Once again.....we have TLC who doesn't even own a sport quad, offereing advice to prospecive sport quad buyers!

 

Watch for more light high ground clearance IRS 2wd machines in the future!!! A 2wd Rancher 420AT would fit in this category pretty well, if you just stripped off all the needless extra weight. Hopefully someone like Honda will make something lighter and more compact than the huge and heavy 700XX at some point in the future.

 

I can't stand mud either. It takes alot for me to ride in it. Once in a while it's ok but not all the time.

 

You have to remember this forum is world wide,with different types of terrain.

In sunny southern California ,sure a sport ATV will ride trails I think my car will by the sounds of things,but in Northern Ontario Canada they will not go far.

I never seen a Sport ATV on the trail once in 15 years of riding and even all the dealership do not even have one sport ATV on the show room floor. They just can,t work here.

Drive around the water/mud sections! not a chance without a chainsaw and hours of clear cutting involved.

 

Where do you live? You've NEVER seen a sport ATV on the trails?

I live in upstate NY.... We have some of the gnarliest trials here too, wicked mud and nasty stuff. But there is usually a way around it because we have a ton of sport ATVs on the trails too. Many of my friends who used to ride Utes have switched over to sports in recent years.

What about in the summer? There are no sport ATVs out in the summer? I've been up to Northern Ontario several times and I saw tons of trails where sport ATVs would be great on. My parents own 5 acres up hear Lake Abitibi and that is about as far north as you can get before you start coming back...lol.....

One of the worst places IMO for sport ATV, believe it or not, is Northern NJ. With so few trails they are all worn down to the rock beds, and SRA sport machines take a brutal beating. Not to mention the lack of space makes a 450 a lot to handle.

You are probably right that most sport ATVs would be at home in SoCal and the desert, but we east side guys like our sports too. We get around those mud holes easy enough. It certainly does not take "hours of clearing" ...lol.... How much room do you think we need? A two foot patch that we can hang two wheels on is enough.... remember speed and momentum and reduced weight makes up a lot for 4x4 and brute power.

 

You just said exactly what I wanted to say to you, dude!!!

You more than anybody in here doesn't seem to understand that not eveybody on the planet rides in your neighborhood. I understand this fully, and that is exactly why I own both sport quads and utility quads.

I think the original poster knows what kind of terrain he rides in, and doesn't need your help telling him what he would need if he rode where you live instead. (I am originally from BC by the way, and use to live in Alaska as well, so don't try to school me on riding conditions in the forzen north....ok!)

Most of the planet is desert....by the way!!! Your car wouldn't make it 3 feet around here, and you big heavy ute would be the ticket for a day of boredom!!!

 

This is an example of our mountain rides. Usually there is lots of snow even in August, but this was a very dry year. Notice the very capable sport quads:

http://www.atvtalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5157

 

Huge and heavy?? Have you ever ridden one? And not at a dealership. In the trails. I have one and it's the best ATV I've ever ridden. It may be 500lbs, but you would never know it riding one. I can go anywhere the 4x4's can go, and have the top speed of a racer. It's not huge at all. No bigger than a Raptor 700, but not as top heavy, and tons of GC.

 

I put 6000 miles on my Predator, riding the rough mountain trails at Windrock in Tennessee. My machine went through most anywhere I needed to go. Occasionally I'd get stuck, and that's when it's good to have someone around with a winch. However, I'd usually only get stuck when I was trying to. The utility machines are fine in their own right, but I just can't bring myself to buy one. I love riding my sport quad, and nearing 45, don't see that changing any time soon.

BTW, my son has a Z400 and I have ridden it many times. It's a fine machine, but nowhere near as much power and fun to ride as my Pred.

Of course I'd recommend the Predator.

 

I have owned a utility quad for 5 years now. I recently purchased a Polaris Outlaw. I was worried I would not be able to get through my trials with a 2wd sport quad. I was surprised at how much the Outlaw could get through. Since it has IRS I get alot of ground clearance so that helps. It is a different type of riding, instead of 4WD low to power through things I hit the tough stuff faster and keep the front end light. It all depends on your trails and how you like to ride. I have a big pit I ride to and the sport is alot more fun in the pit. I have gotten the Outlaw stuck a few times and keep a hand winch on the bumper just in case but I avoid the real bad stuff and accept the sport quad limitations in mud and water. I am glad I have a utility and a sport but since I got the sport the utility sits in the shed alot.