We have two 700's that race in our XC series and they do not do very well, just too tall and cumbersome on the tight technical racing involved in XC. I do not recommend it for this type of racing, as far as trail riding, they are great. Just my 2 cents.

 

HMT has a point, great for trail riding, but not the best choice for racing. The Raptor was never intended to be a racer though, its more of a leisure quad in my opinion; its got as much power as you could want, its got EFI and it has reverse. The 450s are all about getting the best power/weight ratio. I considered buying a 400, but decided against it because I knew I would just want more power, and I don't want to hop up my engine too much. I also considered the Bombardier DS 650, but decided against that because of the weight and lack of reverse. The Raptor 700 was a consideration as well, and it is something I'd be perfectly content with. But ultimately I went the 450 route and bought a DS 450, got new front/rear sprockets and now its perfect for trails, excellent handling, great suspension, no reverse but its so light that it takes nothing to manhandle it. I'm really happy with my decision. But if you had a 350 before, then a 400 won't be enough power, you're plenty experienced so get something with more *****, the KTM and Kawi 450s both have reverse; the Polaris does too...but they stopped building those for a reason.