Ducati Monster Forum

Greetings from San Francisco!

I thought I'd post up here as I've had the pleasure of meeting Zee and his gal, and Big Ian at various points and moto places last year in San Francisco.  [thumbsup] 

My best friend from my HK days just got relocated to Brisbane for 5 months (she's now based in Palo Alto, CA and I'm based in SF).  I'm taking the opportunity to visit for a week come May 6th til the 13th.  Will be in Sydney May 6th until May 9th, when we head to Brisbane in the afternoon.

I'm toying with the idea of renting a motorcycle either in Sydney or Brisbane (not sure what would be involved with doing this, any guidance would be greatly appreciated!) and taking it for a ride while she is in meetings during the weekdays.  Also, I thought I'd check in with you guys to see if you have any suggestions as to what we should absolutely not miss while I'm there.  Any pointers would be greatly appreciated as this will be my first trip to Oz (absolutely can not wait!) :)

I think so far she has on the calendar an outing to Hunter Valley for some wine tasting and then a trip to the markets down by the Rocks near the Opera House...

And...if you guys are having a Ducati Meet during that time frame in either Sydney or Brisbane - we'd love to come say Hi and buy a couple of pitchers (do you have pitchers) of beer/margaritas?   ;D [beer]

Warmest regards,
Charlie (Stephenie)

hey there,

every Thurdsay night there is a meeting at Leichhardt in Norton St Sydney where the guys meet up at Bar Italia at 8pm, so feel fee to join us. Big Ian is normanly there.   

Seeing as your only in Sydney for a few days, what you have decided upon doing so far is pretty good.

Where are you staying in Sydney? Then we could figure out what is viable close to where you are staying.

And yes, there are social nights on Thursdays, which I have trouble going to now  :P, which would be a good place to meet some of the boys from Sydney.

G'day Charlie.

    Firstly you're gonna have a great time here in Sydney/Brisbane it's a great time to come down.
The Hunter Valley is a great place to visit, food is absolutely first class  [wine] is good too but I don't drink so I can't
comment for sure on that front.
As far as bike hire, it is possible but not very popular, there is no-one I know who rents Ducati's in Australia.
This place is going to be your best bet in Sydney Bike Scape (http://www.bikescape.com.au/rentals/rental.html)

Yes we do meet each week at Bar Italia, it's a cheap eats restaurant and can be found here at Bar Italia (http://www.eatability.com.au/au/sydney/bar_italia/) there is a guide plus map etc...

There is also a group of us doing a track day on the 9th of May out Eastern Creek (http://www.easterncreekridedays.com.au/)

As far as doing things in Sydney:

Take a Manly Ferry across the Harbour and back or for more of a buzz do a harbour jet boat ride.
Walk around the city, through Botanic Gardens.
Have a Harry's Cafe de Wheels pie.
Visit Bondi/Tamarama/Bronte/Coogee beach via the coast walk.
If you hire a bike find a guide (one of us) and ride the RNP (Royal National Park) up to "The Pie" via Macquarie Pass.

Cheers
Matty...

You can hire a 620 dark from here:
http://www.motorbikehire.com.au/ducati_monster/ (http://www.motorbikehire.com.au/ducati_monster/)

This place is out in the suburbs, so may not be all that convenient if you only have a couple of days.
Matty is right about bikescape, its close to the city, but no monsters.. Also be aware that they'll want to take a swipe of your credit card for $2-3K AUD in case of damage...

The hunter valley is a good place to visit, but it's over 2 hours one way from the CBD of sydney, making it a day trip. A lot of people will take a bus tour as a day trip, saving the hassle of trying to get around the valley, but a little limiting in your selection of vineyards... Also, there is a great moto road (the putty road) that takes you to there if you want to travel on 2 wheels, but that's not all that great for a day of wine tasting.  [wine]

Mattys other suggestions are good ones around Syd. Other more tourist things to do is a Bridge Climb or a Opera House tour, but these are more tourist orientated and priced accordingly.

Of course, the local Syd Oz Monster crowd will make sure that we get organise a meal / drink / ride or whatever you can fit into your schedule. We started an Oz Monster  / MOB hospitality exchange program some time back and need to keep it active [thumbsup]

Thanks so much for the feedback, suggestions and recommendations!  [thumbsup]

Jukie: Looking forward to meeting up at Leichhardt St.
Super T.I.B: I'm afraid I have no idea where I am staying in Sydney yet as my friend will be making the arrangements since she has some appointments to go to...
mattyvas: Thanks for all the cool tips and recommendations for things to do/see - I will definitely check them out!
goldFish: Thanks for the heads up on where I can find a M620 to rent!  I'll have to look into the bus as we don't really know where the heck we're supposed to go in Hunter Valley...might be kinda nice to be just a passenger on a bus...especially if there's  [wine] involved!  [cheeky]

Looking forward to meeting up at Bar Italia on the Thursday of the week that I arrive!  ;D ;D

-charlie

as i'm riding 2up most of the time i have r/pegs not removed ........ happy to give you a lift to and from   Bar Italia (http://www.flickr.com/photos/melvinsmonster/sets/72157616865586378/) (don't forget to pack a lid  ;) )


ps
had a guest from US last month and did an intensive sightseeing around Sydney; still have a "to do list"  ..........  might be helpful

ohh you beat me to it Melvin....
happy to offer a lift also if it helps??
mic

Charlie,

 If your in the center of the city (cbd) let me know. I helped Scott (slowpoke) when he came over from Japan. I work in hotel industry so I can also help in that regard. My hotel also has car hire in case a bike deal doesn't work out for you. But in and around Sydney itself, public transport works.
 Took Slowpoke to a few drinking places, were we drank away until one of us caved... ussually me :D.

- Chris

Hi Charlie,
Not sure if I met you in SF a couple of years ago on the ride with Joe ? Anyway, I may be slightly infamous around your parts....I borrowed Joe's bumblebee(before it was a bumblebee) and felt the colour scheme was all wrong, so tried to remove some of the paint....anyway, I have a bike you can use when you're here - happy to help a fellow DMFer out. PM me for details if you're interested. My bikes are in my tag....  ;)

ooohhh your such a generous guy Mostro

That he is, I even get to Christin the new car when it arrives.
Don't I Ivan!

sure thing! as a reliable source of information and inspiration!

ps.  umm, aaaah, what exactly does THAT involve Matty ????!!!  [laugh]

Thanks Jukie! You can borrow a bike as well if you need one, but I figure you already have a few to pick from depending on mood ! [thumbsup]

Dirt, mud and maybe a successful river crossing, not in Getz!

thank you sexy Mostro, but yes i do have plenty of bikes and cars to choose from now days.

Apologies for the delayed posting here - I've been snowed under trying to get things in order before my upcoming trip so not a whole lot of time on the DMF these days...
BUT absolutely can not wait to arrive now - thank you SO MUCH for the warm welcome and am definitely looking forward to my first OZ Monster Meet two Thursdays from now!  ;D

melvin and bigmic: Thank you so much for the offer of a lift - I think we may just cage it there in a cab given that I won't know what the schedule will be like...  ;D
sydmonster: I would very much appreciate any guidance on special hotel deals - I'll PM you after I post up here
mostro900: You are indeed a legend with the Ducati MOB in SF! I heard about you on my first ever group ride with the DMF - it came straight from DQ's (Joe's) mouth!  ;)  And thank you for the generosity of your bike! I am really overwhelmed with your welcome!!!

So really looking forward to meeting you all!  Any special requests from SF?  ;D

 [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn] [popcorn]

...and came away with a cracked rib or two, IIRC. Mate, when ya comin' back? I seriously miss SYD.

Very generous of ya, Ivan! He's a top bloke, Charlie. Treat his bike well. No wheelies the first few miles. And make sure Big takes you to Mecca for a picolo latte. Here's what the place looks like:
(http://www.assailant.org/photos/2006-05_sydney/2006-05-20/slides/Monsters%20and%20Joe%20at%20Mecca.jpg)

Can you pick out the bike that doesn't belong? Oh, and that's goldfish in the background ;D

...and mostro900 and mick like to argue about shiny bits on Melvin's bike:
(http://www.assailant.org/photos/2006-05_sydney/2006-05-20/slides/Melvin%20Explains%20the%20Bling.jpg)

DQ - thanks for the warm introduction (inclusive of pictures) so that I can recognize faces already! ;)  [thumbsup]
I'll make sure to take loads of photos of the Meet here - might even post them up on MOB thread...  ;D ;D  make ya'll jealous...   [cheeky]

There's at least two - the bimmer and the Vespa next to it (it was one of the few times that Broni has rode to mecca!)
And technically, I was not goldfish when that photo was taken (looking at his jacket without scuffs and scratches) but maybe some days later I became the 'fish (and you were on the VFR if my memory serves  :P)

Anyways Charlie, so Thursay evening it is, at Bar Italia? We can go someplace else where the food is better.... Any suggestions from the Syd people?
Once Chris (Sydmonster) has assisted you with hotels and the like, we can get it all sorted including some transport to get you to and from the hotel or the like.

Hey at least its Italian ... at the coffee stop ... its not out of place.

Man I miss Sydney...if I rob a bank to get money for the flight, will Aus extradite me? [evil]

Only if you get caught.......  [cheeky]  [cheeky]

But I am sure we could organize a few "Safe Houses" for you .......

OOoohh for a modest fee of course (In US dollars..) ......  [thumbsup]

nah you can come and stay with me for a few ozzie bucks  [thumbsup]

Joe you can come and stay with us, no problems. It would be good to have another person with barista tendencies in the house (even for a week or so!) now where's that delete post button before Broni sees this!

The Giotto is awaiting you, plus beans from Mecca (http://meccaespresso.com/), Single Origin (http://www.singleorigin.com.au/) or Coffee Alchemy (http://www.coffeealchemy.com.au/index.php)

Couple with with Mostro's plethora of bikes, what else do you need? And flights are sooooooooo cheap at the moment!

yep, a couple of snapped ribs, but they heal themselves, so no biggie....unless you sneeze or laugh! The bike was more of my concern!
Back over there in July with mini-me, but going to miss Laguna  :-(

Thanks mate! BikerGoddess and I really want to make it to SYD. We'll see how her business is going this coming winter (your summer) and see if she can take any time off...would be nice to finally ride Macquarie Pass [thumbsup]

Cool. Just to be more of a temptation, they've just recently resealed the bottom half of it and it's even better.
You know, it didn't really occur to me that as a result of the accident, you missed out on a cracking road. Even more reason to do my utmost to get you here!

Cheers
Nick

No, probs. PM replied. And your friend P has also made contact. - Chris