saying good bye to an old friend...

[JimC]

Goodbye to an old Friend.

Most of you that read my trip reports know me as the guy on the yellow duck, OSJ & Dunkin Dunk are a few of the names people call me. But one thing alot of you dont know is that my yellow duck

This is me the day I brought her home

a 2004 Ducati 800ss was bike # 17 that Ive owned. Other than my 86 Concours it was a bike Ive owned the longest at 3.5 years. Noticed I used the word OWNED. Thats right she's gone. She is the old friend I had to say good bye to yesterday, March 13th 2008.

I bought that bike back in October of 2004 as an anniversary present to my wife and I. Ever since I started riding motorcycles Ive always wanted a Ducati. Regular life expenses always got in the way, back in the 80's and 90's they were not very practical bikes, reserved for the wealthy or people that didnt put many miles on 2 wheels. I was neither. With the new milliumam Ducati started making more affordable machines that were much less expensive and easier to own. This is when I finally became a Ducati owner.

Almost 4 years and 24,000 miles later that bike was one of the best motorcycles Ive ever sat on or rode. I truly loved the machine and hated to see her go. But as the bike got older so did I and the radical seating position started to take its toll. All my life I have been on sport bikes and never really had an issue with the lean forward, legs up riding position they put you in.

Even though I was doing some 400-500-600 mile days on that machine it was getting harder and harder to do so. But I wasn't ready for a cruiser just yet, I still needed something a little sporty and with ground clearance for the twisty roads.

Enter the Adventure bike! Almost every manufacturer makes one. Suzuki has the Vstrom, KTM has the Adventure, BMW has the GS, Triumph has the Tiger and Ducati has the Multistrada. While some bikes like the BWM & KTM are geared more towards the dirt others like the Strom and Tiger and Duck are better on pavement. What these bikes offer is horsepower of a sport tourer, handling of a sport bike and comfort of a tourer ( to some degree ) traits that really appeal to me in a bike.

So the question you might be asking is which bike did I buy?

Well read on!

Thursday March 13th 2008

As I pulled into my office to hop on the 800ss for the very last time I realized that I was gonna need my gerbins today.

A quick run to the parking lot of the Wachusett Country Club was needed

for one last photo with the reservoir as my back drop was needed.

My plan was to take all highway to Hartford CT to pick up my new bike. At 9am the temps were still pretty cold while cruising down the pike at 75 mph. I didnt notice any other bikes on my journey. One thing I did notice right away was my gerbins heated gear was working wonderfully, except for my left foot! If you ride at this time of year and you have heated gear then you know what Im talking about, there is no other way to go. The only problem is when something goes wrong and you dont have the proper layers to protect you from the elements.

I figured that my left sock had just come un plugged so I stopped at the first rest area in CT to check my connections. Once under way with everything plugged in and working I started to get some feeling back in my piggy toes. But like when you try and defrost a 15lb roast in a small microwave it takes about 20 min of full blast to make a dent in the ice. My foot never really warmed up until I pulled into the dealership.
Which is Gengas Ducati in East Hartford CT

Once inside I had a chance to look at some other ducati models I would love to bring home.

But those were not the bikes I was here to see and take home. My choice for the next few years of motorcycle enjoyment is a 2007 Ducati Multistrada 1100. I had stopped in one day last week and found myself buying this bike before I even knew what I was doing. I could write a book on what happened from that day to when I took this next photo, but I will not get into it here! Its way too long and stressful to bring up

But here she is, parked next to my old ride!

Dave, you see the guy in the photo? He's looking at a perfect XR650L they have, it would make a great second bike!

So now you all know what my new ride is. You can still call me Dunkin Duck, and now my bike and my gear all match (red on red) Im just not sure my new yellow helmet works.....Gotta check out ebay for some new lids
But this isn't the end of the story! I planned the whole day for riding on my new bike so I got a trip report for the day!

The whole process of buying the bike and signing all the paper work took a little longer then I expected. I had planned on hitting Pepe's for lunch in Manchester but I figured I should start heading north towards home instead of south. I punched the Vanilla Bean into the gps and off I went.

I let the gps navigate me via small country roads using the shortest distance option on the menu. A couple of times I went left when she wanted me to go right just because it looked better. This is the true beauty of these devisees. It didnt matter which way I went, it would always recalculate and keep me pointed in the direction I needed to go.

I found myself in a small little village with a huge monument up on a hill to my right and this neat old church on my left. And just up the street was an old factory with a river running thru it.

I sat on that wall basking in the warm sun for 10 minutes of so. Just watching traffic both human and vehicle go by while I sipped on my water. It also gave me a chance to sit back and look at the bike, my bike!

[JimC]

This is one of those machines that people either love it or hate it. Im talking about looks here. Everyone knows that Ducati makes performance bikes and they dont have a non performer in the line up. But this one has some odd lines, you will see later in the post what Im talking about

After my break I found myself in familiar territory, which was the " quiet corner" of CT. The weather couldn't have been nicer, and the roads were clean and pretty much empty. I got a chance to test the power of the bike, and the grip of the tires to some degree. Power is there, I wasn't warned about keeping it under a certain RPM but none the less I took it easy. Nothing happens on a duck under 4k on the revlimiter, above that all the way to 7k..hold on!



The seating position fit very well. I was sitting much straighter then on my ss but sill had a slight forward lean. I think I will love this set up and cant see changing it at all.



The seat itself feels comfy at the dealer, and for the first few miles but after 100 it didnt feel too well. Ducati and especially the Multi has a bad reputation for making comfy seats. Im sure the after market industry will solve this problem for me.
By 2pm I had reached Promfret CT and a little place called the Vanilla Bean. Not much has changed since Ive been here last ( read my last trip report ) The parking lot is still gravel but I managed to get front row parking none the less.




There were no other bikers here and the outside tables were empty. I sat inside as well and enjoyed a great corn beef sandwich. This is what $10 gets you at the bean



An older gentlemen came over to tell me he loved my helmet. And then asked me if I knew of someone called "osj" Seems the legend of OSJ still lives!



Out in the parking lot I figured out what the little key hole on the right hand side was for




Those Italians are pretty clever coming up with a little glove box on the side. I squeezed a huge piece of chocolate cake in there for Big Red at home. Yes Im still trying to suck up to her!

My ride home from the bean was on very familiar roads, it gave me a chance to compare my old bike to this one. It will take some time for me to feel comfortable riding fast while sitting straight up. But it will be much easier going slow for sure. A sport bikes motto was always, its much easier going fast on a slow bike then slow on a fast bike!
Along the way I stopped at Moore State park for a few more photos






On my way back to the office I figured I should stop by the house to see who's home and show them the new Duck. Lizzy was out with Michelle in the back yard. She gives it her approval




Even Phat Pat stopped by for a quick visit, just as I was about to leave.



By this time the sun was starting to set and I wanted to get her home, which is at my office. So I bid farewell to everyone and got on for the ride there. With a stop of course where I started my day.




Then tucked her in for a good nights rest!


So the next time you see me on a ride, you will not see the familiar yellow machine.

Ive made a new friend and she's red!

And Im loving it!!

[Bill_Anderson]

Great report, great photos, and a great bike. Add some hard bags and you can go far beyond the quiet corner of Connecticut. Next mod: a camera mount so we can see more of your wonderful videos.

[daboogah]

nice report. almost made me miss the bike too! keep riding safe and report on! loved it....

[JimC]

Originally Posted by Bill_Anderson

Great report, great photos, and a great bike. Add some hard bags and you can go far beyond the quiet corner of Connecticut. Next mod: a camera mount so we can see more of your wonderful videos.

Hey Bill, Hope things are going well for you over on the left coast

Bags are ordered and paid for, just waiting for them to come in. I already got a few RAM balls mounted so I should get some vidoe in soon.

I havent been coming in here lately, I dont like all the banner ads, but I promise to keep you updated with my reports

[Bill_Anderson]

Originally Posted by JimC

I havent been coming in here lately, I dont like all the banner ads, but I promise to keep you updated with my reports

You are a premium member. Click on "User CP" in the gray band at the top of the page. Once in User CP, scroll down and click on "Profiles". Scroll down to the bottom and you wil see the options to eliminate the worst of the ads. Just ignore the banner ads at the top of each page.

[John]

Wonderful report and pictures. The MTS is on my short list.

[JimC]

Originally Posted by Bill_Anderson

You are a premium member. Click on "User CP" in the gray band at the top of the page. Once in User CP, scroll down and click on "Profiles". Scroll down to the bottom and you wil see the options to eliminate the worst of the ads. Just ignore the banner ads at the top of each page.

thats much better

Thanks!

[Bill_Anderson]

Originally Posted by JimC

thats much better

Thanks!

You're welcome. Now get back on the Multi and start taping.

[akducati]

Very nice! Congrats.

I too may some day own one.

Have fun, Mark H.