Saturday we made the 3 hour trek down to Washougal for a chance to ride (almost) all the new Betas.
Unfortunately the new 200 wasn't available yet, so despite it being on the punch card, it wasn't actually there.
This is the first time I have ever done a demo day with any brand. It was pretty damn fun getting to ride so many different bikes back to back like that.
After the riders meeting we were turned loose on the bikes, they disappeared fast!
The weather was very atypical for Western Washington in that is was dry, sunny and warm. None of those things we usually expect to see this time of year.
The course started at the National starting gate where they punched the plastic card with the bike you were riding, went through the first two turns and up and over Horsepower Hill then into the trees and down a moderately difficult but fun trail that winds its way above the track and eventually dumped you out behind the staging area.
Everyone got a chance to ride any and all bikes they wanted with the only limit being how fast you could get around the loop and how well your fitness held up.
I ended up riding 9 different bike and making 10 loops. I rode the 250RR Race a second time, not because it was my favorite, but because I wanted to make one more loop and it was available.
My favorite was the 300RR Race. It wasn't as "racey" on the short bit of the track we rode as the 250, but that engine is magic in the tight single track that is off-road in Western Washington.
The primary difference between the race and the non-race is the fork, and I will say that it would be worth the extra money. Universally across the whole product line the Race Edition fork was noticeably better.
I also rode several of the big 4Ts for comparison. I could never find the right gear on the 430, the 390 was too heavy, the 480 wasn't suited to the tight trails we were on and I passed on the 500 all together.
The 350 was the best of the 4 strokes, but it wasn't nearly as much fun, nor as easy to ride as the 300RR Race Edition.
Nanci stretched herself a bit and rode several of the full sized 2Ts along with the latest version of her XTrainer and the new 125 (which is fun but way under powered for someone of my
generous size.)
Here she is on my favorite the 300RR Race Edition.
All in all it was a great time and I am looking forward to getting a chance to do the Yamaha and KTM ones next time they come back to our neck of the woods!
--Ron.
