DukeXTC
02-03-2012, 09:02 PM
I'm about to buy myself either an s2r 1000 or s4r.
I had a 93 900 Il Mostro for 13 years which I used and abused (particulrly the latter as I was useless with the spanners and too poor to get her serviced). Despite that I only ever had one serious problem with the cylinder nut snapping and it used to eat cush drives. But it was my first Ducati and I loved it. It's been 3 years since I sold her and I've had a Triumph, a KTM and at the moment I have a 996s. I was working at a Ducati dealers here in Oxford when the 916 was launched and it was love at first sight but there was no way I could afford one at the time. Fast forward 16 years and as I approached my 40th birthday and as it was fairly cheap I treated myself to a 2001 996s with nice loud 50mm pipes and lots of carbon. She had 24k on the clock and now 2 years later she has hit 30k. Apart from the "high" mileage (makes me laugh how people get scared off Ducatis with over 15k, let alone 20k), I've had my fun with her and now she is like a dominatrix: 95% pain, 5% sheer pleasure. And still beautiful to behold. But I ride her less and less coz my joints ache more and more so I'm coming back home to my first love -the Monster.
I'm still a bit torn over whether to go for the purity of the 2v air cooled S2R and its aesthetic charms or cling on the thrill of the 4v engine that I love in my 996. Whatever I choose, I will need to make it my own and I have been inspired by many of the bikes I've seen on here. I also want to finally, after riding bikes for over 30 years, take on maintaining the bike myself. With 2 young kids I don't have that much time to myself to ride and of course we have the winters when the bike can be pulled apart. It'll be a steep learning curve but I know I'll get lots of help and support from my fellow Monsteristi. I will keep you updated with every profanity, every grazed knuckle and every lost bolt.
I had a 93 900 Il Mostro for 13 years which I used and abused (particulrly the latter as I was useless with the spanners and too poor to get her serviced). Despite that I only ever had one serious problem with the cylinder nut snapping and it used to eat cush drives. But it was my first Ducati and I loved it. It's been 3 years since I sold her and I've had a Triumph, a KTM and at the moment I have a 996s. I was working at a Ducati dealers here in Oxford when the 916 was launched and it was love at first sight but there was no way I could afford one at the time. Fast forward 16 years and as I approached my 40th birthday and as it was fairly cheap I treated myself to a 2001 996s with nice loud 50mm pipes and lots of carbon. She had 24k on the clock and now 2 years later she has hit 30k. Apart from the "high" mileage (makes me laugh how people get scared off Ducatis with over 15k, let alone 20k), I've had my fun with her and now she is like a dominatrix: 95% pain, 5% sheer pleasure. And still beautiful to behold. But I ride her less and less coz my joints ache more and more so I'm coming back home to my first love -the Monster.
I'm still a bit torn over whether to go for the purity of the 2v air cooled S2R and its aesthetic charms or cling on the thrill of the 4v engine that I love in my 996. Whatever I choose, I will need to make it my own and I have been inspired by many of the bikes I've seen on here. I also want to finally, after riding bikes for over 30 years, take on maintaining the bike myself. With 2 young kids I don't have that much time to myself to ride and of course we have the winters when the bike can be pulled apart. It'll be a steep learning curve but I know I'll get lots of help and support from my fellow Monsteristi. I will keep you updated with every profanity, every grazed knuckle and every lost bolt.