Ducati Travelogue of Tigh Loughhead's Motorcycle Adventures in NYC

I've been going to the International Motorcycle Show every year since 2013, but last year Ducati wasn't in attendance, and I skipped the show.

Dating back from the Ducati lineup in 2013 to the launch of the H2 and latest R1 generation in 2014, to the Arete Americana 999S in 2015 to the crazy Panigale custom in 2016, I'd been every year since.

And it was great to see Ducati showcase once again, with the V4R as the highlight bike.

Also on display was Carlin Dunne's award winning Pikes Peak Multistrada.

and Tom Hardy's blacked out Scrambler from the Venom movie.

As well as the typical vintage rarities and oddities.

Awesomely enough, MV Agusta featured their 2019 lineup as well, including this Lewis Hamilton edition Brutale.

I personally prefer the blue and grey color scheme though.

There as also the Oro Brutale (I think),

and JD Beach's AMA winning R1

This R1 was completely cut in half.

The new Aprilia Tuono RSV4RF was on display as well.

There were lots of custom bikes,

though mostly cafes and bobbers.

And a cruiser or two.

The show gets a little smaller every year,

but at least they're compartmentalizing it, with activities (like a learn to ride class, and a temporary tattoo parlor).

And I'll be back next year as well.

Ducati New York invited Gotham members and customers out last night to preview the 2019 Ducati Panigale V4R, a homologation superbike with 231hp and winglets capable of delivering 60lbs of downforce at 150mph, perfect for the West Side Highway of course.

Gotham Ducati New York Panigale V4R Release Party

I had stopped by my friend Chuck's house last week, en route to the 35th Annual IMOC rally.

Bimota V DueI've been to the IMOC (the International Motorycle Owners' Club Rally) three out out of the past four years, and was excited to get to go this year as an official Ducati sponsored event!

Well, I've managed to keep my nose clean lately, or at least keep from running afoul of the law on my motorcycle... until this morning I guess...

Tigh Loughhead of Gotham Ducati and East Coast Ducs Tom Napolitano, Shawn Mathew, Walter and Albert Feliz

I've been riding with a club called the East Coast Ducs ever since we started the club several years ago at Walter's house back in 2015.

Who would have thought my Ducati track bike would win an award from the Ferrari Car Club of America today?

I'm so far behind on keeping up with this blog, but better late than never.

American Flat Track by Ducati at Meadowlands

Tigh Loughhead of Gotham Ducati and Steve Radt of Ducati New York at American Flat Track

I skipped out on Dreamforce a little early this year, to come down to Saratoga, California for my friend Patty's Desmo Silicon Valley Bike Night.

Gotham Ducati and Desmo Silicon Valley Bike Night 2018

My two worlds are colliding.. Ducati and Salesforce. Hot on the heels of the Ducati "Connected Customer Experience" last year at Dreamforce in San Francisco,

My boys from Gotham Ducati in NYC are joining me at the track today. James showed up after dinner last night, but Jerry and Tommy got in late. They decided to ride down, and didn't get in till after midnight and unbelievably, they rode down from NYC.

Harlem Superbike School OGs

Well, I finally burned out the clutch on my Streetfighter.

After a couple years of pretty hard riding in New York City, it's time to put in a new clutch. Unfortunately, I don't have anywhere to wrench,

So I'm just wheeling the machine out the street where I can pull the plates and put a brand new Barnett Clutch Pack into this dry clutch beast.

Unfortunately, I've done this so many times that I would say I know what I'm doing by now.

And in an hour I was ready to ride!

Apologies for posting this El Duro... 😛.

Racing motorcycles is a ton of fun, but requires a good bit of preparation. It's awful to wait for weeks for a track day, then drive several hours to NJMP or NYST to find that you've forgotten something essential important or essential. I've put together the following pack list to remind myself what to bring along to a track day, but maybe you might find it helpful as well.

Track Day Basics

A bike: You should prep your bike and make sure it's running smoothly BEFORE leaving for the track. If not, you'll fail tech inspection, and not be able to ride. Most riders safety wire parts of the bike that might come loose during a track day, like an oil filter and bolts, which especially if you ride a twin (like a Ducati), often untorque due to vibration.

Riding gear: Most racetracks require full leathers (at least zipped together), and though you can rent gear, it won't fit nearly as well as something of your own, and I highly recommend adding a back protector if your suit doesn't already equipped. Most tracks also require "gauntlet" style gloves and race boots, and a decent helmet.

For reasons that haven't been resolved yet, I haven't posted about our ride to California to celebrate Jon's bachelor party.

My goal is 10 track days this season... a weekend per month.

Tigh Loughhead of Gotham Ducati Racing Motorcycles at New York Safety Track

Credit: Anthony Collins Photography

Every weekend, when the mercury rises above 60 degrees, my boys and I are out at sunrise to participate in a ritual we like to call Harlem Superbike School.

We wake up around 4:30 or 5

Tigh Loughhead of Gotham Ducati rides an 848 at New York Safety Track

My buddy Jeff and I had been planning on racing Ducati Motorcycles at New York Safety Track for months now, having joined a race outfit called EvolveGT back on Black Friday last year, which gives discounts on track days.

Back at Jeff's New York Motor Works. I'm itching to get to the track, but I need new tires.

Last night I had the opportunity to attend Ducati's official "Grand Opening" in Soho. Ducati Soho (the moniker by which the shop is more colloquially known) has been around for years, but the owner of Ducati’s most prolific franchise decided last year to divest the Triumph brand from his lineup, becoming Ducati’s flagship dealership globally.

Tigh Loughhead and Jorge Lorenzo at Ducati New York Grand Opening in Soho

Introducing Gotham Ducati, New York City's first and only DOC officially sponsored by the Ducati factory in Italy. There are numerous riding and social clubs, as well as groups built around track days around the tri-state area. There also quite a few Ducati fan clubs, spanning New Jersey, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, but until now, there hasn't ever been a dedicated club celebrating New Yorkers who ride Ducati motorcycles.

Gotham DOC DOCNYC New York Ducati Owners Club Manhattan Desmo NYC

Although my situation could have been better (result of the at the end of this post), the first think you notice when you arrive at Ducati Westlake is that the motorcycle shop is nestled in between a Maserati and a Bentley dealership.

The size of the outfit is impressive, sitting on a parking lot filled with gift-wrapped luxury automobiles, and driving in, you really feel like you have reached the Los Angeles suburbs of Southern California.

I am loath to disparage other motorcyclists. Riding is a small community, and yet there are certain transgressions that are unforgivable, and this happened today when Mo at EagleRider San Francisco put me on an unsafe bike that nearly killed me due to his neglect.

Just as I had stumbled on the fabled Munroe Motors (Ducati San Francisco) last year while at Dreamforce, I wandered by a shop this year overflowing with Italian Motorcycles which turned out to be Desmoto.