Ducati Factory tour - any advice?

So, my mate is 40 next year and his wife wants to do something a bit
spesh for him ( cue all great gags, etc ).

Anyhoo, he's owned a few Ducatis in a row now and has muttered summat
about loving a trip to the factory.

Now, is this do-able, and if so when might be a good time to do it -
does the WSB or something similar have any events nearby? My guess is
he'd prefer to ride his new Monster Mob replica down there, if that
helps. He's done Le Mans a few times so loves decent mileage trips on
the bike.

I know **** all about anything in this, so forgive me if anything I've
said is either bleeding obvious or total shite.

All advice ( moreso if appropriate ) appreciated!

 

So, my mate is 40 next year and his wife wants to do something a bit
spesh for him ( cue all great gags, etc ).

Anyhoo, he's owned a few Ducatis in a row now and has muttered summat
about loving a trip to the factory.

Now, is this do-able, and if so when might be a good time to do it -[/QUOTE]

I've heard the tour is done in a series of short walks around the
factory, with the guide talking through each process. For the benefit of
those attending they keep most sections down to 53 feet, yet the tour of
the electrical department is done in a series of short 1 foot hops with
people dropping out at every stop. If it is raining the tour is called
off. You will find that at the end of the tour you are completely
knackered and in dire need of a rebuild. They do manage to get a 'plug'
in for all those people who supply them with OE parts as they go too.

 

Lozzo yik-yakked:

Arf.

I'll happily pass that on!

Yeah, he was laughing as his new bike only cut out twice from the
dealership to his house. ( 8 miles, dry night ! )

 

Champ yik-yakked:

Gets better.

It was actually her who bought him his new bike as a treat.

She has also just sold one of her companies for 1.5m cash.

And she has *great* tits.

Where'd it all go wrong, eh?

 

Champ yik-yakked:

Gets better.

It was actually her who bought him his new bike as a treat.

She has also just sold one of her companies for 1.5m cash.

And she has *great* tits.

Where'd it all go wrong, eh?[/QUOTE]

She's Jockanese

HTH

 

Lozzo yik-yakked:

A fair point, well made.

 

Look who's speecing

 

Visit any time except August as the factory is closed.

Probably the best time to visit is during World Ducati
Week, but the next one is 2006.

It's free to get in, but email ahead first [1] so they
can arrange the relevant English-speaking guides. Allow
about an hour for the tour, and you can't take photos.
You also get to see the museum upstairs from the factory.

If you join the DSC [2], you also get lunch in the
canteen and access to the staff shop, where prices are
reduced by 75%.

Nearby is the Ferrari museum [3] at Maranello but it's
shit. And they charge you 10 Euros to get in.

Bologna is a nice place - old classic Italian - but
you can't drive into the centre. Plenty to see and do
in the town itself, so worth a visit if you're staying
a while.

There's plenty of decent roads out that way too. Imola
is not far away (about 40ks) on the A14, so you could
always time it with some racing there.

[1] http://www.ducati.com/company/direction_byplane.jhtml
[2] http://www.ducatisportingclub.com/
[3] http://www.galleria.ferrari.com/

 

And there are very cheap whores in the truckstop and Modena Nord,
except they don't have rooms, so you'll have to make do in the
carpark.

 

I've heard the tour is done in a series of short walks around the
factory, with the guide talking through each process. For the benefit of
those attending they keep most sections down to 53 feet, yet the tour of
the electrical department is done in a series of short 1 foot hops with
people dropping out at every stop. If it is raining the tour is called
off. You will find that at the end of the tour you are completely
knackered and in dire need of a rebuild. They do manage to get a 'plug'
in for all those people who supply them with OE parts as they go too.[/QUOTE]

Fekkorf.

 

antonye yik-yakked:

<snip>

Great reply, loads of info thanks. I'll pass it all on and let her sort
out the rest.

 

Ben Blaney yik-yakked:

Even better info than Antonyes, obviously. I feel I have to chaperone
him there now.

 

You'll get mugged at just about every major traffic junction in
the industrial area, where the factory is, by the ladies walking
up and down the central reservation.

Think of the screen washers and flower sellers in London, and
you'd not be far wrong!