RACING THE DESERT SLED IN THE MINT 400

Off the back of the amazing film, ‘The Desert Said Dance’, we’ve been in a bit of a desert-racing rabbit hole of late. And in search of more dust-fuelled goodness, we came across this gem…

The crew from Ducati and Fasthouse partnered up to race a pair of Desert Sleds in the Mint 400. First held in 1968, the Mint 400 is America’s oldest desert race, taking place in the Nevada Desert around Las Vegas with more than 550 race teams in 80-plus classes competing for two days on a gruelling desert course. With Ducati’s Scrambler pulling hard on that ’60s Southern Californian off-road vibe, the Desert Sleds were a perfect match for the relatively new Hooligan Class – Hooligan being big twin street bikes, over 750cc and a truckload heavier than the 450s most competitors race.

The bikes were prepared and managed by the Pikes Peak-winning Spider Grips Team, reforming for the Mint event. Mods on the stock Sleds included suspension upgrades, 21-inch front wheels, gearing changes, plus a host of desert-specced bling to get them ready for the harshness the desert is renowned for.

Riders, Jordan Graham #47 and Ricky Diaz #51, took the start line with a third Ducati Scrambler Desert Sled, also prepared by Spider Grips – ridden in a two-man tag team of Alexander Smith and Michael Allen, using #5 in memory of fellow racer, the late Carlin Dunne.

The moto classes lined up at 7am to tackle two 129km laps of the Mint 400’s course. At the close of business in those barren badlands, Jordan Graham #47 crossed the line in 4:45:35 to claim the win in the Hooligan Open Class, 45 minutes ahead of the two-rider team of Smith and Allen #5 and dominating all other Hooligan class machines. A damn fine way to showcase the versatility of the Desert Sled to the world!