F1 racing's most successful rider Michael Schumacher experienced a new kind of thrill today, riding round Mugello aboard the Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici two-seater. The seven-time World Champion rode two laps of the high-speed circuit behind former GP winner Randy Mamola, after several other guests had taken their turn, including the reigning Miss Italy, Edelfa Masciotta.
"It was very impressive! Impressive is about the only word I can find at the moment," smiled Schumi, a keen street rider who has already piloted a Desmosedici here during private tests, just to satisfy his own curiosity. "It was a very special experience, obviously very different to what I'm used to, different even to riding here on the Desmosedici last winter. On a bike you feel the speed more, you feel the machine moving around more, which is very different from a car, when you're inside and feel more protected. Plus, when you are riding with someone, you don't know what's going to happen and that makes it very interesting! The fact that I wasn't in control was what made it particularly impressive. I patted Randy on the back a couple of times to remind him that I've got the Silverstone F1 GP next week! It was a spectacular experience but now I have ridden a MotoGP bike myself and ridden the two-seater, I think I have done enough, I'm not planning to become a bike racer myself!"
Masciotta, unlike Schumacher riding a racetrack for the first time in her life, was stunned by her experience. "Randy was fantastic, he gave me total confidence before the ride," said Masciotta, 21, from Turin. "By the end of the ride I had no more strength in my arms, because riding was very physically demanding. But the ride was wonderful, I'm still trembling. This was the first time I've ever been on a racetrack and it's an experience I will never forget. The biggest things for me were the speed and the corners..."
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