| One weekend at Gordons Well (Imperial Sand | | | | |
| Dunes Recreation Area), I had the opportunity | | | | Bore x Stroke: 102mm x 84mm |
| to take a ride on a 2006 Yamaha Raptor 700, | | | | |
| and Oh My God! That quad is one of the best | | | | Compression Ratio: 9.2:1 |
| I've ever ridden. I typically drive a VW | | | | |
| short travel sand rail with a 2276cc motor, | | | | Carburetion: Yamaha Fuel Injection (YFI), |
| which has all the power I need to go just | | | | 44mm |
| about anywhere in the dunes, but it doesn't | | | | |
| have the suspension to go on hard pack or to | | | | Ignition: Digital TCI w/16-Bit ECU |
| jump. | | | | |
| | | | Starting System: Electric |
| Lately I've been considering buying another | | | | |
| dirt bike so I would have more versatility | | | | Transmission: 5-Speed manual clutch w/reverse |
| than I do with the rail. I have a Suzuki | | | | |
| DR350 Enduro but can't really ride that in | | | | Drive Train: 2WD; sealed o-ring chain, |
| the dunes. Last weekend I had what was quite | | | | eccentric adjustment |
| possibly the second best weekend at the dunes | | | | |
| in my entire life. | | | | Suspension/Front: Independent double |
| | | | wishbone, 9.1" travel w/piggy back with high |
| I got to follow behind Cardiac Dan, his 11 | | | | low speed compression, rebound and threaded |
| year old daughter Cassy, and Big Mike, (my | | | | preload adjustment |
| eldest son's teacher's husband who's been | | | | |
| riding all his life). Dan rides the Raptor | | | | Suspension/Rear: Cast aluminum swingarm, |
| 700, and his daughter rides a Suzuki 400. | | | | 10.1" travel w/piggy back with high/low speed |
| Mike brought a Banshee and a Warrior 350, I | | | | compression, rebound and threaded preload |
| rode the Warrior. | | | | adjustment |
| | | | |
| I was able to keep up on the Warrior for the | | | | Brakes/Front: Dual ventilated hydraulic |
| most part, and it was a real pleasure to | | | | discs, twin pistons |
| follow Cassy who had no problem keeping up | | | | |
| with her dad. In fact she was able to go a | | | | Brakes/Rear: Ventilated hydraulic disc, self |
| couple places I couldn't on the smaller, less | | | | adjusting park brake function |
| powerful machine. | | | | |
| | | | Tires/Front: AT21x7-10 radial |
| Anyway, on the tail end of one of the | | | | |
| "experienced only" rides we did, Dan let me | | | | Tires/Rear: AT20x10-9 radial |
| ride the Raptor for a while. It was like | | | | |
| riding in an easy chair on a rail with a jet | | | | L x W x H: 72.6" x 46.1" x 44.5" |
| pack strapped to the back. I was literally | | | | |
| yelling and laughing under my helmet, at | | | | Seat Height: 32" |
| times throwing my arms up in the air and | | | | |
| cheering at myself because of the rush I got | | | | Wheelbase: 50.4" |
| from that quad. I decided (before I got off | | | | |
| the Raptor) that another dirt bike was not in | | | | Ground Clearance: 4.4" |
| my immediate future. I'll be picking up a | | | | |
| Raptor this coming summer. | | | | Fuel Capacity: 2.9 gal. |
| | | | |
| Here are some specs for the 2006 700cc Yamaha | | | | Dry Weight: 396 lb. |
| Raptor | | | | |
| | | | Lighting: Dual 30W Krypton multireflector |
| Engine Type: 686cc liquid-cooled, SOHC | | | | headlights & 3.9/0. |
| 4-stroke single w/fan, 4-valve | | | | |