Last weekend I rode to West Virginia from NY with 3 of my fellow Ducati riders for a weekend of blasting around the backroads of WV. I had planned to take my 748 but it's been for sale and the Wednesday before we left I had a commitment to buy so I couldn't take it. Luckily I have the Paso and it was ready to roll for this long trip.
I strapped on my soft bags, set the GPS and was kickstand up on Thursday morning at 8AM to meet the others in Harrisburg, PA for Lunch. Being a near antique I was a little bit worried about the reliability of the paso for what would be 4 grueling days on the road and my concern was realized at lunch. After some diner food at a greasy spoon type diner, the starter packed it in. We looked, probed, smacked and then I dug out my volt-meter (yes, I take one on the road) and there was juice to the started but no life. I was about 225 miles from home with another 1300 more to go and this was not a good sign. We discussed the options for about 2 minutes and I was prepared to head for home but my buddies wouldn't let me. They all agreed that it would be no big deal to push start the bike and we should press on and have fun. So every gas stop, hotel or food stop was deternimed by how much of a hill it was on so I could just roll off and bump start the Paso.
We set off each day with a destination in mind and then looked for a hotel once we arrived. This left plenty of time for riding and adjusting our route depending on where we were. We rode about 350 miles per day over the twisty and winding roads of WV and had a great time. The Paso performed perfectly (but for the starter) and had no trouble keeping up or leading the other bikes. In the group we had a Monster 750, a 93-900SS and a 98-900SS with a fully worked 944 motor in it.
The Paso is hard work to ride fast in the twisties but I love the look on the other riders faces when we stopped for a water break and they really can't leave me in the dust.
Sunday was slab time to get home from the Cumberland, Maryland area and it was HOT as hell!! The trip was about 380 miles and after we split up I had to get help from some guys at the gas station to push start the bike.
The GRAND PRIZE on the trip was that a girl (very attractive) in a Suburban flashed me while cruising along at 75 and I almost rode into the ditch next to the hiway.
I have yet to rip into the starter problem but will next weekend. I picked up a Multistrada this past Sunday and have yet to ride it. My first miles on it will be at the track on Wednesday! Should be an interesting day....
Trip details:
Total Miles: 1590
Top Speed: 96MPH
Average moving speed: 58MPH
All of the above from the GPS.
