a few stoplights, I realized that this bike is wild mannered and loves when you throttle the hell out of it. It bucks and snorts like an Italian raging bull until you feed it a ton of fuel. First and second gear will pull the front end in a blink of an eye; no need for blipping the throttle to load the front suspension up…the Hypermotard rockets up effortlessly from the neck-snapping engine torque alone. It took me a few miles to get accustomed to the raw power of the bike. This beast has a wicked low end snap similar to 450 four stroke MX race bike. RIDER’S BEWARE while adjusting to the bikes power. The new Hypermotard is rolling on meaty Pirelli Diablo Corsa III’s. These tires hook hard and fast while issuing zero wheel spin, unlike a MX bike that smokes knobby chunks if you let it go full tilt on your neighborhood’s tarmac.
I felt that the new Hypermotard was eventually easy to ride, only after realizing it’s a 390 lb corner mauling rocket capable of dishing out track worthy performance, all bundled in an extremely nice dirt bike geometry style package. Everyone (Including myself) swore you were sitting on a dirt bike when climbing on. I was able to push the bike somewhat aggressively in the corners with no issues. The machine is very confident going in hot and fast, the Marzocchi and Öhlins combo soaks up chatter that the rider would normally experience in rough corners, the dampening is rock solid, but let’s go when needed. I was able to get the bike at nominal lean angles, and it tracked straight and true wanting more than I am capable of issuing out in rider skill. Halfway thru our voyage, Matt saddled up for the first time on the Hypermotard. I switched to the GT 1000. School is in.
Following Matt and Erik was thrilling. Watching Matt’s (He is a tall 6’3’ guy) knees approach the asphalt with professional track rider confidence was white knuckle magic to me, the bikes demonic manner loved his corner flogging. After a few pit stops and suspension tweaking via the easily accessible shock tower mounted dampening screws, and rear rebound setting’s it was all over. Motard taillights down the road, I’ll catch up later. The bike stuck in the corners, sometimes gusseting a blue puff of smoke from the Diablo’s anger from extreme engine braking. Matt quoted “Wow, this bike is nuts, and the braking is even better.”
My ride report on the GT1000 is this: comfy, yet powerful when you need it. The GT’s seat is huge, and is easy on your rear for hours of riding. The bike is well mannered at any RPM, and is extremely easy to ride. The exhaust note is sweet and simple, but crack the throttle, and it pipes out pure Desmo sound. The 992 cc engine is quiet, but roars to life with confidence, able to tear up city stoplight traffic or even the weekend spirited rides. The GT1000 offers a great standard suspension (Marzocchi 43mm up front, and twin shock absorbers with adjustable preload out back.) The gearing is extremely high, 6th gear is unusable under 75MPH. A sprocket change would work wonders on this already high performance machine. The coolest thing about the GT is the masking disguise. Appearing as a vintage, low performance old-school bike is more than an understatement. Matt was able to walk both Erik and I thru the corners on the GT1000; again, due to rider skill. Matt’s quote on the GT1000 was simple; “This bike rips, we should be able to sell this model easily to customers, hell it’s not even the (Sport 1000-S) with better rear suspension and improved windscreen aerodynamics.” The GT1000 has standard issue classic spoke style 17” chrome rims. Mounted to the rims are modern interpretations of classic sport tires, Michelin Pilot Classic’s, replicating the original patterns, but with modern radial construction techniques and rubber compounds. The alloy hubs mount dual 320mm brake discs up front and a 245mm disc in the rear, both using lightweight black Brembo floating calipers to provide extra stopping power. The GT1000 would be an excellent addition to anyone wanting a high performance machine, wrapped up in a cool looking vintage bike package, with minimal headaches in the repair department. Stay tuned to our website for future ride reports-Mike
