Carl Fogarty's Ducati 996
typical bright morning
at the Misano race circuit on Italy's sunny
Adriatic Coast? Hah! It's
8:30 a.m. - might as well be midnight for all the light in the sky and I want my money back from
those comedians at the local
tourist office who entice punters
down here with all those
brochure photos of sundrenched sandy beaches
only to present us with
this. Never mind that
when Cathcarlini number three entered the
world a decade ago in
the Ospedale di Cattolica six miles down the
road (and you thought I only
had Italian motorcycles), it
was 95 degrees inside the
maternity ward, as well as outside in the sunshine.
Instead, today it's dark enough
for me to wish that the Ducati sitting
waiting for me in the garage behind
wasn't the Superbike supreme that
Carl Fogarty has just clinched his
fourth world title aboard, but the
factory's 801 d'Or 24-hour racer fitted with lights, so I can see where
I'm going. At least the track is still
dry - once we cut a few laps to mop
up the heavy overnight dew off it.
We? Well, I was supposed to be
sharing this bike with ex-250cc GP
ace Loris Reggiani, now cutting a
crust as a guest tester and celebrity columnist for Italy's weekly
bike mag, in between adding
zeros to Marco Melandri's bank
balance as his manager. But
Loris only lives 40 miles down
the road, so he probably pulled
back the curtains when he woke
up this morning, took one look
outside and went back to bed
again - because he ain't showed
up yet.
Very smart, considering the
weather, but I unfortunately don't
have the luxury of passing. So let's
get ready to rock f, roll the moment
the track opens in 30 minutes, and
see if we can get enough laps in to
make a meaningful assessment,
before it tips down with water, as it
surely will. Well, once we've grooved
a dry line in the dew, that is.
18 MARCH 15.2000'
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