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

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Red400EXRod<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: HappaRap Hey Rod, I think you have some chores to do, better get off the puter.</end quote></div>My chores are finished, how about yours?</end quote></div>

Been working all weekend, just taking a short break. My chores are like the Never Ending Story [img][/img]</end quote></div>

great movie

 

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

Evning PSAR....

Just in from my first day duck huntin of the year.. 5 ducks for me [img][/img] shoulda had my 7 but a couple got away [img][/img]</end quote></div>

duck smoker is ready and in standby mode [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

Hanging new curtains is so much fun [img]i/expressions/wine.gif[/img]

 

Hey Realtor pm to u

 

G/N PSAR

 

Hey everyone, I'm new here and live in the Seattle area. I'm looking to buy the family a fleet of ATVs in the next few months, but we are all novice riders. Not knowing anything about the trails around here, its hard to get a good gauge as to what machines will make the most sense for us.

We are not looking to go nuts in terms of aggressive riding for now, so I would imagine our riding will involve mostly family trail rides or areas where it would be safer for someone of lower skill level to turn the wick up a little bit and have some fun / practice, etc. I would imagine as our skill level increases, so will our desire for bigger and badder machines, but we can deal with that later.

Given that you guys know what the local areas are like, can you give me any insight into sport vs ute quads for use in this area (2x4 vs 4x4)? I realize the area must tend to be muddy in general, but we wouldn't be looking for deep holes to try and rip through either. I had been leaning towards ute quads, but the weight worries me a little bit in terms of safety and just being pleasant to ride in general. They also seem on the tippy side to me, and I wouldn't mind if the ladies perhaps had something with a lower center of gravity that is lighter, etc (wouldn't be bad for me either I suppose). While money isn't a major issue, I'm not going out of my way to spend more than necessary for our first set of machines.

Any advice or insight into local riding areas/conditions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

Good Morning PSAR

 

Mornin' PSAR!

 

Welcome to the mad house Kamel.
Your family will have a blast in this sport! First off I'd like to get some more information. You said you wanted to outfit the whole family. You, wife and kids I assume. How old are the kids?
The majority of us on here ride sport quads, with a few utes thrown in. We all trail ride and make trips to the Oregon dunes.
Some of us are brand loyal (that would be me) so we are likely to recommend the brand of quads we ride.
My first quad was a Honda 400EX my wife's was a 250EX. I have since moved up to a 450R and my wife now has a 400EX. Our son started on a Yamaha Blaster and now he rides a KX450F dirt bike. I should mention that he is 21 now. My wife and I are both in our fifties, well, almost.
I would suggest for you to start on a 400EX and your wife maybe the same or a 300EX. Both quads are practically bullet proof and they both have electric start and reverse. The 300EX is a nice compact machine and one of the best trail machines ever made, IMO. Not knowing the ages of you kids I can't really recommend anything for them. However, if you and your wife do start on the 400 and 300 and eventually want something more powerful, the 300ex can be passed down to the oldest child and the 400ex can go to your wife.
The Suzuki Z400 is also a very good trail and all around good quad.
Yamaha has now come out with a 4 stroke replacement for the 2 stroke Blaster. I believe it is the Raptor 250. This is a brand new quad so I don't know much about it although I read one review that was very positive about it.
I hope this helps a little and I'm sure others will chime in with their opinions and suggestions.
Again, welcome to the forum. I look forward to meeting you and your family. This is a great group of people on here. We range in age from youngsters in their 20's, families with young children and teenagers, empty nesters and retirees. With a few singles thrown in here and there for good measure!

 

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

Hey everyone, I'm new here and live in the Seattle area. I'm looking to buy the family a fleet of ATVs in the next few months, but we are all novice riders. Not knowing anything about the trails around here, its hard to get a good gauge as to what machines will make the most sense for us.



We are not looking to go nuts in terms of aggressive riding for now, so I would imagine our riding will involve mostly family trail rides or areas where it would be safer for someone of lower skill level to turn the wick up a little bit and have some fun / practice, etc. I would imagine as our skill level increases, so will our desire for bigger and badder machines, but we can deal with that later.



Given that you guys know what the local areas are like, can you give me any insight into sport vs ute quads for use in this area (2x4 vs 4x4)? I realize the area must tend to be muddy in general, but we wouldn't be looking for deep holes to try and rip through either. I had been leaning towards ute quads, but the weight worries me a little bit in terms of safety and just being pleasant to ride in general. They also seem on the tippy side to me, and I wouldn't mind if the ladies perhaps had something with a lower center of gravity that is lighter, etc (wouldn't be bad for me either I suppose). While money isn't a major issue, I'm not going out of my way to spend more than necessary for our first set of machines.



Any advice or insight into local riding areas/conditions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!</end quote></div>

Welcome to the PSAR connection!
I too have considered a 4x4 before, first the Kawi Brute Force and now the Yamaha Grizzly. The 3 things that keep me from them is the WEIGHT and top heavy, a co-worker went on a Poker Run with us and had just a casual roll over with his 700cc 4x4 and broke two ribs, I would still be stuck under the quad since I weigh only 175 and he is up in the mid 200's. There have been alot of novice riders seriously hurt on 4x4 quads when riding in rough off camber terrain and roll the quads, alot of them thought that the quad was ez and tame being in the 4x4 nature but found out just how much they couldn't control them in tougher situations.
The 4x4 quads also cost alot more $$$ usually and except for listening to Rancher pretty much all the riding I have done around here and with our group I have not had the need for 4 wheel drive, just get taller tires to clear the obstacles and mud. Now don't think I am a 4x4 hater either, if I could afford both I would have both my Raptor and a Grizzly in my garage[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

It is hard to recommend an exact quad for U and Ur family unless we know details on age, size, and ability. But for starters there are two routes. Buying off Craigslist or Cycle trader U can find used Honda 400ex's for real good prices and also the Suzuki/Kawasaki 400's are one of the best all around quads. For the ladies it is hard to beat either the Honda 250 or Suzuki 250, they are auto clutches and given that they fit the smaller bikes well. Honda 300 are great manual clutches but harder to find.
Or if U have some experiance and know what U want U can buy new and then have the peice of mind that the equipment is in perfect running order but that comes with a price, except I have heard some good things about the new Raptor 250 that has a manual clutch and able to hold a bigger ridder.

I hope this helps a little and there is alot of helpfull advice and opinion in this group that I am sure U will be able to use.

Oh by the way are U North of Seattle or South, seems that are group is bout 50/50