Cook Neilson Ducati 750 SS Replica

By Richard Backus
Published on December 1, 2008
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Cook Neilson takes his maiden run on Deja Blue.
Cook Neilson takes his maiden run on Deja Blue.
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Christian Clarke checks out Deja Blue in the Barber workshop. Clarke spent 10 days helping builder Rich Lambrechts finish the Ducati for its Barber unveiling.
Christian Clarke checks out Deja Blue in the Barber workshop. Clarke spent 10 days helping builder Rich Lambrechts finish the Ducati for its Barber unveiling.
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Cook (left) aboard Old Blue, leading Superbike champ Reg Pridmore through a turn at Riverside.
Cook (left) aboard Old Blue, leading Superbike champ Reg Pridmore through a turn at Riverside.
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Phil Schilling (left), Cook Neilson and Rich Lambrechts discuss clutch issues on Deja Blue before Cook finally gets to take his maiden run on the Barber track.
Phil Schilling (left), Cook Neilson and Rich Lambrechts discuss clutch issues on Deja Blue before Cook finally gets to take his maiden run on the Barber track.
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Cook and Deja Blue: “It’s a bolt-for-bolt exact replica of Old Blue,” Cook says.
Cook and Deja Blue: “It’s a bolt-for-bolt exact replica of Old Blue,” Cook says.
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Details on Deja Blue are exact, right down to the St. Christopher’s medal affixed to the fairing.
Details on Deja Blue are exact, right down to the St. Christopher’s medal affixed to the fairing.

In 1977, Cycle magazine editors Cook Neilson and Phil Schilling took a Ducati 750 SS to first place at the Daytona in the second-ever season of AMA Superbike racing. Neilson retired from racing at the end of the year, but the bike he and Schilling built — nicknamed Old Blue for its blue livery — became a legend.

How big a legend? Big enough for Ducati to team with Italian specialty builder NCR to craft a limited-edition update, New Blue, based on the 2007 Sport 1000S, and big enough to inspire the crew at the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum, arguably one of the most important motorcycle museums in the world, to commission Ducati specialist Rich Lambrechts to craft a bolt-by-bolt replica for its collection. The finished bike’s name? Deja Blue.

The California Hot Rod
Deja Blue’s inspiration goes back to the mid-1970s, when Cycle editors Cook Neilson and Phil Schilling were campaigning a Ducati 750 SS in West Coast racing. The California Hot Rod, as Cook called their Ducati, was one of only a handful of the race-bred Ducati 750 SS models in the U.S. (their bike was one of three pre-homologation specials shipped over in 1973), and with Cook riding and Phil developing the bike, they raced it with great success in the 1974-1975 seasons.

When the AMA (American Motorcyclist Association) announced its new Superbike Series for 1976, Cook and Phil turned their attention to preparing their bike for the series, with a win at Daytona their ultimate goal. Coming in third in the inaugural Superbike race at Daytona in 1976, they were off to a good start, and they continued to race in the series throughout the year.

To get the California Hot Rod into contention for the 1977 season, the pair modified their Ducati 700 SS with, among other things, a set of 87mm Venolia pistons (pushing capacity up to 883cc), 44mm Harley-Davidson intake valves, a 5-speed Marvin Webster gearbox and Morris magnesium wheels. At the same time, Phil designed a new and very blue paint scheme, and the bike became Old Blue. “It was blue,” Cook says. “And God knows it was old — the cylinder heads dated back to 1974, although other parts were steadily and religiously refreshed.”

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