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Anyone else have ZERO intention on ever taking your Multi on dirt?

6K views 43 replies 28 participants last post by  Bobcat Sig 
#1 ·
Yeah, I said it!!!!! :surprise:

I just purchased a new 1200s DVT a few weeks ago and promptly had new rubber put on when I had my new wheels installed.
Pirelli Rosso Corsa (on forged magnesium Marchesni's)

I bought the bike more as a sport/touring as opposed to a "4 bikes in one". (Totaled my 15 Monster 1200s- this is the replacement).

Im an aggressive rider. I regularly run with local sportbike guys like a hoodrat sometimes and have no issue keeping up. (most guys my age- 48, ride like, well, old men)
I also do track days and will be taking this to the track a few times (Grattan and Gingerman- both here in Michigan) as well as trips down to the Dragon.

I was on a loaner 14 Pikes Peak for a while and it shocked a lot of the guys I ride with on how well it could keep up. To be honest, I was shocked too.

So when some crap in a corner took out my rear wheel and lowsided my Monster (at like 10mph!) I looked long and hard at the new Multi.
I took one for a long-ish test ride and I was pretty much sold as it being the new bike. In fact, I wish the guys at my dealer would have told me to take one for a spin before I bought my Monster- I would have got one then!

To my original point of this thread, anyone else not even consider the possibility of anything more than a mile or three of hard packed dirt road?
 
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#4 ·
Nope.
No dirt on Ducati's for me. I pulled in a dry dirt parking lot once. Cars entering and exiting created a lot of dust on my bike, which really pissed me off. That will be my extent of dirt action on this:)
 
#7 ·
Took my 13 Pikes Peak off road at every chance I could get(sometimes through stuff I should have known better.) The new enduro is what I always wanted my 13Multi to be... must resist. I didn't know I wanted the multi until i test rode one after the hyper821... and well I ended up with a multi haha, best bike I've ever had! Can cross the country pretty quickly.
 
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#9 ·
Most my '16 see's is gravel parking lot at a rural cemetery I visit on a regular basis, but it's not squishy deep. I dropped my '13 off-road once and while it didn't do anything to the bike other than a small spot of rash on the right hand faring, it gave me a grade 2 separation to the AC joint -- righthand shoulder... really nothing as injuries go but not fun either.
 
#14 ·
I don't see the point, unless you need a tall bike because you're a tall person.
Being a short person, I would not buy an adventure-style bike unless I was really going to make use of that capacity.
If I was considering a MS, but had "ZERO intention on ever taking my Multi on dirt", I'd just wait for the new SS.
Or get another Monster.

PhilB
 
#22 ·
I'm not sure I see your point. Personally, I switched to the multistradas from one of Ducati's last gen of touring bikes, an ST3. The ST was horrible for me ergonimically for touring. Riding position too sporty, too long a reach for the bars. Very uncomfortable after 500 miles, even with aftermarket bars and risers. The air cooled multi turned out to be perfect for me for distances as far as riding position and creature comforts, and the w/c multis have given me that same all day comfort on steroids. The fact that these bikes are billed as 'adventure bikes' is a sign of the current trend in motorcycle design. It was clearly designed to be more street oriented, and does a fantastic job of this. No need to ever go off road, unless the owner wants to.

I suspect the SS is also well on the sporting side ergonimically, and in my book would not fill the same niche as the multi, especially as a touring mount.
 
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#15 ·
If by dirt you mean 'dirtbike type dirt' then no (bike is too heavy for that).

If by dirt you mean 'anything other than pavement' then I've got maybe 1000-2000 miles (guestimating 5-10%) of that already and the bike has handled it without drama. I wouldn't say it's a bike that's great on the soft stuff (that small diameter front tire makes the bike squirrely on soft/loose dirt roads) but if it has relatively firm footing then it can be quite fast and fun on dirt.
 
#25 ·
My Monster 1200s was a great bike. Really had no complaints. I would have had no problem getting another.
After having a MTS as a loaner for a bit, I just felt more comfortable on it and it pretty much has all the performance that my Monster did.
Plus, my wife feels much more comfortable on the Multi.
 
#27 ·
My 4+ yr old MTS has 60,000+ miles on her & exactly 96 miles on 'dirt/gravel' roads. Actually, 'road'. Ya wonder how I know the exact mileage? Because the good friend I visit every year, in NE Oregon, lives 12 miles down a gravel road.....one way! I've visited him 4 times, therefore 4 x 24 = 96 miles. NO 500+ lbs bike is good 'off road'. As far as 'up right sport bike'....my superbike friends, with everything from 675R's to RSV4 to MV's, ain't any faster on Hwy 36 then my sexy MTS. AND two of these guys I've done track days with.....we all run 2:05's at Thunder Hill (on our track bikes.....the MTS has serious ground clearance issues!).

Its the BEST bike I've ever ridden!
 
#30 ·
I've taking my SFS on fireroads and gravel roads. Also grassy hills and such. Did about 30-50 miles of it on a recent 2300 mile trip to Nova Scotia. Didn't know the trip I planned had unpaved stuff. I'm on Pirelli Diablos.

I have no dirt experience, and it was fine. Had a little fun hanging the rear out a little bit but nothing crazy. I was 1000+ miles from home after all.
 
#32 · (Edited)
Playing the devil's advocate for a minute... the folks who are pavement only are missing out on one of the cooler things about these bikes - think of it this way:

To get a rush on pavement, you need to either be busting through tight twisties or blasting along well into 3 digit "Go directly to jail do not pass go" territory. I get the same rush on dirt at legal (well... nearly legal) speeds. 65mph on a dirt road feels WAY faster than it does on pavement (and 90 feels ballistic.. and dumb... VERY dumb :))... and the Multi is as composed on reasonably well maintained dirt roads as it is on pavement. Big ADV bikes in general are a LOT of fun on dirt roads. I'm not talking about singletrack or rutted muddy crap... but summer rides on graded dirt or packed stone are a ton of fun.

I'm a 90%/10% rider... and it's half the reason why I opted for a Multi instead of a super naked (the other half being touring). To be honest, if I'd never planned on taking the bike on dirt at all... I'd probably be on a Tuono or S1000R (both pretty fantastic pavement pounders).
 
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#34 ·
IF I had a Multistrada (I don't) the answer would be NO. ZERO dirt/gravel ever!

How else can I justify having another bike just for dirt/gravel to my wife?

I group the bikes I "need" into categories: Freeway, around town, twisties, track, gravel/dirt, trails, motocross track, etc. No bike can overlap categories.
I'm currently shopping for an "around town during inclement weather" bike. I'm thinking a Suzuki DRZ-400sm with good wet weather tires.
 
#36 ·
I group the bikes I "need" into categories: Freeway, around town, twisties, track, gravel/dirt, trails, motocross track, etc. No bike can overlap categories.
Yep pretty much agreed. I always found the 4 bikes in one marketing angle of the multi to be somewhat ridiculous. Because you can have all the electronic gizmos you want, but if the ergos and weight don't change, well...........
 
#37 ·
There is no "perfect multi-role" bike... every time you tweak a design to broaden its applicability you compromise on 'ultimate performance' somewhere.

However - that doesn't mean that multi-role is stupid. Most buyers happily trade some 'ultimate track performance' for 'day to day livability' for instance.

So the '4 bikes in one' thing is really just saying "we've designed a bike that we believe has some competency in these 4 areas". Yes it's a marketing gimmick... but it's also useful information. To the buyer they're saying "if these things are important to you - performance, touring capability, urban livability, offroad capability - then our bike might be for you.

Personally, after living with the multi for 2 years I think they hit a home run on the performance and touring levels, a solid double on 'dirt competence', and maybe a single on 'urban livability' (bike runs too hot imo for urban use).

It's not a Panigale, Gold Wing, FC450, and Suzuki Burgman all rolled into one because yea that's impossible - but IMO the design has a mix of compromises that fits my needs almost perfectly, so the overall package IS a home run for me.
 
#38 ·
I've owned my Multi for a little more than 2 years now and put 11,000 miles on it (I know, it's not much) and I've never taken it off-road. Never had any intention of doing so when I bought it either. Honestly, it is so good on the road and that's the reason I bought it. I even put sport rubber on it because I knew I probably would never take it off-road.
 
#39 ·
If you tour and don't ride dirt, then do you really tour?

It's not kryptonite, sheesh.
 
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#42 ·
Depends on your idea of touring I suppose... and there are a LOT of different kinds of touring.

1) If 'touring' means rider+pillion+luggage on long expressway/open highway rides with hotels, BnB's and resorts in between - Gold Wing
2) If 'touring' means rider+pillion+luggage on long expressway/open highway rides with other riders with hotels, bike events, etc... in between - Big H-D or other cruiser.
3) If 'touring' means rider (screw the pillion) and luggage (that's as often in the hotel as on the bike) on the gnarliest twistiest pavement you can find - Sport Touring.
4) If 'touring' means rider (screw the pillion) and luggage on long treks on 2 lane with occasional forays onto maintained dirt roads or good trails (90/10) - ADV Touring.
5) if 'touring' means rider (screw the pillion) and luggage on long treks incorporating substantial offroad and possibly remote locations (50/50) - Big ADV
... there are others - international long distance touring on a budget (KLR) - international long distance touring with a big budget (GS) - etc...

IMO - I'm, a category 3 & 4 rider (more 4 then 3... maybe 70/30)... and IMO the Multi is probably the best bike in the world at that mix. But I get the appeal of those other classes... I'm going to almost certainly get a cruiser at some point so my wife and I can ride together when she's not in the mood to ride herself (I'm more into riding than she is)... it'll probably be a big H-D - IMO they're damned cool bikes and I'm not quite to the Gold Wing age yet - but first I'll be getting a Super Naked and playing around with a more hardcore 3 type of touring (maybe 'touring to trackdays' since we have no options nearby).

Then maybe once I retire I'll pick up a KLR and try my hand at a full on international tour... who knows... a lot of the different kinds of touring appeal to me for different reasons.
 
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