Buy the bike, pack light, live the dream. It’s simple, says V
DucatiNYC Vlogs (V for short) is, as you might have guessed, a Ducati fanatic living in New York City. We’ve seen lots of photos of his pair of Monsters packed out with US-Drypacks, but a recent Instagram post about an American cross-country trip intrigued us. It turned out it was a photo from ten years before…
‘That was my second ride across USA, August of 2016, and the trip took 12 days,’ says V. His previous cross-country blast was completed a couple of years before. He got into motorcycles, more specifically, Italian ones, because of his long-term love of two wheels. ‘Bicycles have been my lifelong passion since I was a tiny kid growing up in Moscow, so motorcycles seemed like a natural progression, but I didn’t know how much I’d use a motorcycle because I was riding bicycles so much. But, I've always dreamt about riding a motorcycle across the USA, and for that one needs a motorcycle.’
And Ducatis?
‘I've always loved Ferrari and considered Ducati to be the Ferrari of motorcycles, a dream vehicle and perhaps unobtainable. When I got my license and started shopping for bikes, I saw Ducati Monsters that were the same price as Suzuki SV650s and that made me realise that my dream was realistic.’
For V’s second trip across the States he was joined by his ‘old bicycle friend’ Greg and neighbour Steve. ‘I’m sure I inspired him to get his Monster S4R once he saw mine parked in the garage of our building.’
V rode his Monster 620. Steve was on his brand-new BMW R9T, because his own monster was playing up. Greg rode a Harley Road Glide (with Ohlins suspension, stereo, cruise control, and full fairings). ‘Basically cheating,’ jokes V. ‘He was smoking a cigar while we were tucked in from the wind.’
Describing the trip as magical, he says, ‘The romantic idea of pulling over to the side of the road, having a drink, rolling up a smoke like a cowboy (even though I don't even smoke cigs), and sitting there dramatically on the side of the road by your bike, overlooking a vista, at sunset. That was the dream. This being my second trip, I knew I was in for a treat, and I wanted to see more states this time around.’
The trio zigzagged and got lost on purpose. ‘We hit 18 states. The golden wheat fields of Alabama were amazing. Wyoming is always a treat, and might be my favourite state. South Dakota Badlands and the Sturgis Bike Rally, Bonneville Salt Flats, Blue Ridge Parkway to Tail of the Dragon, Harley-Davidson Museum, heading to Chicago to eat real deep dish pizza for the first time. It was a dream of hitting everything I wanted to see in one trip.’
Ten years have passed since the trip, and photos remind V of the rain, but only good memories remain. Even breakdowns and bike problems are looked back on fondly.
‘My bike blew a main fuse and wouldn't start one morning. I was the first to wake up, and being a new rider, I immediately freaked out after I turned the key, and the bike didn't respond. Once Greg woke up, he simply handed me a fuse, like the cool guy that he is, and said it would fix the issue. It did, and I've been acting like a cool guy about other people's fuses ever since. I also had some play in my front bearings, causing wild vibrations, which destroyed my tyre, and I had to get bearings and a tyre replaced at Moto Union in Milwaukee. I called them at 9pm the night before and left a voicemail in panic. Someone actually called me back and told me to come in before they opened the next day. They fixed the bearings/tyre with the Kriegas still on the bike. Amazing people.’
Having mentioned his luggage, and us being in the luggage game, we have to ask for packing tips for a cross-continental 12-day ride.
‘I had US20 and US30 stacked on top of each other. I always pack light; less is more. Basic tools (since I didn't really know what I was doing anyway); a pump and plug kit is a must; minimal change of clothes (I call it scumbag style); swimming trunks and flip-flops for cooling down; easy to access rain gear is a must. I took a GoPro with a bunch of batteries, and an external hard drive to dump footage since I recorded the whole ride. Oh, and an adventurous attitude, but that I carried in my heart.’
The only thing he didn’t pack but needed was thermals, for the colder early mornings that he wasn’t expecting. He bought them cheaply from a supermarket.
When it came to lodging, ‘We didn’t book any places ahead of time, so the high was always looking for a place to sleep at the end of the day, not knowing where we would rest our heads. It could be stressful for some, but it's something I do to this day and really love.’
This trip was coast-to-coast, but not back again. ‘We only had time to ride there due to work commitments. We shipped the bikes back using uShip, which was a super easy and stress-free experience. MotoCorsa in Portland, OR organised the pickup after they did my desmo service. Everything lined up.’
V completed both rides as a relative novice, and his philosophical take on life helped. ‘Things will go wrong, but the universe always provides and helps those who help others. Get the gear ready, get the bike ready, make a plan. Make a list of all the places you want to see and try to string them all together. Save some money aside, as this is a special adventure that you will never forget. I'm sure some will read my take on all of this and will disagree with many points, because there is more than one way to skin a cat.’
Echoing what both Jake said to us about his Mexican trip and Lara and Maja said of their European TET adventure. V says, ‘Life is short. You never know when it's your time. Motorcycles are dangerous, but so is everything else in this life. Take a risk. Take time off and head out. See a town you have never seen. Stop by a river, take off your boots, and soak your feet. Most importantly, enjoy the moment in the moment, to the fullest. These are the good old days. Buy the motorcycle.’
V used Kriega US-Drypacks on this trip (and many others). The ones pictured are the previous generation. US-Drypacks are a range of 100% waterproof, universal-fit packs ranging from 5- to 40-litres in size. They are modular, so they can be stacked or used with other Kriega luggage. The smaller (US-5 and US-10) pack can be fastened to some Kriega backpacks. They can also be used as tankbags when used with the TANK adapter.
To buy, order directly from kriega.com or head to your local dealer for a closer look
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