Counting down to the Moto Italiane Ovest 2022

West Australian lovers of Italian motorcycles are counting down the weeks to the return of one of the State’s favourite and most glamorous motorcycle events — the Moto Italiane Ovest.

Hosted every second year by the Ducati Owners Club of WA (DOCWA), the ovest brings together a superb collection of Italian motorcycles through the ages and asks the public to cast votes for trophies in a range of classes.

We visited DOCWA vice-president Dave Lunn’s shed and found he has his very own superb collection of Italian motorcycles.

“My first bike was actually a two-stroke Yamaha; an RD250LC,” Dave told us. “It was a great bike, but a mate of mine had a 600cc Pantah and, well, there was just something about it!”

It wasn’t long before Dave’s infatuation with his mate’s bike had its inevitable outcome — a Ducati in the garage.

“I bought a silver and blue Ducati Darmah SSD 900, and I loved it,” Dave told us.

“But life rolled along, as it does, with marriage and kids and job postings interstate, so the Darmah was sold and I spent 20 years without any motorcycle at all.”

When his life settled down and his job finally returned him home to Perth in Western Australia, Dave had to make up for lost time. And he sure did.

“I came across this 1980 Darmah for sale, exactly the same as my old bike. So I had to have it!”

Dave’s collection now numbers four bikes, all of them great examples of important machines from Ducati’s own journey.

“They all have their own job to do,” he said.

“The 1974 860GT is for two-up riding on club days for older bikes, the Darmah is to ride solo, and the 2013 model 848 is really for track days.”

That leaves the 2021 Multistrada V4S — one of Ducati’s most accomplished machines to date.

“It’s just an incredible bike,” Dave said. “It’s probably quicker than the 848, yet it’s absolutely comfortable on the highway for touring solo or two-up. And it’s dripping with technology.”

Dave is planning to take the Multistrada and the Darmah to the ovest, which will be held at Garvey Park in Ascot (Perth, Western Australia), from 10am to 2pm on Sunday October 23. (Learn more here.)