Yamaha and Honda 450 Quads - Banshees Beware - Off-Road Alternatives

We ripped through the dunes and up some steep sandwalls until we ran across a gathering of quads. The smell of burning race fuel mixed with lube instantly made us wish we were on our Banshees. We rode over to meet the crowd and started talking before the inevitable test began. We found ourselves making excuses for riding the four-stokes. We jumped right on the bandwagon with "We're just testing them" and "We didn't buy them." It wasn't long before the sound of "dang-da-dang" filled our ears, and the discussion was over. We fired up the four-strokes and slowly motivated to the base of a large grade known as Oldsmobile Hill.

We hit the throttle, and just as they had done before, the four-strokes leaped off the line. The suspensions on both bikes are excellent, so the whoop section was no problem. The four-strokes get on the pipe pretty fast, and we hit Second just before the whoops started. Both bikes sucked up the rolling mounds with little effort. Coming out of the whoop section, we found ourselves in Fourth gear, and the four-stroke powerband was still pulling the quad up the grade hard. We didn't hit Fifth before the top of the hill came upon us. At the top, two modified Banshees pulled us by an easy 10 feet. All the others were behind us.

The rest of that weekend was spent with a greater respect for the four-stroke bad boys. Both bikes are very easy to ride and can easily add to your riding-skill level. The suspensions are awesome, and combined with the engine power, you won't realize how fast you're going. You better be ready to shift, though. Both quads come up on the Rs pretty fast, then it's onto the next gear. Agility, fast , and lightness make the new generation of sport quads a ton of fun, easy to ride, low maintenance, reliable, and a threat to the two-stroke. Actually, the Yamaha never rested. That push-button had everyone in camp fighting for the next ride.