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On the way: Pirelli Ironman Sicily
On the way: Pirelli Ironman Sicily
The Reife (n) examination
The crazy idea of a motorcycle-obsessed Sicilian led us to the shortest, most intensive motorcycle trip ever: 850 kilometers of Sicily in one day on all types of motorcycle. Bullshit or great experience?
Markus Biebricher
11/24/2011
Salvo Pennisi is passion in person: he loves motorcycles, Sicily, Mount Etna, friends, his wife, daughters and Pirelli. How good that he has served the Italian tire manufacturer as head of testing for years, that his test center is in Sicily and that he can indulge in all his passions every day. When he submitted his idea for the “Ironman Sicily” to us, we were initially unable to follow suit. Be on the road in Sicily with travel enduros, sport enduros, choppers, nakeds, tourers, racing and street athletes, on the right routes with the right tires. All in one day. What shoud that? Comparison test, advertising event, marketing trick?
One could assume, but one does not have to. When a spirited Sicilian presents his project with verve and devotion, the whole thing sounds like an Italian opera and ultimately only the enthusiasm for motorcycling breaks through, the ice of resistance melts. Why shouldn’t you let yourself be pulled away from your desk and join in with something like that? Riding a motorcycle intensively in Sicily is a dream. That’s what it’s all about. The thing about the Pirelli product range shouldn’t be hung up in a big way. At some point, top testers Karsten and I were soft, the boss had nodded, and now Sicily’s evening sun is shining. Signor Pennisi drives us to the hotel and explains the challenges of the coming day. He calls two cell phones at the same time and steers with his knee through the construction sites. Italian style.
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Seven o’clock in the morning, the lovely Palazzo Villa Gussio in Leonforte near Enna. Engines warm up. At the start: BMW R 1200 GS, Triumph Tiger 1050, KTM 990 Adventure and Yamaha XT 1200 Z. Ingenious curves immediately seduce you, but the Scorpion Trail are new and cold, we slowly feel our way to fun slopes. Then the red, glowing disk of the sun rises over the hills, people, engines and tires warm up, the largest volcano in Europe, the ancient Etna, comes into view. Even the test drivers Alessandro, Sergio and Nino, who accompany us dynamically, are touched.
We circle through Misterbianco and Trecastani. Leaving the metropolis of Catania on the right, we hit the lava flanks of Etna from Fornazzo, which today smokes comfortably, but otherwise coughs out a lot of lava every few days. It’s crazy to dance up the mountain through this lunar landscape. Then the barrier, you can only get higher with guided expeditions. So down again, right, left, Karsten lets the tigers fly, we reach Francavilla, and there they stand: KTM EXC on virgin Scorpion Rally and Pro-Grobstollern, 250 and 300 two-stroke, 450 and 500 four-stroke, 2012 Models. Now Karsten’s hour strikes, we pepper 70 kilometers through the most beautiful mountain landscape. Stones, dust, donkey paths, mud, gravel – pure off-road. Karsten uses the smallest hump to fly, his front wheel leaves the earth on the shortest straight, I can’t follow this genius, aim sharply past abysses, if it doesn’t fit, the gorge calls. Karsten squeezes through residents, Sandro, Sergio and Nino cheer. Sweat flows, the sun burns, Mount Etna smokes heavily.
Breakable
Sports enduro: wheelie with a KTM in Sicily.
And what does it say on the Castroreale village square, which has been cordoned off by Carabinieri? Harleys: Fat Boy, Electra Glide, Heritage Softail. For a change, the choppers wear Night Dragon on their soles. Kars-ten leaps into the air. Pleasure or despair? We cruise on the coastal highway almost to Palermo and in Termini Imerese we switch to sporty naked bikes like MV Brutale, Honda CB 1000 R or KTM 990 SMT. With it we fly the venerable Targa Florio racetrack. Nurburgring Nordschleife? Children’s birthday. This is the true adrenaline paradise: crazy curves, upswings, downswings, opportunities to jump, the most spectacular asphalt roller coaster in a long time. There is no question that Karsten’s front wheel, like everyone else with Diablo Rosso II tires, often hangs in the sky.
After the Targa Florio lap we jet to the Racalmuto Race Track on big BMW (1600 GT, 1200 RT), Honda (VFR 1200) and Suzuki (Bandit 1250) tourers. What a joy, this swinging with those big things on their Angel ST soles. Salvo and his friend Antonio agreed tolerance for the Tedeschi for today. Antonio is a general in the Sicilian Police. No further questions. Karsten is now letting the racers fly over the track. BMW S 1000 RR, Aprilia RSV 1000, Kawa ZX 10 R, KTM RC 8 R and Triumph Daytona fight for tenths on their Diablo Supercorsa SC, I fight for honor. The changing asphalt quality of the racetrack arouses little confidence, even with Karsten and Pirelli’s warriors the hairs on the back of their necks stand up. The beautiful doctor is waiting in the clinic mobile that always follows us, but no closer contact is made. Instead, we complete our day on Diablo Rosso Corsa. On these rubbers are a Fireblade, an MV Agusta F4, a Yamaha R1. The red disk goes under, we drive the cars back to the old palazzo, the Villa Gussio, and arrive there flattened but filled with impressions after 13 hours and 20 minutes. Salvo hugs us. Karsten and I are now Sicilian ironmen. With 850 ultra-contrasting kilometers, 26 motorcycles and eight types of tires in the bones. For us the most intense motorcycle experience in a long time, for the Sicilian Salvo a bit of (PR) passion.
Info
Werel
Travel time: One day. Distance covered: 850 kilometers
Sicily is also worthwhile on week-long motorcycle trips. This intensive trip proves the beauty of the island after just one day.
General:
Sicily, the largest island in Italy, offers the motorcycle traveler a wealth of different, but always charming landscapes, mountain ranges including the smallest mountain roads, slow or fast country roads or highways. Gripping panoramas, quiet and noisy beaches, picturesque harbors and villages, cultural diversity and exciting relics from a history that is thousands of years old and shaped by many peoples spice up the whole package. The island offers plenty of sun from the end of February to the end of October. Even in winter, bikers can be lucky with the weather.
Getting there:
The simplest solution: a flight to Catania or Palermo and rent a motorcycle (e.g. www.sicilymotorent.it). Or your own bike on the Autozug to Alessandria. There are also worthwhile ferries: from Genoa, Livorno, Civitaveccia and Naples to Palermo or Catania. The MOTORRAD action team offers enduro training in Sicily: www.actionteam.de
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