ATVR Mailbox: We Win Some, We Lose Some

Dune Review Issue Misleading

Were we fair in our review of the Raptor 700 in our Dune Shootout? One reader says no.

Your dune article was interesting regarding areas and info. Your 700 Raptor review was however very misleading and inaccurate. To say the DS 650 has plenty of power in the dunes and then turn around and say the 700 raptor needs a pipe is simply wrong in so many ways.

A recent shootout of the big bores, 700 Kawasaki twin, the DS 650 and the 700 Raptor clearly indicated the DS 650 was by far the lowest power of the three. The 700 Raptor was clearly the most powerful! Besides any and all new bikes need pipes! But to say the much less-powerful DS 650 has plenty of power and then say the 700 Raptor needs a pipe in the dunes is crazy!

I have a 700 Raptor set up strictly for sand. Pipe, air cleaner and Dobeck module. I have raced the 700 Kawasaki, the DS 650 and both Honda and Yamaha 450, all with jetting, pipe, air cleaner mods and one YZF with a cam also. I easily smoked all of them, honestly, not one of them even came close! I just walked away. On the beach, up the dunes, anywhere, I easily outran all of them.

Your praise of the other bikes and huge understatement of the 700 is so odd, it leaves me wondering as to the mood or negative motivation involved. Either way, it's way out of line, incorrect and simply bad reporting.

Rick Hane
Oregon

7 Quad Dune Shootout

I've purchase your magazine at the newsstand the past three issues. I was contemplating purchasing a subscription until I read your article involving the seven bike dune shootout at Glamis. I ride a 2005 KFX700 and was truly disappointed in your assessment of the quad. It's not that you rated it #7 out of seven, but that your reasoning seemed totally illogical and contrary to the actual performance of the quad.

In the main picture (p 50, bottom right hand corner) your statement, "Just leave enough room to turn and stop, because the KFX won't stop on a dime," is totally inaccurate. With the stock [ITP] Holeshots, if you can't turn this "way too heavy" machine you seriously lack the skills needed to even ride a quad. The KFX with the Holeshots in sand can turn, stop and do donuts with any quad in your shootout.

Secondly, in your pluses and minuses category you give it a plus: "Plenty of power" then three lines later a minus: "Little low end power." Well, which is it? This last statement makes me wonder if you guys even rode this machine. The KFX makes make tons of power and torque right off the line. That's what it's noted for. It loves to point its nose straight up with just a blip of the throttle. Bone stock this thing is a rocket to 300 ft. Admittedly, it falls off after that, but few stock quads can hang with it in a 300ft race.

If you are looking for ads and pictures you can pick up any ATV magazine. It is the objective articles that separate the rags from the truly good magazines. I think your product is as good as any, but if the articles show such inconsistency when it comes to evaluating a machine then I will have to pass on obtaining a subscription. Only an existing owner of a KFX700 would have caught these errors. Your other readers will simply take it as gospel and use it as they see fit to dis' one of the best all around quads available. Shame on you.

Sincerely,
Gary Gibson

P.S. It seems odd that ATV Television picked the KFX700 as best quad for the dunes. Don't you think?

Rick and Gary,

After replying to both letters, we couldn't help noticing the similarities despite being fans of two very different machines. The article both are referencing was Mark Rolland's Bustin' Out in the Sand, our Seven Quad Sand Shootout in the February 2006 issue. Despite our efforts to find something nice to say about every machine, we struck a chord with the critiques of each machine. It is quite natural to be defensive about any ATV you plunked down some $7G's for—before accessorizing it.

But both letters bring up some interesting points which we thought merited a more public response to explain our language, motives and testing here at ATV Rider.

First, the basics: we are very serious about being objective and honest in our reviews and go through great lengths to ensure we are impartial and fair to all ATVs. When we do a shootout, or even a first look at a quad, the machines are in stock form and our testers usually have a variety of skill levels. The purpose is to see how the ATV performs as it is sold to the consumer and our assortment of testers gives us a range of input with which to evaluate each machine. We don't pay our testers; they are simply in it for the time on the bike and the occasional set of gear (we do feed them). After riding all the machines, we sit down and compile the good and bad of each machine and each test rider ranks them from first to last. Whether we agree with each test rider or not, we take this data and relay it to you, the reader, in the story.

Secondly, we ride every machine as well, so we know what our testers are talking about, and also to form our own impressions. For the sand shootout, we did things a bit differently than normal. We incorporated the opinions and statements from each tester into the reviews of the quads instead of a separate section of opinions. Whether this hurt or helped, we're not sure. However, our votes are there for all to see along with our experience and sizes to so you can see who liked which one the most. None of them swept the group; there were four different picks for number one. However, in the end, the ATV with the highest score won.

Now on to the nitpicking. We rode all of these bikes back to back and nothing lets you notice odd hang-ups or smooth controls like swapping back and forth while hammering the machines. Having watched the YFZ450 beat the Raptor 700R in a sand drag (Nov '05 p 26), I'd place less importance on the size or horsepower and more on the pilot (that might be an oblique compliment Rick). On hard pack, I'd agree with your assessment of the DS650 vs. the Raptor, but in the sand the Bomb held its own. What we meant by, "it needs a pipe in the sand," wasn't a comment on the Raptor's power or lack of, but rather it was only a pipe away from being perfect in the sand. The +/- section is simply a quick look. And we praised all the bikes, including the Raptor, as they were all good; some were simply better than the rest of the pack.

Which brings me to the KFX700. Honestly, all of the testers felt it was a large machine that felt like a tank compared to its rivals. Yes, it makes big power with a healthy dose of torque. But in the sand we observed a lag off the bottom—likely due in part to the auto transmission spooling up—all the more noticeable in a gaggle of standard clutches. And we stick by our statement that changing direction at speed was much harder then any of the other seven including the DS650. Mass and inertia are its biggest handicaps. And we were pretty consistent in our assessment on the big Kawi, Rolland was the dissenting vote—he too, liked it in the dunes.

I'm guessing most of the confusion comes from our stating that we liked all the machines, and yet including negative assessments. We're not trying to confuse anyone, but simply report what we found on the machines in a positive manner. Sure, all seven of these machines have their hang-ups, and all seven shine in different spots. It's up to you, the reader, to take this information and see which one of the mix matches your needs and desires, like Rick and Gary have with their 700s.

—Bryan Nylander

2005 Reader's Ride

Sarah Stephenson launches her KingQuad off a log for our cameras during the third annual ATV Rider Reader's Ride.

My husband Jason and I would like to thank you for putting together the Reader's Ride this year! We had an excellent time riding the trails and meeting you and all of the other editors! It is really cool that you and the guys at ATV Rider have the Reader's Ride—it makes us the readers feel like we have a personal connection to the magazine and that we matter to you. I do not know of any other magazine that does anything similar. You guys are truly special! We loved the magazine before the Reader's Ride, and we love it even more now!

As for specific feedback on the Reader's Ride, we liked how the rides were split into different skill and speed levels. The first day, Jason and I had a great time pounding it out on the Get Lost with the Editors ride. The rocky terrain and fast pace were great! Saturday was great because we had the option to step it down a notch and relax and enjoy the scenery. The Poker Run on Sunday was a great idea because it gave everyone a chance to explore on their own. It was so much fun to use our maps and try to find the card stops!

Again, we want to thank you all for setting up such a great event! We are already looking forward to next year's Reader's Ride! We will be back and will be bringing my mom and hopefully some other friends!

Thanks for making ATV Rider the best magazine for ATV enthusiasts!

Sarah and Jason Stephenson

Sarah,

Glad to hear you and Jason had fun and made it home okay. You were two of the friendliest people we met at the event. It was a good time for all. We haven't decided on a plan for next year—if we're having another ATV Rider Reader's Ride or working with an established event and doing some ride with the editors type of things. In the meantime, the story is on the site at ATVrideronline.com/features/100_0601_rride.

—Bryan Nylander