R6_kid
7th October 2009, 16:26
In the words of Borat - "WAH WAH WEE WAH"
As some of you already know I've been given the task of looking after a 2003 Ducati MH900e and recently had a set of Conti RoadAttacks put on it thanks to a sweet deal through Shaun Harris. :2thumbsup
Unfortuantely after getting the tyres fitted I didn't have time to take the bike out for a decent ride, I was only able to ride it home and put in the garage. A couple of days later the garage door broke (thats whole other story) and the door had to get bolted up while we waited for a replacement - fast forward two months and that door is fixed... then the weather turns to shite. Finally today for the first time since fitting the tyres, Auckland received a good stint of clear weather and I had some free time on my hands. It was time to head out and take the three inch highway chicken strips off the rear tyre - a chance to finally 'scrub' the tyres in properly.
I kitted up and headed for SH16 aka "Hazzard County" with thoughts of the Ginga ruining my day in the back of mind - thankfully this was not to be. Instead I had a good clean run up to the lookout approx 5km from Wellsford. The road was dry, and thanks to the crap weather we've had recently it was also very clean. As I headed up Old North Road I started to get into the groove with the Ducati and things started to flow nicely. Through a couple of back to back corners I kept the throttle open and the bike flicked from side to side beautifully - even with a slapped on handfull of gas from 3/4 the way up the revs the rear just gripped and propelled the bike forward with no squirming or complaint - the MH900e is by no means a superbike but that 900cc L-twin does have some pulling power.
On SH16 after Kaukapakapa the road opens up nicely and this is where the big bikes come into their own. The road really wants to be ridden at stupid speeds - it feels comfortable at 150kmh - but the thought of Ginga waiting around the next bend meant that I chose to sit back and aim for staying off the brakes and just using the gears to setup well for corners. At one point the road undulates through a set of right-left-right-left-right 55kmh corners, even when I chopped it down through three gears and had the bike engine braking up towards the redline the rear didn't step out at all, I could feel the engine wanting to slow the wheel down more but the tyre just held on to the road and allowed me to tip in to the corner with full confidence, back on the gas and flicking the bike from side to side was easy and it felt more like I was flying than riding.
Unfortunately some of the best flowing parts of the Northern end of SH16 has currently got road works and the signs that say 'loose seal' are best to be adhered too - a couple of corners I'd normally take at decent speed were scattered with loose gravel :( Thankfully I had taken note of the signs and adjusted my speed appropriately so it wasn't really a problem.
The MH900e is really a short ride bike. I did 100km before the fuel light came on, that's from filling up the tank before I left, but because it sits so far over on the stand you probably miss out on getting another 500mL - 1L in the tank.
I thoroughly enjoyed the ride, though slapping some Swedish Gold on this Italian Stallion would make it much more of a weapon, It'd also be nice to feel the torque of the engine more, compared to my TRX850 it almost felt like an IL4, the power delivery was that smooth. My only real gripe about the bike is that there is almost no wind protection - which is weird when you know you have a full fairing in front of you. This is however due to the flowing lines of the bike, and tucking down like a real road racer results in greatly reduced wind pressure (and noise) despite making you look like a bit of a tosser :pinch:
The Conti RoadAttacks worked a charm, I'm thinking I might go with a set on the TRX next time I'm buying a set of new tyres. After having the RaceAttacks on my GSXR1000 I didn't know what to expect from the RoadAttacks but I can say that I was pleasantly surprised, and that they performed brilliantly for the type of riding that I expect the tyres I use to stand up to. I'd like to be able to comment on their wet-road performance but the Ducati quite literally die if the electrics get wet, so that side of things will have to wait until I get a set on the TRX.
If you want a set I suggest sending Shaun (http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/member.php?u=4323) a PM - he's always keen to help KBer's out and will most likely be able to beat the price of your local shop.
As some of you already know I've been given the task of looking after a 2003 Ducati MH900e and recently had a set of Conti RoadAttacks put on it thanks to a sweet deal through Shaun Harris. :2thumbsup
Unfortuantely after getting the tyres fitted I didn't have time to take the bike out for a decent ride, I was only able to ride it home and put in the garage. A couple of days later the garage door broke (thats whole other story) and the door had to get bolted up while we waited for a replacement - fast forward two months and that door is fixed... then the weather turns to shite. Finally today for the first time since fitting the tyres, Auckland received a good stint of clear weather and I had some free time on my hands. It was time to head out and take the three inch highway chicken strips off the rear tyre - a chance to finally 'scrub' the tyres in properly.
I kitted up and headed for SH16 aka "Hazzard County" with thoughts of the Ginga ruining my day in the back of mind - thankfully this was not to be. Instead I had a good clean run up to the lookout approx 5km from Wellsford. The road was dry, and thanks to the crap weather we've had recently it was also very clean. As I headed up Old North Road I started to get into the groove with the Ducati and things started to flow nicely. Through a couple of back to back corners I kept the throttle open and the bike flicked from side to side beautifully - even with a slapped on handfull of gas from 3/4 the way up the revs the rear just gripped and propelled the bike forward with no squirming or complaint - the MH900e is by no means a superbike but that 900cc L-twin does have some pulling power.
On SH16 after Kaukapakapa the road opens up nicely and this is where the big bikes come into their own. The road really wants to be ridden at stupid speeds - it feels comfortable at 150kmh - but the thought of Ginga waiting around the next bend meant that I chose to sit back and aim for staying off the brakes and just using the gears to setup well for corners. At one point the road undulates through a set of right-left-right-left-right 55kmh corners, even when I chopped it down through three gears and had the bike engine braking up towards the redline the rear didn't step out at all, I could feel the engine wanting to slow the wheel down more but the tyre just held on to the road and allowed me to tip in to the corner with full confidence, back on the gas and flicking the bike from side to side was easy and it felt more like I was flying than riding.
Unfortunately some of the best flowing parts of the Northern end of SH16 has currently got road works and the signs that say 'loose seal' are best to be adhered too - a couple of corners I'd normally take at decent speed were scattered with loose gravel :( Thankfully I had taken note of the signs and adjusted my speed appropriately so it wasn't really a problem.
The MH900e is really a short ride bike. I did 100km before the fuel light came on, that's from filling up the tank before I left, but because it sits so far over on the stand you probably miss out on getting another 500mL - 1L in the tank.
I thoroughly enjoyed the ride, though slapping some Swedish Gold on this Italian Stallion would make it much more of a weapon, It'd also be nice to feel the torque of the engine more, compared to my TRX850 it almost felt like an IL4, the power delivery was that smooth. My only real gripe about the bike is that there is almost no wind protection - which is weird when you know you have a full fairing in front of you. This is however due to the flowing lines of the bike, and tucking down like a real road racer results in greatly reduced wind pressure (and noise) despite making you look like a bit of a tosser :pinch:
The Conti RoadAttacks worked a charm, I'm thinking I might go with a set on the TRX next time I'm buying a set of new tyres. After having the RaceAttacks on my GSXR1000 I didn't know what to expect from the RoadAttacks but I can say that I was pleasantly surprised, and that they performed brilliantly for the type of riding that I expect the tyres I use to stand up to. I'd like to be able to comment on their wet-road performance but the Ducati quite literally die if the electrics get wet, so that side of things will have to wait until I get a set on the TRX.
If you want a set I suggest sending Shaun (http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/member.php?u=4323) a PM - he's always keen to help KBer's out and will most likely be able to beat the price of your local shop.