A
long time ago, I had a mate called Art. He
was evil incarnate. The ultimate accessory
before, during, and after the fact.
A dark enabler of the highest order. We’d be in
a pub somewhere, and I’d catch a glimpse of
his gold tooth. He’d be grinning like a demon
and slowly drumming his tattooed fingers on
the dirty table. Then he’d suggest… a thing.
A thing that always involved some anti-social
motorcycle nonsense.
Art was a boon companion for murky deeds;
the leering bastard who’d whisper assurances
when you had doubts. A grinning facilitator
for the ruination of your soul. The 2020 Ducati
Hypermotard 950 is Art reincarnated.
I knew this the moment I laid eyes on it. I
knew this even at my advanced age – an age
that warned me motards were a young man’s
game. And a Ducati motard, the Hypermotard
no less… well, Hell…what business do I have
even looking at that section of the bar…
erm, showroom?
But all men love motards deep down in the
shadows of their hearts. These are bikes which
speak to our devils.
Ducati’s centrefold-red Hypermotard had my
gibbering mob by the throat, and they were
paying attention.
The very idea of a motard is motorcycling
incarnate. A light, agile chassis wedded to an
oomph-filled engine, and an attitude that
forces you to seriously consider leaping it off
a wall while escaping from the police.
And no-one does motards quite like Ducati does.
I was prepared to dislike it. I was prepared to
find flaws in its fuelling, its power-delivery,
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