06/05/06 Finally a trackday for the new bike. I haven't been riding much lately (don't really like riding on the street, I think I've mentioned this a few times). So as of Saturday there were 535 miles on the clock, the break-in is 600. Close enough. I changed the oil and filter, did a general inspection, pumped the tires up to 30 psi front and rear (they were at only 20 or so) and declared it ready to hit the track. This was also the first day that I used the new leathers. The old Aerostitch is no longer legal in the faster groups, despite the fact that it worked pretty well the last time I was out. So I got a new Alpinestars suit. Pretty cool and relatively inexpensive at around $700. Perforated, too, so the ventilation is very good. A bit of a wiggle to get in and out but feels good once on and makes me look (and feel) like some kind of comic book character :) I don't know what the reflection in the sunglasses is from in the picture below but it kind of goes with the theme...

The dual-color headlight is because I ran out of gaffer tape and had to borrow duct tape instead. Removing the duct tape later reminded me why the gaffer stuff is so much better. The residue is nasty, whereas gaffer tape leaves none. The first three sessions I ran my digital video camera (didn't feel like messing with the helmet cam). I set it up with some mounts I got from ChaseCam.

Unfortunately the camera ends up shaking quite a bit when mounted this way so the video is a bit hard to watch. I'll have to go back to helmetcam for subsequent video attempts on bikes. The B group in which I ran was quite busy so I got to practice passing on more than a few occasions as the clip shows (it also shows there's always somebody faster ;) We are not allowed to pass in turns 7-8-9 which is why I was stuck behind the V-Rod at the end...

In the last two sessions I ran the GPS datalogger. As expected, the lap times were nothing too spectacular since I was being fairly conservative, especially with the braking. A best of 1:25.2 which is 0.3 seconds slower than the best I've done on the 900. The bikes are very similar so it is to be expected. The PS feels a little more modern, perhaps halfway between the 900 and the 748. It also feels tall. Good midrange and broad powerband, satisfying but not overwhelming on top. 130 mph at the end of the front straight, compared to 128 for the 900 and 135 for the 748. The PS seemed squirrely under braking and the telltale zip tie on the fork shows that the fork was using all its travel and maybe bottoming, which may have something to do with it. The 900 has the best brakes of the bunch and the 748 the best chassis. If it weren't for the braking the PS would be a tick faster than the 900 but the data clearly shows that I was braking earlier and carrying lower corner entry speeds today. Since the point of the exercise was just to get the bike out on the track before I park it in the livingroom it didn't make sense to push too hard. Still, curiously enough, three different people walked up to me at the end and commented on how quickly I was going out there. OK, I'll take that as a compliment.

In terms of other machinery on hand it was about par for the course. Lots of Ducatis of every flavor, a number of Japanese superbikes and yes even a Harley V-Rod. And a very neat looking vintage machine - not quite sure what it is. Those are some pretty skinny tires.

All in all, a very nice day. Five full sessions adding up to about 115 miles on the track (could have run a sixth but was getting too tired). Fun, exhausting, and I even kept it shiny side up. Now I need to clean this beast up and maneuver it in front of the couch so I can stare at it while cranking Megadeth or something equally soothing. How many people can say they have GPS datalogs for their furniture?

04/24/06 No, the bike is still sitting in the livingroom. I rather like it there and basically that was the intent all along - to track it once and then use it as sculpture. Works for me.

What this update is about is the fact that a customer in France sent me pictures of what has got to be the cleanest-yet install of my license plate bracket. Credit goes to Panya Lane, both for the design of the installation and the informative pictures. Best thing is that no drilling of the frame is needed. Also, the tire clearance issue is solved and the bike looks a little more balanced with the taillight sitting a touch further out. I probably won't redo mine although I must say I'm tempted...

I dare say this is what Ducati should have done to begin with instead of the monstrous horse's tail contraption the bike normally comes with. I only have one bracket remaining but if people write expressing an interest in a full kit for this type of install, I just might consider it. So if you like it, speak up :)

UPDATE: the last bracket has been sold. if you're interested in this setup, send me an email and when I have 10 people on the list I'll make more brackets. The new kit will include a base plate.