Author with the 600cc Pantah ( above ) and being silly on the 500 Desmo ( below ) of the 500 Desmo Sport was on display at the 1976 Earls Court Motorcycle Show in London .
PANTAH 600 SL My next Ducati was a Pantah 600 SL . The Pantah engine was apparently designed as a 600 , but for marketing reasons was reduced to a 500 and launched in 1979 . By 1981 it was returned to 600 , which lifted the power from 45bhp @ 9050rpm to 60bhp @ 8500rpm . Top speed increased from 198km / h to 200km / hph . The top speed difference sounds negligible , but the 600 had more torque and was easier to handle at low revs . The 600 had a hydraulically operated clutch for the first time on a Ducati .
F1 In 1985 the Bologna based factory released a sporting Ducati that was in one way the end of an era , and in another the beginning of a new era . In his book ‘ Ducati Buyers Guide ’ Mick Walker writes , ‘ To the true believer , the F1 represents the last of the real Ducatis , in other words the traditionally raw , sporting motorcycle without an ounce of surplus fat anywhere to be seen ’. On the other hand it was the bike that many had been waiting years for . It may
80 KIWI RIDER