Hi Folks, I don't know if any of you watch Bike World on Motors TV or YouTube, but they recently did a competition to win a trip on a Diavel for two weeks. I was the fortunate winner, and I did a trip down to the Alps for seven days. I managed to ride the Grossglockner Pass, the Stelvio Pass, some amazing roads in Switzerland, and even did a lap of the Nurburgring Nordschliefe. All in all I had the bike for two weeks and did 3000 miles, 2600 of which were on my trip. Here are a few photos... On the way to Kent for the Eurotunnel: Start of my first full day, camped about half an hour away from the tunnel: On the train with a load of Harleys and choppers: At the war memorial in Bastogne: At the top of the Edelweiss pass, in Austria:
Sheltering from the rain, on the way to Bormio in Italy: Packed up and ready to leave Bolzano, on the way to Stelvio: At the top of the Stelvio Pass: Great view when I woke up in Chur, Switzerland: Stopping for fuel in Switzerland, on the way to the Furka Pass: Built a snowman on the bike at the top of the Furka Pass! Stunning Lake Brienz in Switzerland: Shredded tyres at the Nurburgring! Outside the "mall" at the Nurburgring Back on the train on the way home: What an amazing trip!
I probably would have used something different to "devil" but well done for taking a fantastic opportunity and making the most of it. Kudos and credit to you. Andy
Thanks Andy. Me too! The riding position became a bit challenging after a week on the road - although I have to give credit to the seat - not once did I suffer numb-bum, in spite of some seriously long days on the road. I'd always wanted to ride a Diavel. It was great fun - really does handle very well indeed. If only they did a version with Ohlins. And a higher seat! It was pretty good on fuel too - 55mpg if I didn't go crazy, and 45mpg if I did. I had a couple of occasions where I got more than 170 miles out of a tank of fuel, which was impressive. Certainly better than my Monster, although I'm convinced that's running rich. Great experience though - was really pleased to get to the Grossglockner, and the couple of days I spent in Switzerland were absolute heaven. I really can't recommend it highly enough to anyone thinking about doing a bike trip. Some of the most stunning roads I've ever ridden on.
Glad you enjoyed your holiday. If you check out the accessories section of the Ducati web site, you'll find a variety of seats available for the Diavel. The Tourer seat is claimed to be 40mm higher than standard: Tourer seat - Ducati Diavel Accessories Ohlins do make a rear shock for the Diavel, I believe it's the DU110. Don't know if Ducati have ever fitted this shock as an OEM fitment to any version of the Diavel, but some owners have added it as an upgrade:
Sounds like a great trip. My other half has a Diavel and agrees about the comfy seat and absence of numb-bum on long rides, and that the standard suspension settings leave much to be desired. Tweaking settings helps, as the Ohlins aftermarket option is a pain in the wallet. I did the Grossglockner on my M696 on the way back from this year's World Ducati Week and wished I'd had a whole day just for it. Didn't like the cobbles on the last section up to the to the Edelweisspitze bikers' point parking area where you took your pictures, but loved the views when I got there. I also had a fantastic morning in Switzerland (although the Fluelapass, which I really wanted to ride, was closed, the Julier and Albula were great). As you say, anyone thinking about doing such a trip should go for it!
Couldn't agree more! I did an epic day of Stelvio, up in to Livigno, across in to Switzerland and then the Fluelapass across to Davos and Klosters, before stopping in Chur. The next day I did Oferalpass, Furkapass, and Grimselpass, finishing up at the sensation Lake Brienz. Two of the day days riding I've ever had. Stunning part of the world - well worth a bit of time spent getting down there. With regards seat height, what I meant was more along the lines of a Multistrada - a taller bike is what I need, as I'm 6'2" tall. My Monster is better in that regard. With regards the suspension, I am a little spoiled as my Monster has Ohlins all round. The stock suspension just felt harsh and choppy. Also, I cooked the rear shock on the Grossglockner and had to stop for a while - basically it totally lost all damping and nearly had me off! In defence of the bike it was very heavily loaded. Didn't stop me enjoying myself though, I really enjoyed the "bigness" of the Diavel - it feels substantial, which is oddly reassuring. My Monster feels tiny in comparison, almost a bit toy-like.
I test rode a Diavel a few years ago before Andy bought his and thought it was a hoot. Although the Diavel doesn't feel as heavy as you'd expect (given its weight on paper), and heads for the horizon at warp speed when you open the throttle, when I got back on my Monster the 696 had mysteriously metamorphosed into a naughty little café racer, begging me to thrash it and flick it from bend to bend.
Yes, it does has a certain feeling of unstoppable force. I likened it to a big super-tanker when riding on the motorway - feels like it'll overtake anything. The weight didn't stop me enjoying it at all, and I was really surprised how flickable it was. I quite enjoyed the sense that the big 240 rear tyre makes you feel like you're riding on a big beach ball as it rolls from side to side. That and the fact that you can absolutely nail it out of bends and it'll never lose grip!
I've got one of those Lomo bags too and used it on a similar camping trip to Italy, on my little M600. Highly recommend them! They swallow incredible amounts of stuff, are waterproof and really well made. To top of all they're cheap, mine cost about £25 from memory.
Yep, mine is the 70L one and it cost £29 delivered. Only slight gripe was it rubbed on the grabrail and created a tiny hole, but I could presumably use something like a bicycle puncture repair patch to cover it. If anything it was a little too wide - it sat across the throw-over panniers and stuck out at the sides, which made it feel a bit like it was dropping in to corners. If I was doing another trip I'd definitely look at better distributing the weight. But for a cheap and sturdy solution the Lomo gear is really great.
I use that bag on a Different too. Had exactly the same issue with it wearing a hole. The bag is only as wide as the handlebars but does look big on the back. Sent from my SM-G925F using Tapatalk
