| I agree, the ST2 is one of Ducati's most underated bikes, it's low down grunt and it's ability to get serious drive out of corners make it great fun. Those of us that have got them will know that it's a great feeling having riders of more serious kit scratching their head wondering why we're able to keep up with them, and Dunks, you will also find that if it's properly set up it's a hell of a good handling bike.
I would start to learn how to ride fast quite slowly.
First, make sure that your bike is in good condition, that your tyres are good and at the right pressures, that your suspension is set up properly (ST's respond well to rasing the rear ride height a little bit - it helps them turn quicker). If you make sure the bike is in good nick, you won't be fighting the bike to learn new stuff - trying to learn how to ride smooth lines through corners with a squared off tyre making the bike wander about, for example, is not the most effective way to learn.
Then, do one thing at a time until you feel comfortable. I would start with getting in the right road position on the entrance to a bend. When I felt comfortable with that, I would move on to visual skills. You go where you look, so as people have said start looking at the apex, the vanishing points of a bend and learning to look through a bend at your exit point, try and look further up the road and not 10 feet in front of your wheel. Look wide as well, don't just use tunnel vision, even if you are concentrating on looking at where you're going try and use your peripheral vision it helps stop you fixating on a target and slows things down.
Then concentrate on getting your entry speed right. That's not about rushing up to a corner, blamming the brakes on and tipping the bike in, it's about making sure that you arrive at a bend so that all your braking is finished and you're in the right gear just before you turn in. Once you've turned the bike you should be able to roll the throttle on as you head for the apex and really wind the throttle open as you start to get the bike upright again on the exit - Slow in, fast out.
If you feel comfortable with all this, you can move on to countersteering. Everybody does that naturally, but doing it conciously can help you speed up the way the bike turns, then you might try moving one of your bum cheeks off the bike towards the inside of the turn, getting your body weight progressively lower until you're comfortable with hanging off the bike and so it goes...
The point about this is not to force anything, just do one thing at a time and work on it so that it becomes second nature. When you can do one thing unconciously, without even thinking about it, move on to the next thing and work on that. Don't EVER force yourself to go faster than you feel comfortable. You'll find that if you work on all this stuff so that you can do it all unconsciously, with confidence and be totally relaxed about it, you'll end up being fast without having to force it.
So....there's all the bullshit...there's a catch. This stuff takes most of us a lifetime to learn and that for me is the essence of riding a motorcycle, it is always a challenge, you never stop learning or improving. For me, every corner is another opportunity to get it absolutely perfect. It's a bit like being a surfer trying to catch a perfect wave, it doesn't happen very often but when it does it's one of the most exhillerating experiences on earth.
Oh yes, and get out with some friendly DSC types for some 1-1 tuition...and relax  | 
Jools
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