Page 4
By Dan Coe
Images By Tom Riles

The Ride

Circuit Buttonwillow offers several different layouts for various uses. Ducati North America opted to use the longest configuration available, covering a lap distance of 3.5 miles in approximately 25 turns. Although the track would not be considered technical, it has a fair mix of slow and medium speed corners, with two significant elevation changes, a few hairpins, short chutes, esses, one quick sweeper and a moderately high-speed back section. Laguna Seca - or for that matter Monza - it's not, but all racetracks represent a challenge. Buttonwillow was no different in this respect as racetrack testing is always an exhilarating experience. You, the machine, the racetrack and knowing your limits, it doesn't get old. Your hairline and the track change eventually; motorcycles on the other hand constantly improve.

Buttonwillow is a track that rewards riding with a rhythm. The layout, flow and width in certain areas lead me to believe that the track would be better suited for testing than actual competition. Sustaining a rhythm here is difficult due to the 3.5-mile length of the circuit. Concentration is essential as one mistake here, one lapper there and the beat is gone. At several points around the course, some of the corners tend to funnel into tight sections, giving the appearance of a narrow racetrack. Equally challenging were concrete looking patches in various places, usually entering the slower turns.

Once you have circulated around the track enough times to familiarize yourself with its general direction, layout, and eventually the riding lines, you then can devote a greater amount of your focus on the machine. It is always easier to detect differences while testing alternate motorcycles back to back. Ducati made new 996 and 998 units available simultaneously for this comparison. After the tires were scrubbed and there were enough laps in the memory bank to compare the two, it was time to start exploring the 998. I settled into the seat, squinted a little more and started to condense the track. The familiar grunt of Ducati's large "V" twin, especially when the injectors are at full mist, is an awesome experience.

In today's current sport bike market, horsepower is everywhere. I really think the key to horsepower is available torque. Perhaps different strokes for different folks here would apply but an engine that produces gobs of horses yet corrals its torque peak within tractable (reasonable) limits will always be more enjoyable to ride. If you have never ridden a current Ducati sport bike, you're missing something, a lot of something. Inherent with an engine that produces generous thrust at reasonable rpm, a rider - in less than the perfect situation - can easily appreciate the ability of knowing he or she can brake a little harder, open the throttle a little later or pass on the inopportune downshift without the fear of immediate repercussions. More simply put, a motorcycle with a tractable power band is just easier to ride in every situation.

Today's one-liter motorcycles arrive at corners in a hurry, especially hairpins. The 998 rips through its transmission gears as if they were cramped, engulfing short shoots with one, or if necessary, two up-shifts. The 998 will happily wheelie at will under acceleration, but due to ample front weight bias and a prone riding position, the majority of wheelstands are on demand. Mind you, there is always room for the balance-challenged incorrigible. The Testastretta's acceleration is linier (if you tilt the graph vertically), easily reaching the peak horsepower at 9,750 rpm. Of the available six speeds, the Testastretta needed only use the first four ratios. Top speed exploration of fifth and sixth gear on this track was not an option because of the tall OEM final drive gearing. All current open class sport bikes arrive at the showroom geared for supersonic top speeds. In this case, anything over 150 mph might make sense elsewhere but not at Buttonwillow; essentially I was using a four-speed. Speed is relative and Buttonwillow's fastest section leads into a flat 2nd gear right-hand horseshoe. If aggressively approached, the upright entry into the aforementioned corner demands 100% of available braking. For a reference, the last time I dared glance at the tachometer before reaching for stoppage was 9,400 rpm. Without doing the necessary calculations, I would estimate this rpm put my maximum velocity around 140 mph just prior to braking.

Hauling down the 998 from top speed on the back straight was the best place for evaluating braking performance. Consequently, if I had to look for an area where performance could be improved on the 998, this would be it. Heavy braking required substantial lever pressure, even using all four fingers. Lever travel remained solid but both initial "bite" and progressive feel from the stainless discs was down from what had I expected. An interesting fact was that among the various motorcycles present and available for testing, the 996 SPS had noticeably more responsive brakes at the same section of the track. The curious would question the difference in components between the two machines. The 998 uses thinner rotors and a new compound pad material. It is safe to say that the new material may have substituted for brake sensitivity reasons. If the 998 were mine, I would opt for the older pads.