Haven’t had the Corse out for a ride in a few weeks. The heat and rain in the area are always conspiring against me for a good long ride. Hopefully in a couple of weeks I will have some time to get out and about again.

I spent the past week at my mountain home in Western North Carolina riding my Honda XR-650L dual sport bike. That thing is about the most  versatile bike to have in the mountains.  Not as fast as the Corse or as comfortable as a Harley, but just as much fun. I don’t worry about getting it dirty or wet and really enjoy exploring the hundred of miles of gravel roads that run through the mountains.

My nephew and I are planning another track day in June. This time we will head up to Jennings GP in north Florida. I have never ridden the track so it should be fun. Hope the heat holds off.

I will be ordering the carbon fiber air duct covers from ShiftTech in a couple of weeks. That will complete all the mods I have planned for the Corse. After that I am done for a while.

The Isle of Man starts in a few weeks. Can’t wait. The races should be awesome this year. The new movie TT3D should make it to the states soon and it has been getting great reviews in Europe. 2012 may be the year I get over there to see the races. Once in a lifetime for me! It is one of the few things left on my “bucket list”. BTW, I want one of these…..TT Watch. I only need about $7500…..

The new movie about the TT and Guy Martin looks like it will be great. Here is the trailer for the movie.

Took a ride over to Bikeweek the other day to look around. The Corse was polished and looking good as I stopped by Royce’s house to meet him to ride along. He was riding his 1198s. We went to the manufacturer’s area outside of the speedway to see the new models and poke around. Nothing caught my eye except the little Moriwaki 250 piece of art that was in the Honda area. That thing is a thing of beauty!  Stopped by the Held vendor to look at new gloves. Man those things are expensive to say the least. $200 to $350 per pair. I also looked at the Alpinestar gloves and liked the SP2 model. They sell for around $100 a pair. I did some research and decided the Alpinstars would do what I want a glove to do at a reasonable price. Got a black pair from Cycle Gear across the street from the speedway. Nice people also. Nothing but the same old Harley trinkets and bad leather goods for sale all around the speedway so Royce and I headed over to the Ducati/BMW/Triumph dealer on Main Street to have a look.

Lots of cool bikes over at the shop. There was another Corse parked at the shop. The owner walked over and introduced himself as Kirk Harris from Tennessee. His Corse is number 337 and is looking good! He and his buddies are staying at the track in an RV. I will stop by when I go to the races on Friday to visit and shoot a few photos for the site. Kirk also had one of the new Arai Corsair V Ducati helmets with him. That thing Looks sweet but cost over $800 bucks.

Headed out to the track and it was nice to see lots of folks in the infield. Looks like motorcycle road racing  is coming back here in Daytona.The Superbike and Supersport races were great but I wish the Superbikes would run on the long course. Took a walk through the hot pits to look at the bikes and how the teams set up their areas. Pretty nice seeing lots of Ducati’s on pit row. Ferraci’s stuff looked especially good. P.J. Jacobson’s girlfriend is something to behold too! Wish I could have gotten a better shot of her for you guys. Anyway, enough of pretty girls and back to the races. Larry Pegram switched from Ducati to BMW this year and as always his presentation of the bikes and his set up was the best looking as usual.

The 200 was just awesome. I don’t think there has been a more exciting race in years. Congrats to DiSalvo for being able to play by the rules with the engine change and win for Ducati. Made the two hour delay worth every minute. I’m looking forward to next year.

Got me a Pit Bull front stand for the Corse. Thing works great. Might get the attachment that lets me raise the bike by the lower triple clamp later should I need to adjust the forks a bit.

Another guy with big nuts

Airborne at Cadwell Park

Another beautiful day at Roebling Road Raceway in Savannah Georgia. The weather was perfect and the Corse ran awesome. I have a write-up about the day in the “Track Days” section. Scroll down to read.

I added a new section to the site with photos I come across while surfing the net. Great camera work and the riders are insane!

The Corse will get another chance run a bit on February 21st again at Roebling Road. Myself and my nephew Ashley are all set to go. Ashley did Frank Kinsey’s school last time so he will get to ride with me and the other track day guys this time. Also have the Go Pro HD camera all charged up and ready to go for the videos.

I ordered an 8 plate Knox Aegis Race back protector from Sport Bike Track Gear ($174) that should work well in place of the Alpinestars Bionic proctector. The Alpinestars is a bit small and weak looking compared to the Knox. I will have a write up about the Konx after the track day. Also had them put a new set of Dunlap Q2′s in the box.

My friend Jeff will be running his brand new Aprilia RSV4. That thing looks great with the race fairing and paint job Jeff did. It should be a rocket. I’m also looking forward to using my new 7×16 foot Pace trailer. Lots more room than my previous little 5×8 Pace.

I tried to book another motel other than the Econolodge we usually stay at to try and get a better rate. I could not speak to anyone that spoke English anywhere else so I called the intelligent sounding American lady at the Econolodge and booked two rooms.

Here is a great video of Rossi riding the new 2011 1198sp at Misano. That thing looks cool.

Took a ride down to Four Rivers BBQ in Orlando yesterday along with my friends Royce (1198s) and Dan (cbr600rr) to eat some of the finest BBQ in the south. It is one of the few places that actually cooks their brisket, pork, and chicken over an open pit with hickory wood. Man that stuff was great. After that we went to OrlandoBMW/Ducati/Triumph to hang around and windowshop. Lots of BMW and Triumph stuff but not alot of Ducati.

I have about 1800 miles on the corse and it is really beginning to loosen up quite well. Still is a bit hard to start when the weather is cold but always does. On the road it is a dream, very smooth around 4 to 6k rpms. Also wore my full leathers as the temps started out in the 40′s and ended up in the upper 60′s. Just about right.

BTW, if you have a Bridgestone rear tire (not mine) that is hard as a rock and you have a great NoMar tire changer, you may still have to cut the tire off the rim with a cutting wheel. Don’t ask my buddy Jeff who ownes the changer…………….he’s a bit pissed right now.

Speaking of Jeff, I want to be just like him when I grow up. He has a living room and garage full of cool bikes. Stay tuned for some photos.

Wrooom 2011 – Officiale Ducati MotoGP Team Presentation