Porkchop is BACK...

[Porkchop]

.... to the road, that is....

I've been kicking around the idea of buying a bike later this fall, or even winter. Doing some searching and pricing here and there. Insurance would most definitely the deciding factor in whatever purchase. My insurance is still absurd for sportbikes, but thank god one of my two tickets fall off in september. So I had the day off today. Woke up, and thought "Im going to (try to) buy a bike today!" As previous as spring I couldnt get a loan to save my life. Too much debt and too little income. Well I got the good promotion this spring and paid off 100% of my debt. So I thought why not try...

The three bikes I thought that made sense to my style of riding and fit into my insurance budget were the Triumph Street Triple, BMW F800R, and Ducati Monster 796. Luckily we have a Euro dealer in town that carries all 3 brands. Got to the dealer early this morning an found all 3 bikes in stock!


Ducati Definitely the sportiest position. Hardest suspension, and felt the lightest.



BMW... Like the factory paint. Felt the heaviest or the most top heavy. Highest pegs and least leg room. Loaded to the brim with accessories. Even heated grips. Highest bars. Most expensive.




Triumph... Yes its purple. I kinda like it though... The cheapest of the bunch. Very light and compact. Felt the "smallest". Styling is eh. Needs the fly screen, radiator shrouds, and lower scoop...






Unfortunately, this dealer does not offer test rides. Which pissed me off to no end. I'm going to spend 12k and you wont let me ride it around the building once or twice?? So I had to buy on a few things... price, options, body fit, and reviews I've read and watched. So after 6 hours of himming and hawing, tire kicking, paperwork, and sitting on... re-sitting... and sitting yet again, I made up my mind. And the decision was..................








NONE OF THESE!


I caught a killer deal on a used 2010 Monster 696. Sure I wanted the 796 for the extra 107cc, ABS, and SSS. But whatever. The 696 already has a pair of Leo Vince SBK exhausts that make this thing sound obsene. And I worked a good price. YAY, I'm a Ducatista!

[pauldun170]

Nice!!!
Congrats

[Adeptus_Minor]

Well played, sir.

[Tsunami]

Congrats! That was what I wanted for the longest but then settled for an SV since I was poor :O

[tommymac]

Welcome back to the fold.

[Trip]

congrats

[shmike]

Congrats on the new ride!

Shitty deal about no test rides, usually the Euro dealers are the most lenient.

[njchopper87]

Yay, congrats!

[tommymac]

Originally Posted by shmike

Congrats on the new ride!

Shitty deal about no test rides, usually the Euro dealers are the most lenient.

Same here, most places I know will let you demo a bike if they have one available, esp if they feel youre def going to buy or may be torn on 2 different bikes.

[Porkchop]

Thanks everyone. I still have a smile on my face. I sat there last night staring at it, not believing i have a Ducati. Definitely a whole nother world from the previous i4 and v4 bikes i owned. Its pulsey and grunty. It just oozes character. And with the pipes... man. But dont let anyone tell you this is a beginners bike. It may be easy to ride around town, but i went on a night ride with my buddy and i gave it maybe a 2/3rds throttle yank through gear 4 and it started lifting the front through every gear. I was shocked. I want to know what the stroked 796 motor would have felt like....

Originally Posted by tommymac

Same here, most places I know will let you demo a bike if they have one available, esp if they feel youre def going to buy or may be torn on 2 different bikes.

He said they dont carry a test fleet because its not cost efficient. They said the last time they got Triumphs test fleet for a weekend, it yielded a whopping 0 sales that entire weekend....