Overlook

Log Item: I don't always post photos of breakfast runs, but they are among the most fun just because the morning breeze, with the freshening from the ocean is always pleasant. I don't haunt the Overlook Roadhouse, but it's a convenient spot for breakfast for guys (and a few gals) on bikes. It's particularly busy on the weekends. I got a table next to the fence. 

The Overlook is located on State Route 74, and overlooks Lake Elsinore. For people who have visited this blog before, I've made at least one posting for Ortega Highway (hwy 74) runs before. It connects the City of Lake Elsinore and the City of San Juan Capistrano.

Since I left the Navy, I've made it a rule not to get cold, wet or hungry
unless I want to.

Other people's machines.

The She-Devil, sporting the new windscreen.

California Dreaming with the She-Devil

Log Item: The weather is just about perfect for bike riding in the morning in SoCal. Clear skies, temps in the mid-70's to 80 (going warmer in the afternoon). It's important to have a clear head and the best way to do that is to ride because to ride safely and enjoyably, you MUST live in the moment.

I'm still getting accustomed to the new windscreen, but I don't have anything negative to report. It does what I wanted it to do. The photo (left) shows the adjustment bar and lock/unlock feature that allows the rider to make adjustments to the windscreen geometry on the fly.

One or other of my daughters was using my den for a project and decided to light-finger my stapler, so I had plans to go to Staples today and buy another one. The problem with riding the she-devil is that once I get into it, I really don't want to stop and go into a store to buy a desk-top stapler. So I didn't. A paper clip will do for now.

As you might have read, there is a big 9/11 victory mosque going in down the street from my house, which vastly expands the capacity of the small mosque that is there now. There goes the neighborhood. Muslims don't ride motorcycles. It may violate their faith? I see the men walking to the mosque with their wives trailing a respectful distance behind. They couldn't fit all the wives on one motorcycle even with a sidecar. That's possibly the reason.  Another possible reason is that Muslim men can't wear those long shirts/nightshirts/dress-like tops that they wear and ride on a motorcycle. They could still wear the beanies under a helmet the way that they do under a turban. Then again, maybe they prefer a flying carpet? Who knows?

There are times when I prefer the fighter pilot style visor to sunglasses when I'm riding the Devil. I don't always use it, but if the mood strikes me, it works. (below) It's especially good when I'm driving into the rising or setting sun and need double tint to the sunglasses.

I pulled the bike in at the house to do some work, but ended up blogging - so much for my vaunted and flaunted work ethic.

Normally I pull the devil into the garage but there is this coupon to Chipotle for a free burrito (with purchase of a soft drink) that came in the mail. I plan to cash it in for lunch. Free has a flavor profile all its own. 

The $10/hr workers at Chipotle like my Ducati.  One of the people there who's working - not chopping him for that - asked how I afforded the she-devil. I said that I found a job where I buy (or get free) burritos - and don't have to slide them down the assembly line to the next station. He nodded and said that he's in community college. I asked his major. He said, "Hispanic Studies". I counseled him not to quit his day job at Chipotle. 

Do I have too many cars? I think that I do, but I need different rigs for
different things. It's much like trying to limit myself to one firearm or to
one wrench.

Happy Birthday, She-Devil

Log Item: It's the Diavel's first birthday and while I will take her out for a ride later in celebration, I did install the windscreen described in the previous post.  As you would expect from parts made in China (and marketed in the USA), the installation instructions were completely worthless. Real men don't need instructions nor will we accept driving directions to a destination. We manage it intuitively! 

By way of confession, I was into the mechanical exploration about two minutes when I discovered that the Diavel was designed to have a windscreen installed, and all I had to do to prep the work was pull off two parts and four bolts. Installing the after-market part required that I take it apart (which I am pre-disposed to do anyway) before I could slap it on. 

Actual installation took about twenty minutes from start to finish with me taking my time. So yeah, it was not rocket science even with deciding what to do absent coherent instructions from the manufacturer. Puig is a Spanish company that manufactures in China. The windscreen was OEM for the touring model of the Diavel, thus:

• A Spanish (Puig - pronounced Pooge with a 'soft g') company making OEM 
• To Ducati's Italian design
• In China
• With the principal instructions in German because Audi owns Ducati

Made the instructions worthless.

The windscreen does have variable geometry to please the individual rider.

Screen full back

Screen full forward

Changing the position of the windscreen can be managed by the rider while riding (under about 40 mph - over that speed puts a lot of pressure on the screen to go full back). I think that I'll end up using it with the screen pointed full back rather than straight-up because of how it feels.

Rider's view

Side aspect view

Not Quite Naked

Log Item: I've been casting about for a windscreen for the she-devil for some time now. There are websites that advertise them, but they've been back-ordered or out-of-stock. However, I think that I've finally found one, and I ordered it.

It may seem more than just a little bit dorky to buy a windscreen for the Diavel, but since I'm all about comfort, and far less concerned with the overall vibe that I give off, I think that it will work. There is a lot of wind pressure that comes at you above about 60 mph, and this is designed to reduce that and make the ride a bit more comfortable. It's not a windshield in the classic sense.

Having driven through Texas recently with the moisture and the volume of flying insects, I felt a bit grateful that I was in the pick-up and not on the Diavel.

PS - I hadn't driven the Diavel for two weeks and just got on it for a short run and ended up driving it for two hours. It's poetry in motion, and it's the one year anniversary of my she-devil. Happy Birthday, Diavel!!!

Another Log Item

Log Item: While Europe is working to cope with a million military age Muslim male refugees from Syria and North Africa that they allowed in; and while Brussels is picking up the pieces after Muslims bombed the airport and train stations, I put my tax returns in the mail along with substantial checks for additional money to keep the government open.  I hashed out some issues with an upcoming business trip to Dallas. Then I went out and looked at some tires that a guy I know is selling. They're new Pirelli super corse V2 SPs.

The real question is whether to buy the tires at what is substantively full pop retail. I do try to be a nice guy, but, come on. I wouldn't normally pay retail for tires in any event.  And this brings me to my point. Just because you bought tires at an inflated price - and then fell on hard times, does it morally obligate me to take them off your hands at a price I would not normally pay?

I didn't buy the tires. 

Owning a Ducati Diavel is to be an eternal slave to modification fever. I have resisted breaking from the flat black paint scheme, from buying new 2 into 1 (louder) exhaust/muffler schemes and other doo-dads that I would have put on a V-Max if I'd gone that way instead of toward the Diavel.

When you're riding the Diavel, it feels as if it is really part of you. It's as though you and the bike and the road meld into one instrument. The bike is light compared to other cruiser-style machines and the power-to-weight ratio is exceptionally positive. I'm obsessed.

Diavel and Elmo

Log Item: My daughter, Emilie, came back from Pensacola to spend the Easter holiday at home. Which meant that a run on the Diavel was inevitable.

We made the trip through inland Orange County (CA) and stopped for lunch at Cook's Corners. As I've mentioned previously on this blog, Cook's has been around since the late 1800's and is a mecca for people who like to run on two wheel instead of four. 

When we arrived there were two bands playing. One, on the back patio.

And another inside the dive bar.

Emilie

Emilie and I opted for hamburgers and Onion rings for lunch and we ate them on the patio while listening to the band. Pretty girls passed around shots of Jack Daniels to wind up the crowd but root beer was as exciting as it got at our table.

By 5:00 pm there could easily be 500 bikes present and the night will be rolling by 8:00 pm.

LL

Then it was time to hit the road once again.

Over-the-Top?

Log Item: I think that you can have a motorcycle with too much bling, which is why I have kept the Diavel flat black and did not opt for a fancy paint scheme. Stealth has its own appeal.

https://youtu.be/cs20UA0H72A

Morning Jaunt

Log Item: I know what you're going to say. "Why aren't you and your friends working instead of riding Ducatis over winding roads on a Monday morning?" It's a fair statement. And in addition to that one line up picture I took, the Diavel didn't make it into the frame. But it made it on the run.

I've been doing a lot of solo riding lately, and the weather in SoCal has been perfect for riding with highs in the mid-80's. The drought has ended, the hills are greening nicely before the brutal summer sun dries them in that endless cycle. 

A friend of mine just returned from Afghanistan and he's headed for a week at Big Bear Lake (Near Los Angeles in the mountains). I am contemplating a run up there for lunch or something, further compounding the myth that I'm a total lay-about and scooter tramp.

An Electric Ducati?

A Gentle Rant: Part of why I ride a motorcycle is the pleasant roar of the motor. I've never ridden an electric motorcycle so I can't say whether the silence would be appealing or not, but I'm guessing no.

The Ducati Spirito concept is a sharp-looking design for a Ducati electric motorcycle. It’s pretty high tech, featuring a hub-center steering system, futuristic bodywork, a ridiculously narrow seat, a carbon fiber rear swingarm and of course a battery pack and electric motor in place of the usual Ducati V-twin engine.

The Ducati Spirito draws on Ducati’s past models and most recent sports bikes for design inspiration.

But how far can you ride on a battery charge? The answer to that question, based on my modest research is, 'not very far'. Maybe the goal is to save the environment in that 40 miles that you're riding between charges? 

I get that the designers are drawing really attractive pictures and while I wouldn't say 'no' to a test ride on a prototype, I remain very skeptical, and hopeful that the jet bikes make their appearance soon.

And it the mean time, I'm more than happy to ride my Diavel and see the world go by at a blur.

Weekend Riding

Log Item: I want to take the Ducati out today. What I really want to do is take it out now, but it's 7:00 am and all I would succeed in doing is freezing parts of me. 

Gauntlet gloves keep my hands toasty warm and I have a jacket that deflects the wind nicely, but I don't like feeling all bundled up when I'm riding. It somehow defeats the concept of being "free" when you're on the motorcycle.

There are people who ride motorcycles to get from here to there and back but I'm not one of those riders. It's not simply transportation. It's an act of liberation when the motor roars and you are able to become one with the road (without laying on the road).

I haven't decided where I will ride today, and I may not decide "where" until I'm going "wherever".  That's one nice thing about riding outside of a group of motor heads. 

I've tried the group thing and I may be a bit too much of an individual to ride in a herd. Does that make sense to you, dear readers? It may be that I'm becoming anti-social, but when I am driving on the highway and see a road branching off somewhere that looks interesting, I just take it to see where it goes. That's what I like best about off-road driving in my 4x4.  The same thing translates nicely to my street devil.

LASER Headlights and HUD Helmets

BMW Laser Headlight arrangement

Gripe Session: I never say never, but it will be a cold day in Hell that I buy another BMW product. Having said that, I'm interested in their ConnectedRide concept that adapts automotive innovations to the motorcycle world. To highlight the two-wheeled future, the company modified a K1600 GTL with a laser headlight and controls for a helmet-integrated head-up display. The result could make riding safer.

Some of BMW's latest models like the i8 and 7 series can already cut through the darkness with laser headlights, and this K1600 GTL brings that technology to motorcycles. The bright light can shine down the road up to 1,969 feet, which the company claims is about twice as far as a conventional unit. The additional visual range gives riders extra time to evaluate what's ahead at night and could make for a safer journey. The concept laser headlight on the bike is only a feasibility test for now, but preliminary development is underway. 

I haven't heard anything from Ducati on the subject. Ducati is owned by Audi (high tech German firm) and I'd expect to see something from them on the matter -- but no. I hate the idea of a kraut machine having an edge on my pizza bike.

A heads-up-display will not only make me feel more like I'm wearing a Top Owl fighter pilot helmet when I drive, but it's clearly safer. You no longer have to look at the instrument cluster and can keep your head in the game on the road. However, since they are not coming soon to Ducati, I'll begin to research how and if I can buy or build a HUD for my helmet and integrate it into Ducati's ride-by-wire computer. I really hate to experiment with the Ducati computer, and try to slave the output to Blue Tooth. It would be much better if they'd just FOLLOW the hated BMW, and get with the program.

Yes, the HUD/laser headlight is far more James Bond like than the traditional helmet/lighting arrangement on a motorcycle

The Diavel's New Year

Log Item:  It's a brisk 68 degrees (20C) here in SoCal, (anything under 70 counts as "brisk") under cerulean skies.  I hadn't taken the Ducati out for a ride in 2016 yet, so today I did. I made a run through Carbon Canyon and then had Mexican food for lunch at El Farolito in Placentia (plug for El Farolito). 

I met some people driving tractors (Harley Davidsons) who were waiting for a table, the same as I was. Some of their friends pulled up later and parked next to me. Fat boys with ape hangers. Not that there's anything wrong with that. Different people, different choices. 

People drove a bit more rudely than usual, but since yesterday was New Year's Day, who knows. They may still have had a 3.0 blood alcohol level. It happens. If it was Scotland that would be the case for at least one more week. There were a lot of flat cats on the road, possibly a result of the New Year's Eve driving?

This is a boring blog post, but it's one of those days when (particularly after stuffing myself at El Farolito) about all that I could motivate myself to do was jump on the scooter and breathe the cold winter air.

Have a Diavelishly Good Christmas

Here's wishing you all a Diavelishly good Christmas. The weather in SoCal is cooperating with temperatures in the mid-70's, so why not take the bike out for a mini-run?

Christmas decorations designed to be seen lighted, don't ever look quite right in the daytime, do they? The Diavel prefers this particular photo (left) if only to illustrate the diavelishness possible during the Christmas festivities.

This is how it went down. I drove around and most of the inflatable Santas and elves were deflated on lawns, so there weren't any good Christmas scenes to take photos of the bike with for the sake of the blog.

Looking north, toward the fire pit.

THEN it occurred to me that when I took the scooter back, before I parked it in the garage, I'd drive it around back and take some snapshots in the back yard. I have a pool fence, which ruins the view of the pool and spa, but it's likely that the grandkids will want to go swimming when they come over on Christmas after they open their presents and before supper. So I didn't take it down even for glory shots of the bike. And that says something about me being lazy or not vein enough or something - not sure what.

Yes the patio is wet. It rained last night and the deck hasn't dried out completely. We've been lucky in SoCal for the most part. It waits until night if it's going to rain. Luck, or maybe we're paying the 'weather tax' here?

Jet Bike

Log Item: This is the sort of jet bike that I have in mind. Sadly, the production units would seem to be unavailable at the moment and I'll have to content myself with the Diavel, which is the next best thing. However, when the Ducati jet bikes finally are realized, I urge people to drive more responsibly than they did in the video.

This Harley Davidson jet-powered bike might be a good interim
machine but it falls far short of the ideal.

Kawasaki's entry (right) into the jet bike market should be pushing Ducati - but I'm not feeling the love from Italy at the moment.

The need for more horsepower and the flexibility to pop over cars and trucks that pose a barrier on the highway is an important concept. It's embodied in the jet bike.

It's obvious (below) that the Suzuki jet bike has taken the concept and run with it. 

It gives a whole new meaning to the term, "rice rocket".

The X-Diavel is Coming

Log Item: The X-Diavel is coming in 2016, which has me reaching toward my wallet simply as a reflex action. The only reaction I have to the up-engineered Diavel is, "sick".

The power plant, a 1,262cc version of the Testastretta engine, offers a longer stroke (71.5mm vs 67.9mm in the 1200) with the same 106mm bore. Ducati’s variable valve timing scheme and ride-by-wire electronics is the same. The torque is now 94.8 pound-feet at 5,000 rpm. So it's not all THAT different. How much power do you really need?

I'm not the sort of guy who rolls scooters over for the next year's model, but this one is clearly an eye catcher.

Speaking of eye catching, check out the Diavel drag bike (right). The front end has been lowered significantly through a suspension modification. It's a straight-line bike for a flat track, so you can run it with clip-ons (cafe-style handle bars) and limited front-end travel.

Old NFO meets the Devil

Log Item: Fellow blogger and famous author, Old NFO* joined me for lunch today as he transited through the Orange County, California Area on his way to do bigger and better things.

He received his official "I met the Devil and lived to tell about it" ball cap, which he wore proudly.

He took one look at the Devil and said, "What a Beast!" Most ladies take exception when referred to as a "beast" or a "monster", but the Devil takes it as her due.

We had a fun lunch and are looking forward to the next lunch in Texas, somewhere east of Amarillo. Will I rent a Harley to ride out to his dude ranch and gun range (From Denton, TX)? Maybe. I think that I should first look into renting a Ducati, if indeed they'd consent to parting with a locally rented Diavel for a day or two.

When he saw the Devil in her glory, his first comment was, "Oh, I see where you can mount the M-4". It makes perfect sense when you see the rig in person, but it's tough to explain on the blog. He commented that the California Highway Patrol and many municipal agencies have M-4 rifles or short stroke shotguns on their motorcycles, which is a fact. Jihadis avoid armed citizens.

*NFO=Naval Flight Officer. Old NFO and I are both retired officers from the World's Finest Navy. He was a brown shoe type, I was in the camo navy, but we all bleed navy    blue. He's retiring again from his post-retirement career. I still dabble with things but on the whole am a useless lay-about, surf and scooter bum, firearms enthusiast and adventure junky.

Maintenance Item: It's time to lube the chain again in about 50 miles, which means before I take the Devil out again. I try to keep it right at about 600 miles between lube and tension check.

Log Item: Driving out to meet Old NFO today, I had the Devil up in the carpool lane, had just shifted into 6th gear at about 95 mph and the scooter was at about 4K rpm with a red line at 12K rpm, which is to say that it was idling, and my love of the power and speed is - intoxicating. It's a lot like skydiving in that way. The speed is real, but it doesn't feel quite real. Maybe you have to be a motor head to appreciate that. But all you really want is more speed. 

When you're running the Devil, everyone wants to race you. Even cars...hahaha. Slow sleds. Sometimes guys on tractors (Harley D's) want to race as well. I usually don't unless I feel that they need a lesson in humility. 

A Basic Question

Is it OK to sit on another man's motorcycle?

Not ever.

We had a bit of a problem with a moron who was getting his fingerprints on the Diavel while I was in the store at the gas station. I don't have photos, but you get the point.

Women can ride on the back, but they need an invitation.

Devil Sex

Log Item: I received a very nice e-mail from Bob Weaver, a new reader on "THE DIAVEL MADE ME DO IT". It made me think that while I extol the virtues of the Ducati Diavel (and point out its few weaknesses), I haven't posted photos of the total sex that oozes from the machine.

You sit well back from the handlebars, and there is a long fuel tank cover (the actual tank is under the cover) that you reach over. It's not at all a cafe bike or a classic sport bike. It is a performance cruiser without the cumbersome nature of traditional cruising machines.

And in this, it reminds me a bit of Bob's beloved KZ900 K-4, because of that general feel of the bike when you're sitting in the driver's seat. Naturally the seat is much more comfortable than the old 900 stock seat - times have changed. Riders demand comfort.

The instrument clusters and idiot lights are very easy to see and are very driver friendly. You can toggle between various items while riding and I don't find it particularly distracting. What you need is displayed, items such as distance to empty and air temp. are toggle items. Oil temp. is not a toggle item and the principal display keeps you informed of that at all times. 

The scooter has an oil cooler and the engine is water cooled. Ducati added the cooling elements with real panache. Gone are the old bolt-on intercoolers and flat, bulky radiators. They've made them part of the machine.

You would expect no less from Ducati.

I am not trying to sell Ducati machines, however because this is a blog that is dedicated to adventures on a Ducati Diavel, I have to tell you that six months after buying it, I only love it even more.

I am not one of those "look at me" types where I need a machine for validation. I wanted the machine to ride - my style of riding - for shorter jaunts of 0-5 or 6 hours. I'm not going across country packing a suitcase and gear. I ride for the joy of the meld of man and machine. I like to feel the power but I also love the feel of the machine, which handles impeccably. (Ducati reputation)