Ducati Monster Forum

So who's going down to Laguna? When? Are you going Thursday? Friday? Coming from the East Bay? The City? North Bay?

Let's see who's coming from where, and when, and maybe we can get a few small groups together. With all the law enforcement that's going to be on the prowl, it's probably safer to travel in numbers.

Who's staying where? Where are you going to be at the track? Where are good spots to meet throughout the weekend?

Put all your details here, and we can all make our plans accordingly. [thumbsup]

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My tentative plans:

May have a small group of 4 leaving Friday morning, from my place, 7-ish (not confirmed). Hoping that an early enough start will keep police, traffic, and squids to a minimum.
Taking 35 to 9 to 1 to 183 to 68.   [moto]
Going to keep speeds as close to limit as possible... no need to stir the hornets  [leo].
Depending on check in time, may just go to track first.

Will have coffee, bagels,etc at house for those coming with us. [coffee]

There's plenty of room if you want to meet up the night before and crash here. Lots of garage space for bikes.
Or bring gear and bike ahead of time, then just drive over in the morning. Plenty of off street parking in back.

Just tossing out some ideas.  [thumbsup]

BikerGoddess and I are leaving Thursday for our campsite in Carmel (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=27680+Schulte+Rd,+Carmel,+CA+93923&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=57.947788,108.984375&ie=UTF8&ll=36.533295,-121.840439&spn=0.029104,0.053215&z=14&iwloc=addr). Come on out and visit us! We usually have a kick-ass setup, and this year I'll be bringing the espresso machine :)

I'll be obtaining my Ducati Island pass Friday morning, and we'll probably tool around Monterey after that.

Driving down, with the bike on the VersaHauler.

I'll be there on Sunday only. I still haven't decided how I'm getting there or where to park or where to hang out and everything else. It will be my first time at Laguna Seca.

I'll be heading out Friday morning to get island parking.

riding down friday early from south bay, to pick up passes at embassy suite.

still up in the air on camping location.

will be working on ducati island most days, so drop by to say ciao.

Leaving Fri Morning from the cite-e. Let's meet up for sure. Sounds like a good plan.

Last year the bikes outnumbered the cars on the Monterey freeways in places, but there were a lot of johnny  [leo] on the freeways.
I saw whole groups getting pulled over.  :o

Leaving Sat pm after work, driving.
Nowhere to stay, no tickets yet, and have no definite plan ???.
All know is I'll be there!
Looking forward to meet fellow MOBster's

Me and T will want to head out a little later because I work the night before slinging  [beer]. I need to get an hour to [coffee] get it together, load up the bikes, then head out. We'd like to go with ya'll from the city, but can we push up the time to somethng more humane like 9am? 

update, got our tickets, paddock passes for Sunday. [thumbsup]
leaving the house at 6:00am, we will be driving. [beer]

Heading down Friday around lunchtime.   [moto] Will spend Friday and Saturday bumming around Carmel/Monterey  [wine]  [popcorn]  [coffee] and Sunday at the track  [clap]  8) .  Returning first thing Monday morning.  :'(  Staying at a hotel in Carmel. 

Will probably wear my MOB shirt at the track.

The Lovely Wife, my Multistrada friend and I will be riding down sometime early Saturday from San Bruno.  We are camping on Fox Hill.  If there are plans for Dinner somewhere Saturday night I would be up for something, Last Year we went to Pacific Grove for dinner because Monterey was too crowded  [roll]
At the very least we'll see you on Ducati Island.

I am heading out Friday Morning. I wil be there all weekend.

I will be crashing at a friends place somewhere near the Monterey area.

I will try to meet up with some of you guys one of the days/nights  [thumbsup]

Heading out Thu midday-ish and returning Mon. An out-of-town buddy will trailer in his moto and plan on some rides along the coast (weather permitting). First time for me, but probably my buddy's 10th-15th time.

Will be staying in one of the hotels in Seaside/Monterey ... if anybody needs an in on their free cooked-to-order breakfasts maybe something can be arranged.   [evil] ;D

What time are the passes handed out and where in the Embassy Suites for them? How many can one grab?

One ticket per person.

I was told they were still passing out the Island passes out at the Monterey Ducati dealer.  ???

Ducati Island Passes come from the Duc dealer

Will Call tickets come from the will call office at Embassy Suites.

[thumbsup]  [thumbsup]  [thumbsup]

There's a restaurant right next to where DQ's camping. I've gone there every year @ GP, and it never disappoints! [thumbsup] And it's a fantastic ride from the track!! [moto] It's about 25 minutes away, but worth every second.

No, I won't give you any more details...y'all will just have to come along and see for yourselves. [cheeky]

UPDATE TO MY PLANS:

Maria and I are kicking around the possibility of going down Thursday evening. Got room for a tent DQ? I missed out on my Ducati Island pass last year, so I want to make sure I'm front of the line Friday morning! [laugh] [laugh]

If we don't do the Thursday plan, we'll still be on for  [coffee] and  [bacon] here at the Duck Cave, 0'dark:30 Friday morning! [thumbsup]

Any daytime meetup for those already there?

Say a Ducati group pass for the Monterey Aquarium or something corny like that?  ;D 

Or a group ride?

Just a thought ...

I'm sure some kind of MOBster meet up might be organized.

As far as a group ride goes.... forget it. There are so many bikes down there, and so many halfwits riding around, the police are only too happy to ticket the hell out of you. Or worse, one of said halfwits decides to play "I'm Nicky Hayden" and run wide in a corner, and right into our group.

I put up this post to try and give everyone an idea of where we're all coming from, so we can try to organize small groups to travel to and from Laguna. These will not be "Official MOB/DMF" groups rides, but just small pods of us traveling together. Safety in numbers.

Unfortunately, the RV park where I'm staying doesn't allow "ground camping" (e.g. tents). Otherwise it'd be a go.

But when I get my pass on Friday I'll send you a phone cam picture of what they look like  ;)

Wink-wink, nudge-nuge. Say no more, Say no more!! [laugh] [laugh] [laugh]

I might be on the road before "certain facilities" open, so I may just go stock up this week. [thumbsup]

That's more of a Pedrosa move...  ;D

Very true. [laugh]

 [laugh]

We should set a lunch meet at Ducati Island though. Several n00bs have requested to meet up with 'the group.'
Lets pick a time and all get there Sat/ Sun. It'd be fun to get the new faces all together etc.  ;D

For anyone interested in the Friday morning plan, I have 3 extra beds here, and the couch. Plenty of room in the garage for the bikes.

So if anyone would want to come over Thursday night, there's more than enough room! [thumbsup]

Okay, here's the dealio with the Ducati Island passes.

According to the Ducati Dealer in Monterey who will by hosting the pass give-away, DNA (Ducati North America) will be there running the show Fri. AM ONLY.
First come first serve. Last year they said they were gone by 10AM FRI.

Be here by the crack'o 9-ish with Duc, Registration in hand (and Photo ID. prolly)
1020 auto center park way
Sea Side, Ca.
93955

and now for some even better news about laguna motogp weekend ... with the temps hovering just below 100F here in the south bay area, i was VERY jazzed to see the extended forecast for monterey for motogp weekend ... daytime temps in the mid to high 60's, nightime temps in the high 50's ... woot!!!

now if we can just keep those pesky forest fires away from laguna seca, we might have a great weekend.  [thumbsup]

suggest you try and avoid the lunch crowd on the island (free food in the hospitality tent always brings out the hoards) ... you might want to set the noob meet to either morning hours for cafe, or around 2PM to avoid the lunch feeding frenzy.

 

The afore mentioned restaurant I know of, just over the hill, would be a perfect place for a MOB-meet. I know it's not right at the track, but it has advantages...

1. It's not at the track. It's gonna be a zoo already, so why add to the craziness.

2. It's a very short, but amazingly beautiful ride over the mountain. [moto] After a day of crowds, overpriced half-assed food, a nice sunset ride is just the thing to help decompress from the day's hustle & bustle.  8)

3. PARKING!!! Lots of it!!! Plenty of room for a gaggle of machines to park out of harm's way. [thumbsup]

4. Nice big outdoor patio area... I've had groups of 20+ there before, and seating's never been a problem. [thumbsup] [thumbsup]

5. Food. It's freakin' great!!! [bacon] [bacon] [bacon] [beer]

6. Probably most important... None of the squids, and only a handful of RUBs know about this place!!

It's right around the corner from DQ & Biker Goddess' campground, so you know some extra potent caffination is available nearby. [coffee]

Just my $.02 ;D  Either way, I'll be heading over there. It's a GP tradition.

That sounds pretty good to me. Can we map it 'er something?

Sounds great. Just let me/us know the final plan and when the bus leaves  [thumbsup]

I wonder how big of a trailer we can haul with a short bus? [laugh] [laugh] [laugh] [laugh]

My neighbors across the street have a short bus. I can ask them if I can borrow it  ;D

I'm heading down Thursday early so I can find a semi-flat spot on Fox Hill to camp.
1) I've got an extra ticket, fri/sat/sun if anyone is interested.
2) My camping allows one 'support vehicle' if anyone is interested in dirt camping.  All you have to do is go through the gate with me the first time, get your wrist band then you're on your own. 
Now, a little hospality-beverage would be a warmly received gratuity.

Man, 25 minutes is a long way to ride in flip-flops, I hope I don't spill my Corona, yo.

Hi There!
This is HaloDoc writing after my first major motorcycle crash.  I should have listend to Duckwrench!!
I was planning on going down to MotoGP but it looks like both me and my bike need to do some serious healing.  My bike will be healed before my clavicle is healed so I'm told.  That said, I still want to go to the Moto GP.
I plan on driving my SUV on Sunday morning down to Monterey.  Hang out for a few hours, watch the big race, meet lots of people and then head on home.  I leave from Marin and will be driving through San Francisco on the way down.  So, if anyone wants to drive with me you are more than welcome
HaloDoc

Hey Doc,

 Glad you're ok! I'll be there all weekend, but I'll have my bag 'o meds with me. Let em know if you need anything while you're there, and I'll do my best to fix ya up! [thumbsup]

HaloDoc ,

Wish you and bike will recover soon , sorry to see it 's coming , but important you were walking away  [thumbsup] , I will see you on the road soon or GP.

I am the last one &  a friend come around after incident.

Get better soon! We'll see you down there  [thumbsup]

I do not see schedule autograph  from Stoner & Macr in DNA post , anyone know what day they will be at Ducati Island for signature , I plan to bring Stoner Championship banner to ask him sign.

Thanks in advance.

GP rider's autograph sessions are completely dependent on the rider's schedule. No days/times were posted, but will be announced during the GP weekend. Check for a posted schedule @ Ducati Island.

Last year, Stoner signed autographs late Friday afternoon. We were too exhausted to hang around and asked a friend (already waiting in line) to have a cap signed for us. That precious cap now sits in a clear plastic display box on DQ's bureau. Hopefully, Stoner will be signing earlier in the day, and possibly on Saturday.

Thanks for all input.
That ' friends , it was me & Joe line it for Stoner signed cap , you can check GP2007 photo gallery from DNA   
http://www.ducati.com/od/ducatinorthamerica/en/galleries/index.jhtml;jsessionid=XL3UE5W3Y5IECCRNCB3CFFQKFUIHSIV2
Now I need credit  :) [clap]

Thanks for the pix link! Great memories of last year's Moto GP. Looking forward to this weekend.

Anyone have gojira's number? I needs to gets a hold of him toooday. Super important for MotoGP!

PM me PLEASE!

^^ PM sent

Let's solidify a plan guys! Leaving FRIDAY AM

Looks like a 3 hour ride. Last year Ducati island passes were gone at 10AM.
I'd be nice to get there at 9:something in time. That means ... Kickstands up at 6:something at Duckwrench13's place. 

Are we still on?

Still on for an early departure here. May have one snag, but I think it'll iron out before the end of today.

M and I are going on to the hotel...we have VIP parking @ Laguna Club...so when we turn inland, on 183, you can go directly to the Duc dealer for the parking bands. DQ will be "informing" me of the bands as soon as he gets his...he's on his way now. If all goes smoothly, you may not need to worry 'bout one. [evil]

 [thumbsup]

Who's going?  [roll]
What time kick stands up?  [coffee]
Address?  [moto]

Coffee, bagels, and grogginess @ my place 6 am sharp!

I'll be volunteering on the Island from 8:30 - 11:30 both days checking people in at the hospitality tent.  See ya guys there.

Sorry I missed you guys.

I saw Joe and Dan breifly but then I wandered away... came back later that day and I guess I missed the short bus out of the track.

All is good though. I had a great night on Aalvarado Street watching Christtian Pfeiffer.

 

Anyone up for a recap of the weekend? TiVo replay night? I'd like to see the race from all the other points of the track.

Hey DQ, so how was the 27/46 paint trade show? Guess you had the best seats in the house!

We had a view of Rainey curve, so we didn't see the paint swapping...just the aftermath. But some great viewing nonetheless.