sageman-Where exactly are you going to be riding??? General trail rides? Rock crawling? Snow??? We use our Ranchers mostly in the local mountains, Inyo's, and Sierras......but in the open desert nothing beats the comfort and performance of a sport quad, and riding a big heavy utility is a major handicap!

If we are out riding sometime, you are welcome to meet us somewhere and try out the 420 and 250's (dealers around here rarely let you test drive). We will be at Ocotillo Wells this weekend (3/23-25) and maybe Rasor Rd. the weekend after (???). We have about 5 families going, so there should be a large variety of different machines, although most will be sport quads and not utes. PM me if any of that works......

 

Thanks for the invite reconranger. It now looks like mid-april for the big pop$ ( gotta finish this job). I should have mentioned that southern calif dealers do not offer test drives, liability I guess. I've been soaking up info from sites like this one and half a dozen magizine subscriptions. Salesman in my area are not real knowledgable and most do not ride.

We plan to start off riding locally, El mirage, Jawbone, Stoddard, Hungry Valley (all desert), Big Bear, Bishop and Rowher Flats. Once it gets hot we'll have to head north or east. We have a week reserved at Bryce Canyon, Utah in July. We enjoy trails ( with trees etc ) but they are hard to find in So Calif. The eco/green crowd rules out here and the're not off-road friendly to put it mildly. Utah is ATV heaven. I could live their half the year but the wife and the wallet so no. It's never to hot to ride in southern Utah.

Type of riding we'll be doing? I guess you could say we're more explorers than racers.

 

Very true. Just yesterday my 10 year old son and I went for an ATV ride behind the house. Only a mile away there is a small gravel pit just below an 800 foot high hill, that is the first ridge of a mountain that is 4000 ft above the foothills where we live. Usually when we go over to the gravel pit to play around on the ATVs my son will stay at the gravel pit, and just ride around, while I take one of the trails up to the top of the first ridge, then come back down, and so on (he has been riding ATVs and dirt bikes for 5 years now) This time my son started riding around the gravel pit, and I watched him for 20 minutes or so, then decided to take a quick ride up the ridge, and back down again (it's only 500 yards or so). To make a long story short, I rode up the steep, rocky, ledgy trail, with a nasty little sidehill section with my Grizzly 700 in low range 4-wheel drive. The trail has one section that is bad enough that the Grizzly 700 carries the front tires off the ground for several feet. Its not impossible by any means, but it is a challenge. When I let off the gas at the top of the hill I heard the sound of my son's ATV coming up the hill right behind me, at what sounded like wide open throttle. I panicked, because my son rides a Grizzly 125. I was certain he would not make it, but he did. A little light weight ATV can go places that will surprise the heck out of you, especially with a 76 lb rider on board.

So if your wife is small in stature she may not need as big and bad of an ATV as you think she does.

DV

 

Here in the southwest utes are lame in the desert, and sport quads can't cut it in the mountains. Most people are just trail riders and really don't need a huge heavy full on "work" quad, but could use some ground clearance and 4wd once in a while. A lighter medium size "hybrid" machine that falls somewhere between a utility and sport quad is really what would serve most folks needs best!

This is my "dream" quad, but unfortunately nobody builds one. The Wolverine is a descent attempt, but I would take my Rancher over a Wolv any day.

 

I am going for a 700 because I am 6'1" and 265lbs. I rode 400s and 450s and they pull me fine put the big bore physically are a better fit and I like the POWER.

Good points regarding the need for 4x4...I need to look into what the wieght and price savings would be on the Honda 420.

Yes I realize I'am surrounded by desert riding areas( sport heaven) and I'am buying utes. go figure.

 

Recon you hit it right on the head. The dream quad. And they will make it but I can't wait.