Ciao Tutti,
So I've been riding since the early '80s - learnt on a Z250C (gunmetal grey, bikini fairing & 2-1, pocket Z750), then had a RZ350 that someone decided they liked more than I did (hard to imagine). I bought a Pantah 500SL with the insurance money - loved it, a real bike at last! I had that li'l Duc for over 12 years until simultaneous retrenchment and house extensions forced its sale. Last 9 years or so I've been using a Vespa PX200 to get to work - it's fun but now a new job with a longer commute necessitates something with longer legs...
Enter the Monster! What a change from the humble Vespa - only tried to change gear by twisting the handgrip a couple of times and the reduced steering lock takes some getting used to. She has the same 'hewn from solid metal' feel as the Pantah, the gearchange feels even more precise than I remember and the clutch lever is definitely lighter than the old cable version. In short; performance, looks, handling and sound - Ducati has it all in Spades!
Cheers, Ian
(As you can probably tell from my username, I'm somewhat of a fan of Italian vehicles in general)
