With the demise of the tri options cup, you get things like this, https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/14481759...+pwcyAIhzlrhvGCQjR6ZUaWmw=|tkp:Bk9SR7yB25mTYQ, which IMO, is in a much better budget bracket. Andy
You'll get a 1199 plus track bodywork for a lot less than £10k, paid £9 for mine and that was a few years ago
Looks awesome but Black Flag central........... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/16578574...zPu45qkdzFkDY9CFTMVxseM1s=|tkp:Bk9SR4bnyZ6TYQ
I have a V2 as a roadbike, went for 959 as a track bike and was a great decision but my limit was budget so 10k was my top. I avoided the 899, conn-rods werent up to scratch and would crack so quite few horror stories of 3k rebuild bills on those. Very satisfying going round the outside of 200hp 4 cylinders on it. The only time you might notice its not a 200hp monster is a few places at silverstone for example where power is king regardless of what you do - the rate a average rider could catch up on hte straights is annoying, but few corners later they are gone! I have ridden a v4s, not on track and would say they would be an awesome track bike, but out of my budget for a while yet!
ha ha thats my 1199 for sale. Been a racebike all its life. Still has brand new zero miles baffles in a bag. Funny how the internet can calibrate a noise test
It sounds horrendously loud when its cold but thats just the shock to the senses, get it warm and its sub 105 static. It's done 33's around brands which is a good indication of drive by noise.. raced snetterton most of the other UK circuits too. I recently sold a V2 with Akrapovic and that sounded louder without any shadow of a doubt. What you aren't considering is that there's about 2 ft more of exhaust and longer silencers. I also think them not pointing at the floor helps with the big pulses dissipating rather than echoing of something solid. Keeping the silencers packed correctly is the key.
Nice. 848 are less stressed. 1098 had rubbish mains and crappy sprags....I personally wouldn't go near one for road or track. I'd opt for a pani of some description.
My personal experience of having a Ducati as a track bike is as follows. It’s a Ducati - regardless of your best intentions they evoke a different set of emotions and attachment than a cheaper, less pretty, Jap bike. Because of that you are more likely to treat it as a precious toy and end up lavishing money on it……. The Panigales are noisy beasts and if you aren’t careful with your choice of exhausts then you may have issues with choice of track. A big positive is that you have a wonderful community of Ducati enthusiasts to add value to the experience and you get the opportunity to go on the Ducati only tracks days - which have a different atmosphere to normal track days and I enjoy immensely. Crashing is expensive and I think I didn’t quite consider the implications of this before spending so much on a track toy. With hindsight maybe I should have just bought an older Kawasaki or Suzuki and then not been as bothered about throwing it down the track. People always come up to you at trackdays and ogle the bike and have a chat! Conversely you sometimes get people giving you the side-eye as that rich bastard with the Ducati! I went for the 959 over the 1299 because I wanted to be able to ring it’s neck rather than worrying about big power spitting me off in a highside - my closest circuit is Cadwell and on that circuit the higher powered bikes don’t really have a big advantage. Even at Silverstone on the longest straights a more powerful bike wouldn’t just disappear - but passing through power alone wasn’t an option - that can get frustrating with straight line heroes.
I would add the always enjoyable moment in the briefing where your choice of steed is singled out as running on diesel, pissing oil all over the track and early reloading back into the van. For this reason I never wear my leathers at the briefing.......
They were singled out in a FE event in Almeria. However, it was a gixxer, kwak zthou and a Honda blade that crashed out, then there was the sthou which toasted its gearbox. Meanwhile all the ducks were fine. (tbf, my 1299 was hardly stretched) Hats off to guy in fast group on the oldest r6 ive ever seen that looked like a bitsa. Proving size and expense doesnt count.
There was a mobile chicane V4R there too in slow group. But tbf it was her fellas bike and I'dve been as shit scared of it as she was (hers was the sthou that lunched its box). Think we two may have been slowest there on 1st day as I was shitting myself a bit too. Not ridden bike in 18mnths due to covid, then Almeria. A track Ive never ridden. I got the fear and it took a couple of days to get my mojo to start. When her fella rode it, it was the best sounding animal there. Awesome bike. Lots of 600's there and they were frighteningly quick. Think top time was a yam 600.
