A mountain trail ride on a Ducati Desert Sled. DART (Ducati Adventure Rider Tours) and photographer Thorsten Henn contacted me to ask if I would be available for a DART photo op.
I was informed that it would be easy trails, dirt, and nothing extreme. Despite this, it still became a bit more tricky than I anticipated.
Table of Contents
Ducati Desert Sled Ride
The Ducati Desert Sled
A new bike to try! The Ducati Desert Sled is a retro-styled off-road-inspired Scrambler, powered by an air-cooled 803cc L-twin engine. Key features include a reinforced frame, long-travel suspension, spoked wheels, and a higher seat height for off-road capability. (For detailed specs, go to the end of the article)
Sounded great. I explained beforehand that I am not so confident on dirt, but was willing to give it a go. The weather had been dry and hot, so the dirt mountain route would likely be firm.
Ducati Chiang Mai
Everyone involved in the shoot met at Ducati Chiang Mai at 8 am.
I met with photographer Thorsten, and Ducati staff Art and June
This is also when I got my first feel of the Ducati Desert Sled.
When I sat on the bike, I initially found the seating position further back than I am used to and I was overreaching a bit with the handlebars, and the most concerning aspect was it being taller than I expected and I was on tip-toes when sitting on the bike.
This would not be an issue on the road, but the weight and height aspect might prove tricky on dirt, especially if there was mud.
Ride to Chiang Dao
When leaving Ducati Chiang Mai, we launched straight into morning city traffic. A little daunting, as I usually need a bit of time to settle into how the Ducati Desert Sled handles and responds. At the stop lights, I was precariously balancing the bike on my tip-toes.
The initial ride to Chiang Dao out of Chiang Mai City is mostly built-up traffic for the first 40 km or so. Once we reached the R1095 Pai junction the route became enjoyable and the Desert Sled felt amazing. Responsive, with lots of torque. We arrived in Chiang Dao in no time at all.
Mokluang Cafe’
In Chiang Dao, we initially stopped for breakfast and morning coffee at Mokluang Cafe which is where the photo shoot began. The Ducati Desert Sled with the backdrop of Chiang Dao Mountain resulted in some great-looking shots.
Ride to San Pa Kia
The Route to San Pa Kia Lookout starts with some single-track concrete roads before becoming a trail. This video shows the start of the trails on the Ducati Desert Sled:
Unfortunately, I did not capture the entire route on my GoPro. One month earlier when riding in Cambodia, my large bag of GoPro batteries went missing and had not yet bought replacements. So, I only had one battery and wasted too much on the ride to Chiang Dao.
The trail had some tight curves as we made our way up to the viewpoint peak.
On the route, there were moments that Thorsten, the photographer, requested us to turn around and ride back up the way we came. Usually a few times on each section.
Thunderstorm
Later on, a thunderstorm and rain arrived which turned the area wet, muddy, and full of debris (broken branches and wet leaves).
I would have liked to have caught the ride on my GoPro camera but unfortunately, the battery was dead. I was able to capture a bit of it on my phone camera, though.
Hammering down!
It took a while for the rain to ease off and we had no food or refreshments, so I took a walk down the muddy grass hill area and picked some lychees that I spotted growing, getting soaked through in the process.
Once the rain finally eased off we got back on the bikes and I was feeling a touch nervous about the muddy ground. Luckily, it turned out much better than I expected. Despite the ground being wet and slippery in sections, the bike and tyres handle well.
Photo Stop
We had a few more photo opportunities on a bit of straight solid ground.
San Pa Kia Viewpoint
When we reached the viewpoint of San Pa Kia the mist was rolling in and the view was stunning.
It turned out to be a beautiful backdrop for the bikes.
As we were coming down I realised that I was feeling more comfortable on the Ducati Desert Sled and put my faith in how well it handled, despite slipping in the mud from time to time.
The Hiccup…
I had a minor pathetic fall on the trail because of lack of balance when stopping/starting, due to not being able to solidly reach the ground. I was on the bike in the dirt trail, ready to start it up. As I began to go forward I went too slowly and lost my balance, resulting in bending the clutch lever. The worst part about this was that after I had help to get the bike upright again, I promptly dropped it on the opposite side, bending the front brake lever!
On my Kawasaki Dtracker 250cc Dual-Sport, I can stop my bike from falling over and propel myself upright, which wasnt possible with the heavier desert sled.
Once at the bottom of the trail we stopped in at the local Cafe Amazon, to enjoy a cool drink.
The bikes really got quite dirty, as did we.
The waterproof luggage that was being tested out held up really well, also.
Back to Chiang Mai
Once we had a drink and freshened up rode the bikes back from Chiang Dao to the Ducati showroom in Chiang Mai.
On the R107 Chiang Dao road, we opened up the throttle and enjoyed the smooth ride back.
As we approached Chiang Mai City the Peak-Hour Traffic was in full swing, which is never much fun. We reached the Ducati Showroom at approximately 6 pm, when it was already dark.
At the show room I hopped back on my Kawasaki Dtracker, which felt initially odd and light after riding the weighter Ducati. I had gotten used to the heavier desert sled, so it took a moment to settle back into my bike and on my ride home, it hit me how much I enjoy having a lightweight bike. It just feels like an extension of my own body.
Specs & Summary
My personal overall impressions of the Ducati Desert Sled:
- Fantastic bike to ride. Smooth, reliable, no vibrations (max speed I tested it to on the road was 150kph, so not sure how it is at higher speeds, but zero vibrations and very smooth at that speed)
- Reliable both on-road and off-road (I was initially hesitant on the bike, but it performed great and my faith in the bike steaditly grew.
- Perfect for Northern Thailand (very responsive bike that hugs the curves)
- Comfortable (I am unsure how the bike would feel after MANY hours of riding, but after one day of riding it, I had no aches or pains).
- Stock tyres: The Pirelli Scorpion Rally tyres felt great. (Much better than my Vee Rubber vrm-163 dual sports tires. I was told to put my faith in the tires, and I could see why).
From a cosmetic perspective:
I really prefer the more classic style of the Ducati Desert Sled 2018 model. However, the Ducati Desert Sled 2019 model is more in tune with the general Ducati colour/look.
Negatives:
- For me personally the height really was a big issue. Maybe if I owned the bike I would eventually be ok with the height, but being on the bike for the first time I wanted to have my feet firmly on the ground. When the bike was going, all was fine, but stopping/starting/slow maneuvering equaled problems for me, especially on unstable ground.
- The Ducati Desert Sled handlebar position had me overreaching. This would need to be adjusted for me. Maybe this is a general female rider issue as we tend to have shorter torsos than men, but not sure.
- The seat position was further back than I am used to, but I think this is just because I was overreaching for the handlebars. The seat itself would be nicer to sit on if scooped, rather than a flat large surface.
- Neutral is sticky and tricky to click into place. I noticed this was an issue for others too.
These factors being fixed/amended would have made a big difference to my riding confidence and comfortability on the Ducati Desert Sled that day.
Photographer: Thorsten Henn
The fantastic photographer on this shoot was Throsten Henn.
For bookings and to view his portfolio: Henn Photography
I hope you enjoyed this trip report on riding the Ducati Desert Sled.
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Great read mate, love your work Zed. 😍
Thanks so much ! ^.^
Great report. I enjoy reading it and put a smile on my face and I am sure you had a lot of fun even if you were not comfortable all day long. Looking forward for your next ride coming up
Stay safe
Kind regards
Per
Thank you Per! 🙂