Ducati Desert Sled

Jonathan Pearson Off-road editor Ducati’s Sled was always going to offend JP. But shock horror it does most of the things a BMW GS can, and looks good doing them…

My prejudice against bikes pretending to be something they’re not can be savage, so a bike pretending to be a dirt bike classic got the kind of frosty reception you might expect from a Russian border guard. When Ducati’s PR bods on the press launch dropped the ‘lifestyle product’ bomb I shrank inside my (genuine) enduro boots. But Ducati’s Desert Sled’s kicked me and my cynicism in the pants. The thing is the Sled works. It does nothing particularly impressively but runs a dusty desert trail or Almerian mountain roads with quiet confidence. Adventure lite I labelled it. But really it is retro savvy without being bolshie about it. Authentic? No. But thanks to the Sled I can see why you can go ahead and say bugger authenticity.