Ducati Monster 821 Riding Impression

Though not the most powerful Ducati I've ever ridden, the Monster 821 was still a lot of fun

Over the years, I’ve had an opportunity to ride various Ducatis, including the hardcore 848, Hypermotard 1100S, Monster 795, XDiavel S and Monster 821. The 821 I rode in 2016, when I was working with Auto Tech Review magazine. Here is the piece I wrote about the bike at that time.

 Launched way back in 1993, the very first Ducati Monster was the machine that kick-started the ‘streetfighter’ segment in Europe, which has now become very popular. Designed by Argentinian industrial designer, Miguel Galluzzi, the first Monster was powered by a 900cc V-twin borrowed from the Ducati 900 Supersport, and had a steel-tube trellis frame that was based on the Ducati 851 superbike chassis. With more than 350,000 units of the Monster having been sold since 1993, the bike remains one of their most successful products for the Italian company and there have been many iterations of the bike over the last two decades. Coming to the 821, let’s take a look at the suite of technologies underlying this Monster, which make it an excellent sportsbike.

Ducati XDiavel S: Italian Easy Rider

The Ducati XDiavel S remains one of the most beautiful motorcycles I've ever ridden

It’s hard to slot the Ducati XDiavel S into a specific segment or category. Is it a sportsbike? A cruiser? Touring bike? The reality is, the XDiavel S is a machine that dares to defy segmentation – brimming with cutting-edge engineering, design and technology, it’s a bike that looks like a cruiser, has the engine performance of a sportsbike, and with its adjustable ergonomics, it’s comfortable enough for long-distance riding. Even the handling is not too bad, as long as you keep in mind this isn’t exactly a Panigale.

I got to spend a few days with the XDiavel back in 2017, when I was the executive editor at Auto Tech Review magazine. Here’s what I wrote about the bike at that time.

From the Archives: In Conversation with Pierre Terblanche

Pierre Terblanche has done some phenomenal work for Ducati and other motorcycle brands

For motorcycle afficionados, the name ‘Pierre Terblanche’ needs no introduction. Born in South Africa, Terblanche is one of the most well-known, widely respected motorcycle designers in the world. With a Masters degree in transport design from the UK’s Royal College of Art, Terblanche has, over the last 40 years, worked with Volkswagen, Cagiva, Ducati, Piaggio, Confederate and even Royal Enfield. The bikes he has designed include the Cagiva 900 Gran Canyon, the 1^st generation Ducati Multistrada and Hypermotard, the Ducati SuperMono, the Ducati SportClassics, the Ducati 999, the Ducati MH900e, the Confederate X132 Hellcat Speedster and the 1^st generation Royal Enfield Himalayan. He also redesigned the Ducati 851 which then became the 888, and he designed a spectacular bunch of concept bikes for Moto Guzzi, which were shown at the 2014 EICMA. More recently, Terblanche designed a futuristic concept bike, which you can read about here.

In 2013, I had an opportunity to do an interview with Pierre Terblanche (who was working for Confederate Motorcycles at that time) for one of my other websites, Faster and Faster, which I had to shut down in 2017. I wanted to preserve this interview, hence putting it up here, where I hope it’ll remain forever.

From the Archives: In Conversation with Damien Basset

French designer, Damien Basset, who is currently design director at Peugeot Motorcycles, used to work with Ducati earlier. He’s the man who had designed the first Ducati Streetfighter, which was launched in 2009 and which was offered with a choice of 1099cc and, later, 849cc V-twin engines. I had an opportunity to do an interview with Basset in 2009, for Faster and Faster, a motorcycle website that I used to own at that time. I had to shut down that website in 2017, but wanted to preserve this interview, hence posting it here, where it will hopefully remain forever.

Ducati 848 Evo: The Italian Stallion

The Ducati 848 Evo. Hard-core, committed, brutal. Unrelenting. But such a memorable ride...

Back in 2012, I had an opportunity to ride a Ducati 848 Evo and write about it for Man’s World magazine. And not just a short ride either – the Ducati team allowed me to keep the bike with me for 3-4 days, which was just incredible. Apart from its drop-dead gorgeous Italian styling, red paint and single-sided swingarm, the 848 Evo was powered by a 140-horsepower twin-cylinder engine; zero to 60kph came up in just over 3 second and top speed was over 260km/h. Here are some excerpts from the article I wrote for MW.

Even before you begin to experience its incredible performance, the first thing about the 848 Evo that grabs your attention is its styling. No matter how many times you’ve seen the bike in pictures, the first time you see it in the flesh, it’s still stunning – the aggressive stance, the pointy snout with the twin headlamps and their angry glare, the carefully sculpted bodywork and tail section, and that utterly gorgeous single-sided swingarm, which puts the bike’s beautifully-machined Y-spoke alloy rear wheel up on full view on one side, are all deeply lustworthy. Gianandrea Fabbro, the Italian designer responsible for the 1098/848’s styling, really has done an outstanding job with this machine.