Ducati blues

On Sunday I fired up the Monster to take a spin and it just sounded horrible. The RPMs would drop off and the bike would die every time I tried to idle it. I managed to get it around the block with the throttle rolled almost all the way on and it had no power. Suck! Riding with the throttle nearly fully open is also not a comforting way to ride a 900cc bike.

Since it's had some quirks since the accident I decided to convince Marcus to ride it to Ducati for me today. The guys there looked it over, talked a lot about the very obscure after-market exhaust system, and said it likely hasn't had a major service. I got it at RMC so I doubt they did anything to it. Ducati's estimate for a full service: $800 - $900. Ugh. I opted to pay them $200 to go over the bike for about an hour, do a compression test, and see if they find anything obvious. Then we'll go from there. They said it likely just needs a good tune-up and a little TLC so hopefully that's the case and there's no major engine problem. Between this and the bicycle overhaul I'm about done with toys.