2021 Ducati Desert Sled Review

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With retro desert-racer looks and off-road capability, the Desert Sled is more than just another city poseur. • The retrobike scene is as strong as ever, with pretty much every manufacturer from Triumph to Kawasaki digging up heritage stories and building classically styled bikes to match. But the best thing about the current wave of retrobikes is that the sacrifice in performance for style is becoming less and less pronounced. And while the Ducati Scrambler Desert Sled would be hard work to actually race across a desert, it does have some genuine off-road capability. • The fully adjustable Kayaba fork and preload/rebound-adjustable shock both have 7.9 inches of travel, and with more than 9 inches of ground clearance, you can tackle some decent terrain without tearing a hole in your cases. And sure, a 21-inch front wheel would be better off-road, but the spoked 19/17-inch wheel combo is a proven adventure bike setup for striking a balance between dirt and asphalt. • Equally important as ground clearance and suspension is riding position; no amount of travel will make up for ergonomics that don’t work when you’re standing up. Thankfully the Sled works well; it feels a little wide, particularly if you’ve just stepped off a dirt bike, but the bars are a good shape and well-positioned for standing operation. The only weak point here is down by your feet; the pretty aluminium footpegs look nice, but even with the rubber removed they’re slippery, especially when mud and water get involved. • But enough number crunching; take a look at that new paint scheme. Changes to the new Desert Sled don’t really go much further than a new seat and new colors, but when the colors are this good, does that matter? This is definitely one of those bikes that looks even better in the metal and keeps looking better the longer you look at it. It’s a neat-looking bike too; not just neat as in “nice,” but neat as in “Marie Kondo would be proud of the lack of clutter and plumbing around the motor.” That’s obviously helped by the oil-/air-cooled L-Twin, which does away with the radiator and associated coolant hoses. But even aside from the benefits of the old-school cooling methods, the side view of the bike is pleasantly free from dangling wires and ugly sensors. And while there’s plenty of scope for customization and tuning, there isn’t much about the standard bike that could be considered awkward or out of place. • There are now nine different Scrambler models available, two 1,100cc versions and seven 803cc bikes. There has to be a Disney remake in there somewhere. The seven dwarves have had a Nu-Wave Metal rebranding and are now called Icon, Icon Dark, Nightshift, Café Racer, Desert Sled, Full Throttle, and Sixty2. Think Snow White, as played by Shayna Texter, facing off against her wicked stepmother, played by Sammy Halbert in a wig, in a mile-oval race on reasonably priced Italian streetbikes. • The Desert Sled rumbles into life with that familiar slow cranking that sounds like the battery is going flat; don’t worry, sir, they all do that. The simple digital speedometer manages to pack in a decent amount of usable functionality, with on- and off-road riding modes called Journey and Off-Road respectively. In Off-Road mode the ABS system can be switched off to unlock “skid mode”—Ducati doesn’t actually call it that, but it definitely should. The minimalist dash is compatible with the Ducati multimedia system, allowing riders to control music with a smartphone and even use handlebar-mounted switch gear to answer calls. Better still, it can be used to reject calls with voicemail messages set to “Can’t talk; busy being awesome.” • Like each of the seven different 803cc Scramblers, the Desert Sled is an easy bike to ride. For those who like to get both feet flat on the floor at a stoplight, the tallish 33.9-ich seat can be swapped for an accessory 33-inch option, but other than that the Sled is hardly an intimidating bike. The clutch is light, the throttle is soft, and the engine resistant to stalling at low speed. For newer or less confident riders, it’s a dream, allowing the rider to get on with looking cool and racking up miles of experience and fun. That doesn’t mean no fun for more enthusiastic Sledders; it just means all the slow-speed stuff is a doddle, including wheelies, spin turns, skids, and any other parking lot antics you fancy. • Read the full article here: https://www.cycleworld.com/story/moto... • Subscribe to Cycle World Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/c/cycleworld?s... • Read more from Cycle World: https://www.cycleworld.com/ • Buy Cycle World Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/cycleworld

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