Welcome on board! The Diavel is certainly not an ordinary bike! It somewhat divided opinion among existing Ducati fans - it's definitely what you called a marmite bike. Personally, while the Diavel's looks don't float my boat - the sportsbikes are prettier, the Diavel reminds me of a pitbull terrier with its chunky shoulders and tiny rear - when I sat on one I was pleasantly surprised that even with my short legs, my feet could reach the ground - surprisingly ergonomic. When I was riding my Monster through Italy in June on the way back from World Ducati Week, I realised that the Diavel made perfect sense. In the hot weather I was in a "cruisy" rather than "thrashy" mindset, and with the lovely twisty roads up and down the hills, the idea of a cruiser that could handle and had lots of torque was obvious. I suspect the feeling of being in the wrong gear at under 30 mph may be a quirk of Ducatis - certainly on my 696 neither 1st nor 2nd gear feels exactly right below 30 mph.
Thanks, MrsC_722, My favourite view of the Diavel is from the rear, it looks stunning (and also from all other angles too). I'm impressed you rode to WDW and back, you must have had an amazing time? My mate & I are thinking of going to the next one, so any advice would be appreciated. I think that the Diavel is a bit of an enigma, in that it does everything extremely well, but is not necessarily the best in any category. The looks, performance and rideability are awesome. My mate also tells me that his Pangale is the best bike he has ever ridden, and he has owned Fireblades, Aprillia rv4s etc. In summary, in my experience and that of my mate, Ducati's are different to the norm, are more fun to ride (and require more rider input - which in our view is a good thing), have state of the art technology, and attract the best looks and feedback from other riders and muggles in general. No brainier!!!!!!!!
Have to say Mrs C when I sat on the Diavel it just fitted me, I could touch the ground and it felt nice I love it I saw the shiny one the other week and fell in love. But sadly it is out of a peasant like me's reach and I d have to move house I would love to have a go but think it would probably be a bit big and heavy for me. Ducati's old and new turn heads even my little old Monster
World Ducati week was awesome! I rode down solo and met up with friends from the UK Monster Owners Club in Switzerland and then Italy. For me the ride was as good as the festival when I got there. Go for it, even if your mate doesn't. I'd previously dismissed as hippie-crap all the biker travel memoir statements about "the road will provide" but there were so many wonderful serendipitous coincidences on my trip, many of which probably wouldn't have happened if I'd been riding in a group. At WDW itself (and on the motorway heading for the coast), it was amazing to see so many Ducatis in one place, of every age, colour shape and size. There were loads of Diavels, custom bikes (mmm Giordano Loi Prama), track action (you could take your bike on track if you arranged it in advance), girls in bikinis (if that's your sort of thing), organised ride outs (friends who did one said it was the highlight of their trip, great roads and great food and excellent value for money). I didn't go to the official evening entertainment (stunt shows, rock concert - although a friend who went to the concert on the last night said it was great) but was tipped off by an Italian bike club about a fantastic DOC party at an Irish bar behind the circuit on the Saturday night - my ears are still ringing from the rock band doing a cover of Killing in the Name accompanied by 2 revving ex-race Desmosedicis! My top tips would be: - take your time to enjoy the ride there and back - my return journey included the wonderful Route Napoleon through the south of France - don't just stick your bike in a van and thrash down the motorways only to unload it at Misano where it's so hot you won't actually want to ride much; - as it was ridiculously hot (over 40 C at Bologna and Misano) wear kevlar jeans not leathers - although lots of people were riding in flip flops and shorts, I wasn't happy to take that risk, but my Draggins were tolerable in the heat (you will need leathers though if you want to ride on track); - if you need to escape the heat at the Misano circuit, head for the grandstand on the hairpin near the circuit exit - shade and a nice cool breeze, plus a view of the track action; - ride over the Appenines at least once (I did the Muraglione pass and the Futa pass - better coffee at the cafe at the top of Muraglione than the cafe at the top of the Futa - taking the long way from Cattolica to Bologna) - if you travel on any toll roads having a separate bag of change reasonably handy so that you can get to it without taking your gloves off (I had mine in a poly bag in the side pocket on my Kriega bum bag) - learn a bit of Italian before you go - I certainly got more out of my solo travel speaking French and having learned a few words of Italian. Not sure how you'd transport luggage on a Diavel - I did see one with a top box parked outside the Ducati factory in Bologna!
Wow, what an amazing account of your WDW adventure. Now you have whetted my appetite even more, how can I not consider going to the next one? Thanks so much.
