See? You can't. It would look like a flying banana. This must tell us something about the 851, but I'm not sure what. If ever a bike looked so good in red it didn't need another colour, it was the 851/888. Even a black 851 would have been wrong.
The yellow one DOES look like a flying banana. All wrong. The black one does, I grant you, look quite cool. But it doesn't look as good as the iconic red one. Of course, at the time, 851s were rare. You didn't need a different colour to stand out from the crowd. Having an all-red Ducati was statement enough. I had my 916 done in black (with white number boards) à la Chili, as change from all the red ones there were. Ditto the 999. But the 851 just looked great as it was.
He sold it to help fund his new cafe ! His loss was my gain though : ) It's a really nice bike, got a few dodgy bits on it like a blue samco hose kit and blue brake lines but the paint job has had to go first ! The black just doesn't do it for me ! it has to be red... ; )
Ooo! Red AND blue Samco hoses. Now you're talking. Don't forget the elasticated "armbands" around the fluid reservoirs! All the rage in the early 90s.
They'll be coming off next 'Glid' ; ) they really are a horrific !!! There are some good bits on it though like an Ohlins shock and a carbon hugger but the best thing is the motor : ) it really is a beauty...
I found my 888 the most uncomfortable of uncomfortable things. I rode mine to WDW2002 and was in agony, the seat is like a scaffold board, I was sitting on the seat hump, using pillion rests and all sorts trying to get relief. I got back on the same 888 a few years later straight off my 999 and really struggled with the leg room.
When I got off my 916 that I hadn't long had, and on to a mate's 851 which was similar to the one I had recently sold, I thought, "My God! A tourer!"
I had to be said, that on long motorway trips it was uncomfortable. You need bends so that you can move your bum around to stop it getting numb. But 916,999 - all in the same boat.
