Ducati: Is 214 horsepower enough for a motorcycle?

The Ducati Panigale V4 thus delivers 214 hp. To get and keep all that violence on the asphalt a bit, there is a shipload of electronics on board to temper, massage and / or bring to order all functions and capabilities where necessary. Like being there:

• BS Cornering Bosch EVO
• Traction Control EVO (DTC EVO)
• Slide Control (DSC)
• Wheelie Control EVO (DWC EVO)
• Power Launch (DPL)
• Quick Shift up / down EVO (DQS EVO)
• Engine Brake Control EVO (EBC EVO)
• Electronic Suspension EVO (DES EVO)
• Lap Timer GPS
• Data Analyzer + GPS (optional, track analyzation data)
• Multimedia System (Optional, hooks bike to Smartphone)

For an old school rider it sounds like: "I eat two Viagra comics and read the Financieel Dagblad in the corner of the room."

But 'Power' is magic

The 44 horsepower Honda CB450 was once described as' a very fast machine. Only suitable for motorcyclists with circuit experience.

At the introduction of the BW R75 / 5, serious Germans reported that the 50 DIN hp machine was strong because calculations had shown that 50 DIN hp was the maximum acceptable safety for public use.

Later, fast, heavy motorcycles in Germany were pinched to a maximum of 100 hp. The Germans did that because all kinds of measures were floating above the market that indicated government intervention. The government and insurers found more than 100 pk too dangerous. For example, a German V Max 40 could get rid of its 140 horsepower. And most people who bought such an imported German didn't notice it. So what can anyone ever do with 200 + pk in practice?

50 pk is really 'enough'

Last month it turned out that the Germans were not so wrong with their '50 pk is enough' story. During a trip on some classics through the Vosges we were overtaken on every straight meter by all kinds of dynamic on two wheels. We took the most meters back in the turns. The most powerful engines within our club were a Norton Command and a Moto Guzzi California II. Both engines with a maximum of 60 horses between the wheels. Even the recenye - kind of retro - Moto Guzzi V7 with less than 50 pk could play nicely against the guys from 150 pk and more. The V7 driver stated with a broad smile that he was constantly driving full throttle.

So let's be surprised

The new Ducati is of course a technical miracle. So let's be surprised about everything that is technically possible. Honda even has a motorcycle that literally keeps itself on its wheels and can follow its owner at walking pace. I watched the video on youtube, got up and walked to the couch where our dog was sleeping. Such a Honda does not shed and you do not have to pick up its droppings in a red bag to throw them away in a sustainable way.

But I am a fossil. I like real dogs and motorcycles without a university degree in higher electronics. And from women without botox and silicone.

In the Netherlands there are a few sections of the highway where you can drive 130. And the 'starting price' for the Ducati Panigale V4 is 26.190, - euro.
You can buy some pretty classics from that.

Motorcycles and dogs just have to be real