Polaris 2010... what said anything about sitting still?

A.J. and I just got back from the Polaris 2010 new model intro. We were welcomed to their secret 125000 square foot R&D facility in Minnesota by a huge group of staff and were then given an edited version of the facility tour. Probably the biggest thing I took away from this tour was that Polaris is proactively working on new ideas, and almost MORE importantly, new ways to generate new ideas. And after seeing their new lineup, its working.

As usual, I cant tell you about what we actually saw just yet. The info is all embargoed for about a month or so. What I can tell you is that even though Polaris completely redesigned almost their entire ATV and Ranger linup last season, they didnt quite this season. A few things we saw made us go "yeah, good... that makes sense" a few made us go "FINALLY" and a few more made us scratch our head and go "huh?"... but not in a bad way.

The minute I can tell you about the new gear I promise I will.

Until then im going to leave you with a non ATV related pic. This is my dog, Timber. Today was Canada Day and, despite the on and off rain that lasted ALL DAY, there were tons of fireworks going off so he spent most of the day under my desk. I figured, if A.J. can put up a pic of his dog... so can I.

Also, check out taera's blog posting about this insect repelling clothing she tried on one of her recent excursions. I want some but she wont give any of it up. Which must mean it works, which just makes me want it more.

FINALLY... Lets talk Can-Am 2010

Finally the information embargo has been lifted on information surrounding Can Am's 2010 lineup of ATVs. It was almost 2 months ago that A.J., Kyle and I went down to ride the new Can Am's, but as always, we werent allowed to talk about it till now.

So, heres the lowdown on the new rides.

First, A.J. and I are always interested in what changes have been made to any MFG's sport bikes. In this case, Can Am hasent changed the DS 450 X-MX much at all. Just a few very minor tweaks here and there. But, what they have done (and this isnt a secret) is created a racer program with which a rider can qualify to receive a free stage 1 kit for their DS 450. This kit consists of a high flow slip on and new ECU along with some other goodies. What it does for the bike it unleash an extra 30% more power on the bottom end and 5 hp up top. In a nutshell, it makes the DS 450 awesome... or more awesome than it was before.

Next on the list of trickness is something Can Am has included throughout their entire 4x4 line. Everything from Renegades to Outlander Max's are now available with dual mode power steering. Now this is a progressive system which means that in either high or low mode the power steering is less effective the faster you go. Which is exactly how it should work. The difference between the 2 modes is the sensitivity of the powersteering along the entire turning motion. High is for tight, rough terrain where speeds stay lower, low is for fast trails or fire roads. Either way, it works great.

The Renegade lineup gets a new package called the X-XC. This baby is loaded with goodies from the trick color scheme to its cool wheels to its dual mode Power Steering. This bike rips.

The Outlanders now all get the new front end found on the 2009 800R. They also get power steering and some new wheels choices. The biggest news here is a new package called the XT-P. This is the primo version of the Oulander and comes in both regular or Max versions.

Finally, the biggest, baddest Outlander of them all, the Max Limited gets a makeover with a new, touch screen GPS mounted on the bars, dual mode power steering, new paint and the coolest option of all. Something we think is truly revolutionary in the ATV industry. 5 way adjustable air suspension. Basically, this allows the driver to adjust the rear preload via a handle bar mounted switch. A small but efficient compressor under the seat pumps up the custom air shocks to one of 5 preset settings. When you want less preload a valve opens up and lets the air out. Overall, this setup works better than we expected. A huge difference can be felt when moving through the settings. The compressor is fast too. It only takes a couple seconds to bump up the air shocks.

Now, this system would be cool if the only thing it did was offer an adjustable ride. But it has one other function that we think is absolutely amazing. Something that made us all go "hmmm, why has no one though of this before?" On the side of the compressor system is a quick disconnect and inside the trunk you'll find a coiled air hose with standard shrader fill valve. Simply take off the seat, connect the hose (thats easily over 10 feet long) and fill up your flat tires... or its long enough to fill a buddies tire from a good distance. With different fill attachments you could easily use this system to fill a rubber dingy for fishing, water toys for the kids or an air mattress for camping. If you like multi purpose toys on your ATV... this is the best one of all.

So now youve got all the info I was holding back on from Can-Ams 2010 new model intro. Stay tuned for more information and a full story about this intro on the show later in the season.

Until next time

L.

Would you like fries with that?

So I just got back from a weeks holidays in Myrtle Beach, SC. The Motorhead, Mark Lester (also, my dear ol' dad) and Mom take their 5th wheel trailer down there each year and my wife, Emmy and I stay for a week while its down there. The air was hot, the water was warm the beach was sandy. Over all, it was great.

On the way back home we had about a 3 hour layover in Philadelphia. While we were at the airport we decided to grab some super healthy fruit smoothies. Now, for reference, a smoothie is basically a tiny portion of fruit and a bunch of ice all chopped up. Not really difficult right. Apparently something about this fruit/ice combo warranted $4 each. I was thirsty, the wife was too... $4? Whatever.

So the girl makes my smoothie, over fills the cup and squishes the top down which in turn squishes the excess smoothie mixture all down the side of the cup. She then picks up the cup with two fingers like she doesnt want to get any of the oozing smoothie juice on her hands and puts it on the counter in front of me and says, in a very unexcited voice, "here ya go".

Now I got thinking to myself, what ever happened to over delivering on expectations. And lets be honest, paying $4 for a smoothie leaves a person with some pretty high expectations. Whatever happened to going the extra mile for the customer and even though I was on vacation it left me wondering how we can go the extra mile for all of our loyal DirtTrax fans.

The goal here, is to deliver more smooth ATV goodness than your expecting without letting the excess run down the side of your cup.

Hopefully were delivering on this and if were not, give us a shout and let us know. Cause thats what were here for.

Till next time

L.

Sometimes things just dont happen the way you thought they would.

So the other day Im riding our DS 450 X-MX at our secret test compound. I've been trying to get in shape enough to go back and race another CMRC ATV race again and before I started riding I figured Id better make sure the track includes all the elements I might run into on a real motocross track. So, I set out to build a few step up jumps. Something ive never been very comfortable with in the past. My first few build attempts went well. The jumps were too steep but they were do-able and not "too" big.

I rode for a day, adjusted things as needed with our trusty backhoe until I got everything where I wanted it. The next day I decided to invite some friends over to test out my new track layout.

The day started off great, everyone was having a blast working their way up to the bigger jumps and stylin off the smaller ones. A.J. was the only one who would actually hit the new step up jumps id made and he even said the one was just to gnarly and that it needed to be fixed. I just said id do it tomorrow.

At the end of the day we were puttin on the last few laps, the sun was going down and was at the worst spot for the biggest of the 2 step up jumps. It was right in your eyes on the lead up and then cast a dark shadow on the face of the jump. Id hit this thing like 100 times that day so I just figured I didnt need to see it that well to know what was going to happen.

Sure enough, I come barrelin into the face of this thing, maybe just a hair too slow. The take off was fine but I came up short on the landing, cased it and went flying over the bars. This whole process didnt hurt as much as I thought it might. What came next just sucked.

As I was flying through the air I spotted a rock in the ground. Not like a stone, but like a giant slab of rock... possibly connected to the earths core somehow. It wasent smooth like I was hoping though, it was all edgy, bumpy and rough. Based on my immediate calculations, that rock was exactly where I was heading. And, as if I had laser guided aim, I landed, back first, on this rock.

Im not a small dude. 240lbs does not come down all light and fluffy if you get my drift. I laded on my left lower back and at first it didnt hurt but I knew it wasent good. So I got right up, got on the bike and drove home before the shock and adrenaline wore off and the pain set in.

Turns out I bruised my back and side up pretty good. The bruise went through to the bone on my hip but an X-ray showed that nothing was broken or out of place. Lots of ice and some down time and im all back to normal, ready to ride asap. But maybe ill wait till the sun isnt in my eyes and I can actually see the jump.

Live and learn I guess.

Until next time

L.

Ride Safe, Ride Sober, and We'll see you next week on DirtTrax TV

This is my first post as the host of DirtTrax. So much has changed around here the past few months its really hard to comprehend. Of course, the biggest news, as most of you will already know, is that SnowTrax and DirtTrax TV have been purchased by Supertrax International. This means we are now affiliated with the industries #1 Most Read snowmobile magazine and the industries Most Opinionated ATV Magazine, All-Terrain Vehicle. Which makes sense since we are the most watched and most opinionated Snowmobile and ATV TV shows.

As if being purchased by a whole new company wasen't enough, we also decided to freshen up the shows look at feel just a bit. A new opening segment, new theme song and some new elements within the show have all been painstakingly created, edited and included and, from my initial viewing, have taken the show to a whole other level. Im so impressed with the work of our Editor Mike Pollington and our Director Of Photography Kyle McDougall. It really was the 2 of them that made all the new changes come to life.

I certainly hope everyone will continue to watch DirtTrax TV each week. We are striving to bring you more and more of the juicy ATV goodness you've come to expect from us. As always, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to e-mail us at any time. We love hearing from our viewers and we always try to respond as soon as we can.

Till next time,

L.

a little about luke..

Since his first ride, on a Suzuki LT 50 3 wheeler in 1982 at only 2 years old, luke hasnt stopped riding ATVs. From 4X4's to sport quads and side by sides he truly loves everything about the sport and enjoys riding "every spare second" he gets. With a strong history in snowmobile racing and numerous national titles including a #1 National Championship, Luke has developed a deep understanding of not just the enthusiastic side of riding, but also the technical side as well. "Racing snowmobiles for so long at the level I did helped me develop a clear ability to relay information about the vehicle I was riding, to the people around me. Racers have to be able to tell their crew how the vehicle feels, how its responding and reacting and to do that, they have to understand the whys and hows of how that vehicle works. I think that has alot to do with my ability to clearly relay information about the ATVs I test on the show."
Luke has been involved in the ATV industry for as long as he can remember as his dad, Marks, side kick when he was young, his time as a feature editor for All Terrain Vehicle Magazine to his present role as the Host of DirtTrax TV. "This is what I love to do. I love riding ATVs of all shapes and sizes. I love challenging my self and my bike to see what were both capable of. I love being sideways at 60 MPH. I love hitting big doubles in 3rd gear. I love getting so dirty the bottom of the shower turns brown at the end of the day. Im so fortunate that I get to do what I love for a living, Im blessed to be able to do this and I thank God for the opportunity every day."
Luke started with DirtTrax in 2008 as the shows Co-Host and quickly became known for his honest, no nonsense opinions. "I believe the most valuable thing a person doing what I do for a living has is their credibility. There is a certain skepticism surrounding the general media these days. The public believes we say what the advertisers tell us. We like bikes from whatever company pays us the most. This is simply not true at all. Everyone on the DirtTrax crew knows that the truth must come first. If an ATV is amazing, we'll say it. If an ATV needs improvement... we'll say that too. And if there is something about an ATV that is simply terrible. Well, we have to be honest about that. Sometimes we get in trouble for it... but in the long run, even the advertisers trust our credibility so they dont stay mad at us for long"
"As a kid I always wanted to grow up and be just like my dad. We did everything together, including riding ATVs... three wheelers at the time. When dad started All Terrain Vehicle Magazine all I wanted to do was write for the Magazine and eventually I did. But when the opportunity arose to work on DirtTrax I knew that it was where I really fit in. And now that the companies are all owned by the same people I get to not only work FOR my dad the way I always wanted to, but I get to work WITH him, ride WITH him and do all the things we've always done, every day. Which is why this doesnt really seem like a job and is yet another thing I thank God for every day"