2002 R1
A Spanish mountain road, an empty pull out and thou.
A couple weeks ago I was having dinner with a group of motorcycle enthusiasts after a hard day of dirt bike training. During the discussion of various upcoming motorcycle oriented weekend one of the attendants remarked that he had recently had his immaculate red Ducati 916 repainted gloss black. After the initial shock wore off around the table, he hit us with the second hit of the combination. He was thinking about trading in the 916 to get one of the new Silver and Black R1s. He had seen the two page ads in RW and desire had been gnawing away at him.
After years of ridiculous colors combinations that would embarrass a tub of ice cream at a Baskin-Robbins, the time honored Bold New Graphics engineering finally pays off. The R1, with its’ new frame demurely blacked out, has hit a home run with its’ delectable styling.
It is a sportbike that looks like a serious piece of hardware. It is a marine edition stainless steel and graphite Mossberg pump shotgun, not a plastic super soaker. A bike that exudes “probable cause” before the key even hits the ignition.