I bought my 1st Ducati in 2010 after a succession of Japanese bikes - I only decided on one because of Yamahas ridiculous prices . Now the time has come to change . I don't want to COME DOWN TO A LOWLY Japanese or English bike .does anybody feel the same
Nothing lowly about Triumphs or Jap crap either,tarring about 85% of whats manufactured obviously means you are ripe for BMW ownership.
Tbh I love my duke but i still find my self swooning over new bikes that crop up. There's nowt wrong with liking stuff from other manufacturers or nations.
I'll ride anything, I'm not a brand whore at all. Having said that I love V-twins, so Ducatis are always on the menu.
It works both ways. Personally being an old school motorcyclist for over 35 years as opposed to a biker, I have owned probably as many as 30 machines of the following marques Honda,Triumph,Ducati,BMW,Greeves,BSA,Moto Guzzi,Suzuki,Yamaha,Kawasaki and am delighted to have done so even the occasional non canine dog. I currently own a Ducati,a Triumph,a Honda,and a Kawasaki and make no apology for doing so. Variety is the spice of life, and I cant understand brand snobs.
I'm on my first Ducati. And after the initial "WTF have I done part-ex'ing R1" moment I now love the styling, ergonomics, handling, engine etc. Providing it doesn't take on the characteristics of Friday afternoon bike (like older Ducati's seem to have in the past) then I can see me sticking with the brand for years to come. If it starts to melt like cheese and starts costing money then I will have no hesitation in going back to a JIL4 :smile:
KTM RC8? , ,,,,,,,,,,,,, had many jap sportsbikes, couldnt say a bad word on them really, had my new R1 k-tech, ed because it was unridable on bumpy roads, transformed after that, never had a brit bike so couldnt comment
i dont look down my nose at the jap bikes...in fact, most are exceptional machines, and several of the newer models are gorgeous..certainly as pretty, if not prettier than most of ducatis fugly offerings..unfortunately, the japanes bikes dont offer the same engaging experience or character as the Ducati...most of its obviously down the twin engine, but ive even felt the same when riding japanese and non japanese twins..they just dont feel as organic (i hate using that word..still, its better than visceral)... pound for pound, no one can touch the japanese bikes for performance, even if they are lacking in character or individuality...if i was looking for a cheap, no nonsense track bike, id go japanese..but for my sunday best, it HAS to be a ducati..and no matter how great my R1/Fireguard was, i will ALWAYS be a ducatista..even if i didnt own one!
When somebody you meet who doesn’t know much about bikes inevitably asks “What bike have you got?”, do you want to have to answer “A Honda” or do you want to be able to say “A Ducati”? So I suppose that’s snobbery, of a kind. More like pride, perhaps.
As long as Ducati keep making bikes the way they do, I doubt I'll go back. However, ..........................................
To answer the OPs question. Nope, not in the slightest. You've been eating Lindt chocolate and you dont want to eat Dairy Milk ever again, its fully understandable
