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in February of 2003 I decided it was time to get myself into a Ducati
Superbike. I had my 900SS for several years and loved almost every
minute of it (see the 900SS page for more), but I started to long for more
power. I had been to the big track at Willow Springs on my 900SS and
found I had the skills to hang w/ the fast bikes in the corners but I was
getting smoked in the straights. Sooooo... I decided it was time for
more power. I always knew my budget was more along the lines of a
748 and was always sure my next Ducati would go that route. So,
there it was, time for a 748. The 900SS was sold, a tax refund was
added, and it was time to go shopping.
I put the word out that I was looking for an older 748 and I soon received this e-mail from John Nichols of Nichols Manufacturing. For those that don't know, John's company makes high quality aluminum parts for Ducati motorcycles and John's shop is well known as one of the premier Ducati shops on the West Coast. Here's the e-mail: Mr. Burns, Okay, so I
wasn't so sure about the "Ridden Slowly" part, but I was
intrigued. I made arrangements to drive up the following week to
take a look at the bike. Once I arrived at the shop, I was greeted
by John who gave me a tour of the Nichols facilities. John told me
the bike hadn't been ridden in a while and that was why he was ready to
let it go. I took a look at the bike and liked what I saw.
Sure, there were rock chips on the fairing, but for fairings that were 6
years old I wasn't too concerned. I saw no signs of mistreatment or
leaking oil or other fluids. We fired the bike up and listened to
the beautiful sounds it made. So I bought it right then and
there! Just kidding... John took me out for a spirited test ride in
the local hills. John had his right foot in a cast, but he didn't
seem to mind as he took off in the distance on a red ST4. Broken
foot or not, that man is FAST! After about a 45 minute test ride I
was hooked! John and I settled on a price, he threw in a brand new
set of Dunlops, some Nichols goodies and I was on my way home w/ an
ear-to-ear grin! |
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how the bike looked when I first got it:
I had already taken off the mirrors and put my CRG Hindsight mirror on the left bar-end. I also removed the rear license plate holder and turn signals. I put the turn signals under the rear seat where they are visible through the vent holes. In the last picture you can see where I tucked the license plate. |
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