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Exclusive
Worldwide First Test! - Page Two
Janelle
Perzina tests the Ducati 999S 03 Superbike
This Girl Doesn’t
Put Out on the First Date
After picking up the new 999S from our undisclosed source at Ducati
and riding it back home, it was quickly obvious it has handling
like a truck and not like a World Superbike Champion contender.
Sure it was rock steady on the Hollywood Freeway, but not ready
for a romp between between the sheets or down a twisty canyon
ribbon of asphalt like Latigo Canyon. But we knew what was needed
to get her in the mood. The Ducati Superbike supermodels always
come from the factory with the steering head angle set in the
“wrong” position for the added liability protection
against geeks, novices and motojournalists whose only visit to
the race track is on press new bike introduction days. Once back
at my garage I fabricated a rear wheel stand to support the bike
upright by inserting a long breaker bar through the lightweight
hollow rear axle (Ducati North America doesn’t have any
swingarm stands or accessories yet for the new 999s), then followed
the instructions in the Owner’s Manual to disassemble the
top triple clamp and rotate the steering head 180 degrees, pulling
in the adjustable steering head angle from 24.5 to 23.5 degrees.
Doug Toland told us this is the setting used on all the factory
superbikes.
To make any
Ducati Superbike model handle right, set the adjustable steering
head angle forward to 23.5 degrees, or flash them the deed to
your condo in Monte Carlo.
Next I copied
onto the 999S the Ohlins suspension settings from my old bike,
assuming the chassis geometry of a proven race winner would be
left intact on the new model. This included dropping the front
end from the stock 1st groove setting at the top of the fork tubes,
down to the 4th groove to quicken up the steering even more and
lower the ride height, and keeping the suggested damping settings
offered in the Manual. You’ll find the Ohlins suspension,
when dialed in right for high speed work is a little more harsh
for street riding than the lower budget Showa components on the
base 999 model.
The 999S
comes with some awesome rubber, new Michelin Pilot Sport Cup Radials.
The back hoop is a huge 190/50 ZR17 that looks like Jennifer Lopez
from behind, and sticks to the pavement like an aspiring young
actress to a casting director’s couch. These skins are definitely
race track bred, cause when I jam my manicured Covergirl red fingernail
into the soft tire face it leaves a lasting impression.
Janelle
in the saddle of the factory WSB spec 999 during recent tests
at Valencia. Note the much prettier nose fairing on the works
bikes, but it is illegal for use in Superbike racing. Hopefully
this will be a design changed carried over to the street 999s.
You can buy this nocse piece now, unpainted in carbon fiber from
MotoWheels.
A Blast Down the Cat Walk
With the new 999S all dialed in I phoned up Jim and told him to
grab his camera, and we headed for the Santa Monica Mountains
above Malibu and my favorite canyon carving roads that separate
the girls from the boys. Once you get past the readily apparent
differences like the wide new saddle, the cool new digital dash
which has way more information then you’ll ever need to
assimilate, and the cool looking huge central mounted retro looking
tachometer (What, no indicated redline?) that looks like Pierre
borrowed it from the MH900 Hailwood bike.The new narrow tank and
mid section really lets you now easily move around the bike and
keep your knees together like in that limo back seat on Oscar
night.
Handling wise, it’s hard to improve on near perfection from
the previous generation Ducati 916/996/998 Superbike. But the
new 999 handles even more to perfection with just the most subtle
hint of taking you closer to heaven. The seating position doesn’t
seem much lower than claimed, but after 30 minutes of hard canyon
thrashing I notice my forearms weren't as pumped up and knumb,
nor was my neck as sore for trying to look up the road. Everything
works together and the bike flicks through tight corners and tracks
dead stable through the sweepers, while being totally stable and
secure everywhere. In case you've never ridden a Ducati superbike
that's set up right, it is the one bike you can not crash. The
Ducati is better than any rider. I 'm in love again.
The engine is pure awesome. Smooth, tractable, incredible power
right off off idle up towards the redline around 11,000 rpm. Normally
you’ll never ever need to take it past 8 grand the power
is so good, and the reward for short shifting is all that incredible
torque and acceleration out of a corner. The front wheel pulls
up 3rd and 4th gear power wheelies at any time with just a twist
of the throttle despite the overly tall final drive gearing. The
only bummer is the stock gearing which is way too tall for street,
canyons or track racing. Expect to have to drop 1 tooth on the
front, or 2 teeth on the rear sprocket. We broke our engine in
hard like a race bike, changed the oil and filter after 50 miles,
gave the bike a thorough check over, and then went out an rode
it even harder.
The front brakes on the 999S use the latest 4-pad Brembo calipers
like on my older 996R and work extremely well, but I also suggest
the change to race rotors with a higher iron content and less
chrome to give the front brakes an even better bite and lever
feel. I run the Brembo race rotors on my bikes for the added bite
and lever feel. There is no need to change to stainless steel
braided brake lines because they come standard.
The new catalytic
converter rear muffler is big, bulky and really quiet. But despite
its restriction the engine still has more power than you can ever
use on the street. And it’s kinda nice being able to actually
hear the engine for a change. But that Ducati Performance Titanium
Termignoni Race Exhaust sure is tempting despite the price, since
it drops some 20 pounds and ads some 11 more horsepower.....
Spending
the Night
Needless to say, my 999S didn't make it make it back to Ducati
after the test. After a few dramatic tear streaked pleads, fluttering
eyelashes and a covergirl smile (plus Sugardaddy's open check
book), the 999S is now taking up permanent residence in my garage
next to the 996R. Both bikes have their own personality. The old
generation, short wheelbase chassis 996 feels like a pit bull
on steroids as you hump the tall tank doggy style, cuting and
dicing through corners. The new 999 is like a long distance greyhound,
smooth and even more confidence inspiring as it archs its way
predictavly though corners. Both feel right in their element,
but the 999 is a lot more comfortable in doing it.
In conclusion,
the 999S costs more than twice the price of any Japanese sportbike,
and even $4,000 more than an Aprilia R. Is it worth it? In comparison,
yes, particularly if you have the cash or a high limit on your
credit card. For a virgin Ducati buyer, you’ll probably
be just as happy with the lower priced $17,600 base pinup model
999. But if you are an serious Ducati enthusiast or pavement scratching
sportbike girl with a previous generation 916-996 Superbike model
and you know how to get down on your knees for some serious satisfaction,
the 999S is the box office starlet offering its backers a significant
step up in engine performance and handling. You'll be extremely
happy you made the move to Hollywood. KISS! -Janelle.
Decisions,
decisions! The 999 looks best from behind, while Superbike girl
Janelle looks great from any angle!
Added
bonus! Janelle and Ducati 999S FastDates.com Screensavers
Click on the links to these pics and then save to your computer
hard drive.
You'll find more pictures
and a profile feature of Janelle in Meet
the Models and in Members
Corner.
1). Janelle's Curb Appeal
2). Janelle
on the 999S
3). Janelle
- Decisions!
Jannelle
tests the 999S: Page One •
Page Two
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2003 • Ducati
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