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If I comment on something about Pierre Terblanche You may not know who I am talking about but if I tell you that he is the designer who created the Ducati Supemono 30 years ago, it may sound more familiar to you. Well, this incredible teacher has returned to the work table to reborn a motorcycle that made us fall in love at first sight.
For this, a collaboration has begun with the Barber Motorsport Park circuit museum in Alabama, United States, in which we have already been able to see a motorcycle with the same hallmarks. Of course, they have barely given information. We only know that I know called Supermono 699SC But we have no idea of the material that it incorporates in its structure, nor the technical solutions applied, nor even its benefits.
A limited edition model or a one-off?
To talk about the new Supermono-inspired concept bike we have to talk about its father, designer Pierre Terblanche. This design genius born in South Africa in 1956 has under his belt the conception of a multitude of motorcycles, almost all of them Ducati brand where he mainly developed his career. Among them we can count on the Ducati 749/999 saga, the Ducati 888 or the Multistrada.
However, one of the most recognized and unique in the world was the Supermono. A motorcycle created to enter the single-cylinder championships that were so well received in Italy and the United Kingdom. I just know manufactured 67 units of the Supermono between 1993 and 1995 for the sole purpose of winning races.
To do this, it had a 572 cc engine with a power amounting to 77 hp at 10,000 rpm and the most complete equipment in which there were Öhlins suspensions, Marchesini magnesium wheels, Termignoni complete exhaust or Brembo competition calipers.
Well, 30 years after the creation of this myth, Pierre Terblanche has announced that he is collaborating with the Center for Advanced Design of the Barber circuit in Alabama to bring back this iconic design. We know that the first prototype it is being shown to the public in the museumHowever, we hardly have information on whether this motorcycle will hit the market or is a one-off, on what materials it uses or what technical solutions it has implemented.
What we do know for sure is that it has been baptized as Supermono 699SC. A name that suggests to us that to animate this creation he is using an engine derived from the Ducati 1198, the 1198 cc Testastretta but with one less cylinder to honor his heritage. Its monocoque chassis is, to say the least, disturbing, having a single beam in which it uses the engine itself as one more element of its structure.
The suspensions are more of the same, pure engineering fantasy. It has a conventional front fork to which a "Y" shaped attachment assisted by a kind of stem that, in turn, rests on the seat post. A technical solution that we do not know what kind of advantage it represents. The rear is unfinished, but we can see how its huge swingarm lacks a suspension to use, so we assume that it will have some type of internal linkage.
We do not know what type of material it uses for the rims but they are seen to be light, although what is strikingly striking here is that it has some solid front brake discs (no perforations) with an outer ring that dissipates heat. In addition, the double caliper is arranged axially and radially, which makes braking as interesting as the rest of the set.
If we take a look at its body, we see that this is super minimalist although incorporates state-of-the-art technical solutions like side spoilers and a very low dome. As we mentioned, we do not know if this beautiful motorcycle will go on sale to the public or will remain as a curious tribute, what we can assure you is that we will be attentive to any news that may reach us from it to update you.
