Outdoor fun has been fleeting during the month of February... plenty of rain and the flu had me down and out. The Ferrari finally got on the road after basically being in storage for the last three months. Besides a perfect Sunday drive out to Malibu in the F355 on 10 February
Amanda's birthday drive in the F355 on the best Sunday in February
and a motorcycle ride down to Lake Elsinore and over Ortega Highway to the Orange County coastline on the Harley-Davidson V-Rod, I haven't gotten out much. The MINI's oil pressure gauge is acting up again so I might need to head over to Steve's Auto Clinic to have that issue sorted out. We'll see. I still need to get the Nurburgring sticker on the car!
I came across Britain's MCN (Motorcycle News) Magazine's video review about the Ducati 1098R. What a bike! Truly an awesome machine and backs up my conclusions about the beast.
Here it is for your viewing pleasure:
Video courtesy of MCN
Finally, today is Academy Awards day a couple of miles from my place. But back in the summer of 2006 I headed to Hollywood Boulevard to see the stars of MotoGP and the awesome Ducati race bike strut its stuff in front of the Kodak Theater. Here is a picture of that day that shows future world champion Nicky Hayden riding his Honda on the boulevard. Down the line (just past the outstretched hands and wearing sunglasses) you might find a familiar face (mine!) enjoying the event. I had returned from Italy and the Italian Grand Prix a month earlier and it was interesting to see the racebikes on the streets of L.A. instead of the rolling hills of Tuscany!
Nicky Hayden (not on his MotoGP bike) on Hollywood Boulevard
Picture from MotoGP.com, the official website of the MotoGP World Championship
What am I talking about? Well with me it is usually something mechanical and yes folks, a new motorcycle has caught my eye. The Ducati 1098R is quite a beast. 186 hp with the racing exhaust, traction control (the first for a production motorcycle), MotoGP and World Superbike technology aplenty, this is one serious machine. Expensive...yes. I've heard that it's going to run about $40,000.00 in the US. No small change but nevertheless I keep mulling the possibilities and keep checking the piggy bank. Hey, at least it costs less than the $72,000.00 Desmosedici and I think it is a helluva lot sexier looking too! Beauty, brains, brawn, and exclusivity (hmmm... where can I find a woman like that?): what's not to like? Dealers are taking orders now...
Ducati 1098R
The stock clutch cover would last about 5 seconds on my bike before I put something better looking on!
I received an invitation to attend the unveiling of the Ducati Desmosedici on 2 February. This bike is THE closest thing to a race specific machine available for the street. It's like owning a Mclaren F1 car with turn signals. Very expensive and very rare, the bike will surely see more "museum" time than street time. 200+ horsepower, MotoGP tech aplenty, the Desmosedici is like nothing else on the road. About 1500 will be built and they are all spoken for.
Pro Italia Motors in Glendale, California, a longtime and respected Ducati dealer, unveiled the first U.S. customer bike. Rumors have it that Tom Cruise has also taken delivery...
Update 24 February 2008
Here is the official Pro Italia video of the Desmosedici unveiling (you get a glimpse of me in my Ducati MotoGP Race Team shirt ogling the bike):
Amanda's birthday drive in the F355 on the best Sunday in February
