#RidingImpression

Today’s reading, brethren, comes from the Book of Luke, which tells us, “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.” Hence the Ducati 748, little sister of the now-legendary 916, which reaches the age of consent this year. On a race track, the 916 was the trustiest motorcycle of the day. On the street, where sheer horsepower is seldom the key to happiness, the 748 and its higher-revving L-Twin extended an even more sincere invitation to twist its grip and let the feathers fly. Amen.

A quick glance at the MO front page will reveal an overload of sportbike-related material this week. From Chief Editor Duke’s third installment of racetracks he’s ridden, to my very own review of the game-changing 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1 and R1M, I realize MO seems a little sportbike heavy. In response, let’s change gears and focus our attention at this, the Royal Enfield Bullet Sixty-5. Where the aforementioned Yamaha is entirely tech-focused, the Sixty-5 is firmly planted in the 1950s. One cylinder, two valves, pushrods and carburettors… tech that wasn’t particularly impressive even 60 years ago. However, these things run like tanks, and if you go to Royal Enfield’s Indian home you’ll likely see plenty of these running around.