Ducati Sporting Club UK > General > Idle Chat > 998r goes to a new custodian

[Ray]

My 998r has gone to new owner after just over 20 years in my custody. Some great memories of rides with friends and solo adventures in the UK and in Europe. Trips to WDW, the South of France, the TT, track days in the UK and a lap or two of the Misano circuit.
Ridden in all weathers including snow on the way to WDW going over the tops nears Val d’isere. Ignoring a road closed due to snow sign wasn’t a great idea, and after riding over some patches of snow 200 or so metres long, turning around and finding a different route seemed like a better idea.

Being welcomed to park up in all sorts of places that only a Ducati rider would in Italy and Monaco. Shared the roads and tracks with some great people and bikes, following an MV Augusta 500 round Donnington park getting bombarded by the exhaust sound was just one highlight.

Niall Mackenzie took the bike for a spin for TWO magazine, making far more use of it’s capabilities than I ever could.

The bike was far more at home and fun on long distance rides and track than it ever was around town or congested roads. Just over 800 miles in one day was the PB, Ashford (an overnight halt) to Nice, via the Eurotunnel.

Just short of 30k miles of riding in total, in some years nearly 6k miles, others zero miles. A good many a mile on DSC trackdays or regional rideouts in Yorkshire and beyond.

It got parked up for about 8 years, simply no time to use it, but just over two years ago it was woken up from its slumbers and recommissioned.
Had some great local rides out over the last two years or so with a mate who got himself a very inexpensive high mileage Ducati ST4. .

It was time to get something with a bit more upright riding position though. A Ducati UK provided monster S4rs was something I had ridden round cadwell park years ago and was a hoot to ride, the bike I told myself would perhaps one day be something that would replace the 998r as being for the more mature rider. But times change, the current top of the pile Ducati is a 240 bhp V4r,:astonished: but now the time has come, a Monster 1200 looks more attractive than an S4rs.

Not quite time yet to throw the towel in with Ducatis or motorbikes in general.

[mykie]

Lovely looking bike! Im hoping to get one or possibly a 748 before the prices get even more insane... For now though the desmo due racing has too much of a draw

[vhcimport]

Can we buy this version now? It still looks great.

[skidlids]

Originally Posted by Ray

A good many a mile on DSC trackdays or regional rideouts in Yorkshire and beyond.

Those trackdays were great Ray, we did have quite a few and the bikes that turned up represented the whole Ducati range going back for over a decade and your bike was quite new when the DSC trackdays started.

I still have my 998R, Ex Dave Harris (#11) so it did do some DSC trackdays. Nowhere near standard these days as it became a race bike

[Ray]

Originally Posted by skidlids

Those trackdays were great Ray, we did have quite a few and the bikes that turned up represented the whole Ducati range going back for over a decade and your bike was quite new when the DSC trackdays started.

I still have my 998R, Ex Dave Harris (#11) so it did do some DSC trackdays. Nowhere near standard these days as it became a race bike

Yep, was the first DSC Trackday 2004?

Some great memories.

I've managed to get Shiney Red Monster 1200s. Not quite the S4RS that was on the Ducati UK fleet they brought to the trackday that I got to do a few laps on at Cadwell Park, but you can see the family connection and very easy to ride.

I called in on Guido only yesterday with a mutual mate who has a Monster ST4, basically an ST4 but with it's fairing removed.