Here is the small write up of the Dakar.

Minneapolis, MN (5/7/2008) - The Outlaw 525 IRS is seeing successes abroad. In the recent Dakar Series, the Outlaw 525 IRS finished on the podium in First and Third place.

The race, which took place in Hungary and Romania, consisted of extremely difficult terrain which proved no match for the Independent Rear Suspension of the Outlaw 525 IRS. France's Hubert Deltrieu won the race aboard his Outlaw 525 IRS, two weeks after winning the prestigious Lybia Desert Challenge. Along with Deltrieu's Outlaw, five other Outlaw 525 IRS ATVs were amongst the 18 starters, with all six finishing within the top 11. The Overall Lady win went to Camelia Liparoti of Italy who also piloted an Outlaw 525 IRS.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: GE4x4

Here is the small write up of the Dakar.



Minneapolis, MN (5/7/2008) - The Outlaw 525 IRS is seeing successes abroad. In the recent Dakar Series, the Outlaw 525 IRS finished on the podium in First and Third place.



The race, which took place in Hungary and Romania, consisted of extremely difficult terrain which proved no match for the Independent Rear Suspension of the Outlaw 525 IRS. France's Hubert Deltrieu won the race aboard his Outlaw 525 IRS, two weeks after winning the prestigious Lybia Desert Challenge. Along with Deltrieu's Outlaw, five other Outlaw 525 IRS ATVs were amongst the 18 starters, with all six finishing within the top 11. The Overall Lady win went to Camelia Liparoti of Italy who also piloted an Outlaw 525 IRS.</end quote></div>

Yeah but what most of those types of races have in common is wide open areas and not a lot of tight turns with whoops or off cambers......

Eichner said he likes the lighter SRA for the WORCS racing because it is so much lighter and he gets less tired...

There seems to be two lines of thinking here..... some people claim the IRS makes them more tired and others say it makes them less...... obviously riding style has a lot to do with it....

I also think a lot of people are comparing SRA machines with poor suspension. As the poster above said he changed from IRA back to the SRA KTM and loves it.... the KTM has excellent suspension and that makes all the difference too.....

 

There is no doubt suspension is key. I have custom shocks and my Outlaw races like a dream. But again, most who try a Outlaw are allso on stock shocks. So once these are set up just as in a SRA, there a whole new ride. But like I said earlier, that's why we have choices. But whats good for one might not be for another. But if it's not good for you, then you should not bash the other just because it doesn't fit your style.

 

"I just don't like it when someone has 5 min of seat time, then goes around acting like he's a expert on them, and bad mouths them."

Neither do I, ive been riding my buddys dirtbike for like 3 days and I dont badmouth anyone. if your gonna badmouth me after 5 minutes you better be ready to lose some teeth.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: GE4x4

There is no doubt suspension is key. I have custom shocks and my Outlaw races like a dream. But again, most who try a Outlaw are allso on stock shocks. So once these are set up just as in a SRA, there a whole new ride. But like I said earlier, that's why we have choices. But whats good for one might not be for another. But if it's not good for you, then you should not bash the other just because it doesn't fit your style.</end quote></div>

Yeah I've only ridden stock IRS so I'm sure your's rides much better......

I was not bashing them in general.... I was pointing out the cons of the system that I personally discovered as compared to a SRA machine..... it is not that they are bad but no matter how they are set up they are certainly different....

I also have somewhat more then 5 minutes seat-time at this point... I've gotten to ride the Outlaw several times now... there were several sections where the guy I was riding with was saying it was hard to control.... So I wanted to see what he was talking about so I jumped on myself and tried it.....

But even if I only had 5 minutes.... how much did you have before you bought yours? Did you not jump on and like it right away thus motivating your purchase?

I've never ridden anything more then a few minutes at most before I bought it, and I would venture to guess most people are the same way.... most places won't let your ride machines at all so unless you know someone with one to test, you are buying it blind......that is why I tell people what I do, so they can hear another story besides only good ones.....

I mean why would anyone buy an IRS machine, if after 5-10 minutes they hated it? On the off chance that they might someday like it? That is exactly what the two guys I was speaking about earlier did.... they ended up not liking it after a while....

I'm not bashing it, I'm pointing out that IRS is different, and unless you know for sure you are going to like it, there is a risk you may end up not liking it.......

You obviously like yours and are comfortable on it..... my riding style seems to rely on knowing the predictable behavior of a SRA.... I know exactly how they behave when things get sketchy. I know exactly where my weight has to be in order to counteract anything I see coming.......

IRS desires a different set of rules, ones that unless you have the time to learn - to literally retrain your instincts, you might not like for very long....... and most of the things were not apparent at normal speeds or less aggressive riding. They happened when I was pushing hard....

I almost high-sided in a couple corners because it would not slide for me in the tacky or loamy soil...... and in off-camber and whoops when you pin the gas the thing was dangerous to me, I could not get it to track straight it just kept walking off the trail and I had to back off the gas every time...... and jumping was a mess... I could not get the thing to launch straight unless I just rolled the jump and didn't give it any gas on the face..... maybe with custom suspension it would be different... but the fact that Matt Smiley said similar things with custom suspension makes me think it is something in my riding style.... I was told that if you constantly keep your body centered a lot of those things go away. But apparently I am unable to do that....lol.....I tend to be sitting more on one side then the other depending on when the next turn shows up.....and because of that one rear tire has more pressure on it then the other....on a SRA that won't matter but with IRS that rear wheel with more pressure gets more traction and pushes the track off to one side.....

I've been riding SRA sport machines for 20-plus years... it would take months and years to unlearn and relearn a new riding style. I would imagine since IRS is new to the sport machines that a lot of people are like me and feel most comfortable with a SRA....... those of you who can reap the advantages are probably ahead of the curve......

If IRS is the future, it will happen just like 4-strokes in Motocross...... it will take a major rider to win a major championship on an IRS machine.....the Baja and Dakar don't seem to hold sway in that regard for some reason.... it will take a GNCC championship....... and in some cases it will take a new machine since there are no 450 IRS machines out there to give MX a go.....

 

IMHO, The advantages to IRS is worth me trying it and learning how to race it. The smoothness of the ride, less fatique factor, and great groud clearence. So at first it was different, but now I can do everything you said you could not do on it. Also, I believe you said you rode the 500 Outlaw, but the 525 is a totally different animal. Much lighter and much more power. I also know how mine behaves and know exactly what to do to make it work. But some won't if they can't get it quick. But for me, it was well worth it. And I know for a fact I amd much faster on my IRS then on any SRA that I haved raced. I never won a race in over 7 years of racing on a SRA, yet in just one year, I had allready with 3 wins on the IRS. But whats good for one, isn't for everyone.

 

I ride an 02 Raptor 660 with plenty of aftermarket goodies to make it fit my style of riding and my places to ride.The only thing i have issues with is ground clearance.Some say irs is for "old people" or people coming from a ute to a sport.Others say "if you need irs,then you need a 4x4".I don't fit into any of these categories,but i will have irs on my next sport quad. I'm tired of slowing down and searching for the best line through the rough stuff because i dont want to get hung up or damage my skids.I just wanna gas it! I think this issue will always be debated with good points from both sides,but remember,what works for you may not work for me.

 

TRUE DAT ^

 

I cannot count the number of times that IRS has allowed me to make a pass that I would of not been able to make with an SRA quad this season. IRS allows you to take that route less traveled and not have to slow down for the boulders or drag your butt on the deep ruts. And on the straight aways, very few machines will walk an Outlaw 525, but I sure can walk away from a bunch of them.

 

i was told that the ktm doesnt hold up to well