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| Yamaha
Raptor 700R Special Edition |
With heavy rain the week before our ride, the
dune sand with heavy and packed, which made for
some rough riding with all the riding tracks from
this past weekend still etched into the sand,
but the suspension on both the YFZ450R and Raptor
700R soaked up the ruts in the sand without fading,
but we did increase the high speed compression
on the Raptor 700R to keep it from bottoming out
on some of the transition spots on the dunes.
Both the YFZ450R and the Raptor 700 are right
at home in the dunes with plenty of power to
climb the steepest hills, and the YFZ450R with
its aggressive power curve and extra width of
48.8”, it can carve the dunes with ease
like being on rails. Also, the YFZ450R is the
perfect ATV for launching over some of the natural
terrain jumps found out in the dunes with his
9.8” of travel up front and 11”
of travel in the rear.
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|
| 2010
Yamaha YFZ450R Special Edition |
For me personally, there isn’t anything
better than riding the Raptor 700R through the
sand with its seemly endless torque that keeps
on pulling through every gear, and with its
plusher and slightly higher seat and more relaxed
riding stance, it is the perfect sand dune ATV
for hours upon hours of riding without fatigue.
| |
|
| 2010
Yamaha Raptor 700R Special Edition |
Sure the Raptor 700R weighs 16 pounds more
than the YFZ450R, but 686cc engine more than
makes up for its weight, and its 9.1”
of front travel and 10.1” of rear suspension
travel works great for playing in the sand especially
since its suspension upgrade in 2009, which
makes the Raptor 700R more than capable of soaking
up some big air landings, and after testing
various different sport ATVs in the sand, the
Raptor 700R is my favorite for the dunes.
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| Yamaha's
Pro ATV Racer #94 Dustin Nelson also made
the trip out to Glamis to ride with us
on his YFZ450R, and he also joined in
on a fun race with Raptor 250's around
a small track we rode in next to the camp,
and there is no wonder why the Raptor
250 is the top selling sport ATV because
they are so much fun |
As with any fun trip, it seems to end just
a quickly as it started, and a few days feels
seems like a few hours, but for any ATV enthusiast
that has ever had the opportunity to ride in
the sand, it is an experience you will never
forget. I suggest that everyone experience it
atleast one time in your life, and you can’t
go wrong with bringing along either the Yamaha
Raptor 700R or the YFZ450R sport ATVs.
www.yamaha-motor.com
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