Hyperstrada Offroad Riding Technique Tips

Recently I've gotten a taste of real offroading on my HS. It was great fun and the bike is more than capable, it reminds me of riding something like a XL650 but without all the ground clearance.
At this point I have little to share but I thought a thread to solicit tips from more seasoned riders would be beneficial to myself and others looking to get dirty on their Ducatis.

Besides having ground clearance concerns while riding my HS I also found that the front suspension tends to beat you up over rough surfaces at low speeds. When I had the space to ride faster over the rough things improved considerably. Any suggestions on slowly traversing rocky terrain with the stock suspension in a smoother manner?

I found that having ABS on was best on soft, sandy or muddy conditions to keep the front wheel tracking while braking. But there were times, especially on steep downhills with loose rock where I wanted to skid-steer with the back wheel but couldn't pull it off with ABS on. Since we cannot disable ABS on a per wheel basis what is a good compromise setting to allow for rear wheel lockup without front wheel lockup?
Perhaps a bike mod that allows this?

I think I found my answer regarding ABS

Bosch Brembo Braking system with 3-level ABS

Included as an integral part of the Ducati Safety Pack (DSP), the 2013 Hypermotards are equipped with the Bosch ABS 9MP controlled Brembo braking system, an impressive combination of state-of-the-art security and proven performance. Shorter stopping distances with enhanced stability are vital prerequisites for all motorcycles, but adding full Riding Mode interaction now takes Hypermotard braking to the next level. From the 3-level programmed system, level 1 enables front only ABS, intended for the track-oriented Hypermotard SP, while level 2 delivers high braking performances with reduced rear lift-up prevention for sport-oriented road use and level 3 the most braking stability with maximum lift-up prevention.

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https://eatsleepride.com/c/11493/2013_ducati_hypermotard__hyperstrada_deep_dive

I totally agree about finesse and regular dirt bikes have no need for fancy technology. The Hyper is a different beast though, its heavier, makes much more horsepower, and has lower ground clearance than most average dirtbikes. Although I've said riding one off-road reminds me of a XL650 the differences between the two bikes are very evident in the rough.

It takes a little special finesse for the Hyperstrada to negotiate rough terrain than you'd use on a dirtbike. That's what I'm trying to discuss.

Faster is better for smoothing out bad spots but is not always practical. I'm wondering if maybe there's some body english or a certain tire pressure that can help alleviate the beating you get from the stiff forks when you have no choice but to tractor over the rockies. I personally found standing up to help but that's a solution with other drawbacks when facing extended periods of rut diving. Standing up for me requires me to stand up in a hunched over position which gets uncomfortable quickly and at slow speeds feels unstable.
What else can I try?

appliance821 said:

Put in urban mode and tone down the abs/tc settings.

I'd use engine braking and rear brake for slowing. Maybe touch the front on hard dirt. Being in the right gear is a good thing to make this work.

On tougher stuff, ride with a friend - if it falls on you, you'll never get it off. I know.

When in doubt, give it gas. Once again, being in the right gear to take some weight off the front.

But then again, I pretty much suck off road, but I've survived some pretty tough stuff. The best part about off road, is hitting tarmac, gunning it, and thinking what a great idea tar is. But you do see nice things.

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I did have the bike in Urban mode the entire time. I'll try tweaking it like you said.
Going back to the campground on the paved roads gave me an entirely new appreciation for what the HS can do on the road. In fact the entire off-road thing has made me so much more confident in riding the machine anywhere now.

philthymike said:

I think I found my answer regarding ABS


https://eatsleepride.com/c/11493/2013_ducati_hypermotard__hyperstrada_deep_dive

Click to expand...

The above only applies to the Hypermotard. I verified in the Hyperstrada owners manual that all ABS modes apply it to both wheels. Only other option is to turn it off.

Whatever real off-roading may or may not be I found the Hyperstrada perfectly acceptable in my recent trip. My only big concern is the ground clearance which seems to be the only real limiting factor for what I want to do with the bike.
I rode it like a dirt bike and I wasn't disappointed by its performance. That said I'm not going to run out to the nearest motorcross track with it or try my luck at the Baja 1000 on it.
For riding fireroads, powerlines, coal mining areas it does fine as long as I remain conscious of the space between the ground and the bike.

I managed to bottom the suspension out a few times with the result of the center stand digging into the ground. I am weighing the benefit of keeping it on the bike vs removal for off-road riding. I think with a skidplate I could get away with removing it.

Regarding the engine performance I had no trouble with it off-road. I rode as though it was a two stroke. I chugged it along or I opened the throttle up for powerband. Even in Urban mode it was easy to override the DCT with enough throttle to achieve wheel spin when I needed it. And my what trenches it leaves behind

there's some aspect of twitchyness but it isn't unlike a tall dual sport bike like a big XL/XR. In my time with riding a XL650 I have found that it's capable off-road but only to a point where it's height and twitchyness work against it. Same with the HS. It seems a matter of finding your personal limit of comfort.

During my trip my biggest complaint is that the bike is tough to turn around in tight spots where you aren't getting much traction with your feet due to soft ground. Sometimes it is best to get off and manhandle it. This can get tiring after hitting enough dead-ends.

Sometimes it helped to sit up on the pillion part of the seat when negotiating muddy surfaces. This seemed to reduce instability especially if there was rockyness under the mud. Probably simply a matter of more traction in back with extra weight over the rear.


While standing up isn't comfortable in the long run for shorter stretches of chop it really helps with twichyness until you have to go very slow. then it aggravates it.

I find the bike capable of what I need it for. I am exceptionally happy with my purchase. I have a do it all machine which kicks-*** and takes names in the city, is pleasant enough for shorter distance touring, commutes like a champ and lets me be a mud covered hooligan in the wilds. Sure it isn't the absolute best at any of these things but I feel the bike is engineered remarkably well enough to handle it all in stride.

I'm STILL waiting on my clutch cable. when I have the bike rolling again I will be testing out some of the ideas presented to me regarding ABS and DCT. It all looks to be helpful and I appreciate the advice very much.

Also see picture. Much of riding in the city of Philadelphia is like riding off-road anyways. Dirt, construction debris, trolley tracks, metal plates, sinkholes, washboard, truck eating potholes, mud puddles etc. etc.
In town is as bad or worse than offroad in the mountains. And Scabby agrees!

WIPEOUT!!! As I type this I am nursing my left calf with an ice pack. It got caught under the bike, specifically, under the muffler. So there's some pipe burn as well as a nasty bruise.
It all happened here...

https://www.google.com/maps/place/39°49'15.4%22N+75°27'16.1%22W/@39.8215844,-75.4541654,1072m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x0!8m2!3d39.820933!4d-75.454463

See the little stream. I tried to cross it on the outside of the rut. Slid into it, corrected back out into another rut and went over. Once back up I tried going to the side and ended up totally stuck in yet another rut hidden in the long grass. This time I didn't go over because the rut was deep enough to hold the bike upright.

I had been riding some pretty gnarly trails earlier. On the way home I thought I would take an "easy" shortcut down the power lines. I was lazy and didn't bother to take the bike out of touring mode. So my object lesson in riding off-road in touring mode resulted in my dropping the bike after sliding out in a muddy rut and smashing my left mirror and breaking both hand guards. Plus the painful experience of having Daisy Duck land on me. And the almost equally painful experiences of picking her up, not once, but 3 times. You see, I couldn't get traction with my feet. My boots kept sliding in the muck so I'd get her up and then we'd both go down again. DOH, stupid gravity!

In the end I walked her through very carefully. Only to have to turn around and go back the way I came. Having trudged all through the stream bed at this point I now knew where it was solid beneath the mud so I just plowed right through no problem. What I should have done in the 1st place I guess.

Also it was getting dark. So I guess this can be an object lesson in why not to take new off-road routes in the dark. Or try to cross little streams in the dark. Or maybe not to take short cuts down power lines when there's a major highway right next to you. Whatever...

The gnarly trails I rode on which I didn't have any trouble with today are here:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/39°49'15.4%22N+75°27'16.1%22W/@39.90337,-75.4585371,1095m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x0!8m2!3d39.820933!4d-75.454463

I'd been there before. The place is called Devil's Houses because there used to be old abandoned houses in there that a biker gang partied in.
I didn't ride all of the trails in there before because I had the stock tires on back then. I went back and found the trail network in there is fairly extensive now that I can actually make through them. Very pretty pretty along the Chester creek too. Somebody had even setup a rope swing over the creek. Next time I go I'm packing a bathing suit!

Wire ties, gorilla tape, hot glue and a mirror from a V-Star 650 and I'm back in the race again.

I've got to put the mirror back on the V-Star before my Old Lady gets back from her family trip at the end of the week