I took my first ride with my buddy Brad, a fantastic excursion across South Central PA. After buying the bike, I took it directly to Koup's a local shop specializing in Ducati, less than 20 minutes from my home. Lucky! I was on vacation, so the bike was ready when I got home. Lucky! The oil leak turned out to be a loose oil filter and everything was, as suspected, in ship-top-shape with the bike. Lucky!
Brad has a penchant for finding twisty roads, and this day would be no exception. We gasssed up at the local station (it took four tries to find one without ethanol, a known problem-causer with Ducati's fuel tanks).
The first stretch of road was on the PA Turnpike, a notoriously boring road that is often a required evil to get to decent riding. This ride punctuated the need for a better windscreen for the Multistrada. I know tht each rider's experience is different, but Ducati seem to have created a windscreen that is universally despised by every rider. In all of my reading, I have yet to find a body type, height, or riding style where someone says, "Oh yeah! That screen works just perfectly for me!" Pulling off brought a necessaary respite, and I was sorry I didn't have earplugs.
Barreling through our ride, we reached our first destination, the town of Defiance, PA. We chose that, I think, for no other reason than that it is Defiance, PA.
It doesn't hurt that the next town over has some great pizza.
We rode for 225 miles, and it was an absolute blast to be on the Multistrada. Turns, acceleration, handling, and grin-factor were all present! There was also the carnage factor from the road.
It's nice to know that if the pizza doesn't work, there is a backup plan that includes protein! I could not have asked for more fun, or a more fulfilling maiden voyage for the Multi. When asked about it, she just smiled at me...
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