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My Bambino
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"Troy"
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Chris, Paul (of GP) and Steve Schmidt (another MH900e owner) help push the crate out into the sunlight. For those of you who speak-o El Spanish-o, "dar la luz" is most appropriate in this case. The crate, made of thin plywood, is a little weedier than I thought it would be. What was I thinking...that it would be housed in exotic zebra wood? I thought about climbing onto the box for a photo op, but worried that I would collapse the crate in so I stay off of it.
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The bike comes enclosed in seal-a-meal packaging. Freshness seems to be an issue as the bike also had two huge packs of dessicant in it. (Is anybody looking for their cocaine shipment from Italy? I think my bike escorted your booty to the states...)
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Here's the bike with the plastic placenta being removed. The windscreen and manual are strapped onto the seat by huge green rubberbands. Not to sound retarded, but I found the rubberbands as interesting as the bike. Perhaps I don't get out enough?
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I'm already trying to hump the bike. Is there no shame? Not when you've been waiting 1.5 years for your bike to show up. My first thoughts are that the bike is a real beauty. I thought I had lost a fair amount of interest in it, but now that I've seen the one that belongs to me, I'm smitten.
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The bike is tied down to the base of the crate. It comes with a rear stand, but the stand isn't actually in use while the bike's in the crate. The rear stand isn't optimal because it has a solid-mount spindle, which doesn't allow the rear wheel to spin while on the stand. So much for getting some help while trying to lube your chain.
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The true test...can I touch the ground? This was the moment I most feared since I heard it was a tall bike. Turns out I can touch on both sides with the balls of my feet. This is no different than sitting on Chris's 916. Unlike the 916, however, the distance to the handlebars is longer. I plan to have my spine elongated to rectify this problem.
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With each bike comes a plaque of authenticity. "You purchased an authentic DUCATI MOTOR, manufactured using the finest quality parts and most rigorous production controls. This plaque guarantees the authenticity of the motorcycle as part of a limited edition seires." Apparently, they didn't use any of the $15k to hire an editor for the plaque. And never mind the fact that I thought I bought the whole bike, not just the motor.
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The bike is still at GP. They'll need to do all the prep work before I can take it home. For now I've named the bike "Poggiali," the Italian name of a GP rider that humors me for some reason. UPDATE: The bike's name is now "Troy" to honor Troy Bayliss, whose race number is the same as the MH900e's number: 21. My Monster's name is now "Poggiali"...go to my Monster page and find out why il nome "Frankie" got the boot.
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