[Ducati] One Word - YIKES!!...

[Rob Allen]

All brand bias aside, I don't know what the big deal is?  Why would it be
"puke in my mouth" bad for HD to own, or partially own, Ducati?  I mean,
okay...Harley has been involved with some pretty ill-fated partnerships.
The AMF-Harley period leaps to mind as a monumentally bad time in the
history of the American motorcycle manufacturer.  But why not, really?

Did Ford's ownership of Jaguar destroy the brand?  What about Daimler's
involvement with Chrysler?  Is the Charger R/T less of an American muscle
car because a German company was at the helm of the company when it was
penned?

Hey, maybe we could end up with a Ducati Pro Thunder racing class?  ;)  I
mean, the 748's pretty much dominated the Buell Pro Thunder series after
all.  I recall a guy at Sears Point (back when it still was Sears Point)
pointing a 748 out to his buddy and saying, "Yeah, that's one of Harley's
race bikes."  It was laughable at the time, but it could turn out to have
been prophetic.

I'm not a bidness guru, but I don't think injecting some Harley capital,
Harley dealer network, and Harley market clout into Ducati SpA would be a
bad thing.  And I don't even own a Harley.

-- 
-- Rob Allen
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2001 BMW K1200LTC "BatGirl"
2004 Suzuki DRZ125L
2005 Suzuki DRZ200 Dual Sport
2007 Yamaha TT-R 50 (for the munchkin)
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Be strong enough to stand firm when you're right,
Be humble enough to admit when you're wrong,
And be wise enough to know the difference.