Years ago, early in my motorcycling career, the first bike to truly hit home surprised me. But when I swung a leg over that Aprilia RS 660, such a low, lean, powerful, and nimble motorcycle simply sparked a newfound love for true sport bikes. The experience also prompted some serious curiosity about Aprilia, in general, a brand I knew of previously because my old Volkswagen/Audi mechanic rode Aprilias on the weekend to blow off the steam of working on Volkswagens and Audis all week. So naturally, after the RS 660, I started to wonder about other bikes in the lineup of Italy’s “other” sportbike brand.
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Sure, Moto Guzzi and MV Agusta fit into the picture, but Aprilia still stands as the only Italian bikemaker to reach anywhere near the towering stature of Ducati. Yet from my mechanic, and a few knowledgeable friends I trust, I also heard that top-spec Aprilias ride with a bit more spice than the best Ducatis. So I wound up quite excited when Aprilia offered me the chance to test the hottest of them all, the RSV4 Factory, on track at California’s Buttonwillow Raceway.
