So I saw this red beast at Bob's and since I had some time to kill:

What an uncivilized beast. I'll see if I can write up some impressions at some point.

Oooh, that should be wicked fun. Cycle Magazine puts it in the same class as the S1000RR in the write up in their latest issue, and claim that it compares favorably.

buffalo It was fun, but incredibly challenging to ride. It really screams track/race bike at you and feels like it has no business being on the road. At road speeds it just surges and feels very unrefined and the throttle is so over responsive that in corners it's far to easy to unsettled things You get the sense that it's really wasted on the road. It's unbelievably fast but very raw.

To compare and contrast, I rode the S1000RR immediately afterwards.




In contrast to the Ducati, the S1000RR is much more refined, more well mannered and is quite comfortable even at slow street speeds. There's little hint of the beast within as you're putting along at 30mph. In some ways it reminds me of the 911 which had this similar quality of being good at just about everything. Now that I know how to keep my weight off the bars, I'd go so far as to say I could ride fairly long distance on the RR.

So jpcfjr, how did you like your first track day? rshaug, how'd it go for you?

YermoI need a faster bike
 I stayed in the "B" group which had a number of really fast folks in it (there was a huge turnout for the event and the group as a whole was huge)*edit...also the Intermediate group was full*. I tended to be in the top 10 of the group which was fine, only getting passed by faster bikes (with one notable exception when a good rider on a SV1000 totally got the jump on me. Big kudos to that guy for setting me up brilliantly and taking the shot perfectly. I was only getting into the 140ish range on the main straight and would get passed at the 2/3rds mark. I'd then reel them in going through turns 5-9 but just didn't have the HP to hang on the main straight. Passed lots of slower traffic and had a simply amazing 5 lap run playing chase with a well ridden Aprillia. I have some video that I'll post this week. I'd have more but I kept accidentally shutting off the camera with my chin tucking in on the exits.

Were any of the killboy.com style race photographers there?

yeah, they got some great shots of Josh but crap for the B group. All the pics of me were from a redflagged session so basically parade laps.

I found a couple of half decent shots looking for folks I passed or ran with...here's a couple from the lap playing chase with the aprillia:

http://www.picsofyou.com/store/index.php?do=photocart&a...


http://www.picsofyou.com/store/index.php?do=photocart&a...


http://www.picsofyou.com/store/index.php?do=photocart&a...