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ATV Dunefest - Winchester Bay, Oregon Sand Riding

2008 Dunefest - Winchester Bay, Oregon
ATVs, UTVs, Sand Rails, Motorcycles, and More...

Oregon DuneFest Links
ATV Dunefest - Winchester Bay, Oregon Sand Riding
Reedsport, Oregon - Winchester Bay and the Umpqua Dunes National Recreation Area has been home to Dunefest since its beginning in July of 2000. The five-day festival has been a main attraction for ATV enthusiasts and sand-aholics that offers vendor booths, drag races, and 24/7 access to some of the biggest dunes on the west coast, not to mention some awesome scenery.

Leaving the main Interstate in Oregon and heading down highway 38 towards the coast is like taking a trip into the past as the landscape it dotted with rustic looking farms, that are shadowed by tree covered mountains, and small towns that are reminiscent of days gone by, but if you are in a hurry to get to the dunes, you may want to allow a little extra time as there is always plenty of road construction on any of the highways that head out to the coast. As you drive through what seems to be a dense forest along the riverbank, you round the next turn and suddenly find yourself in the small fishing town of Reedsport with banners flying, welcoming all to Dunefest.

ATV Dunefest - Winchester Bay, Oregon Sand Riding
ATV Dunefest - Winchester Bay, Oregon Sand Riding

When the first Dunefest was held several years ago, it was a smaller event that was geared toward sand drag racing, but over the years the event has grown to new proportions featuring live music, freestyle shows, and grand prix style races in the sand. This year, several of the major manufacturers took notice of the event and made their presence known in a big way. Big rigs from Can-Am/BRP, Kawasaki, Yamaha, Arctic Cat, and Suzuki, who was there celebrating their 25th anniversary, lined the dunes just south of the main stage.

“This is a great event and we feel this is a perfect way to celebrate our 25th anniversary,” said Suzuki’s Glen Hansen.

Suzuki's Gary Denton LTR250 Quad Racer ATV
ATV Racing Legend's, Gary Denton, Suzuki LTR 250 Quad Racer
At Suzuki’s rig, there were many quads on display, including Quinn Michaels’ Outta Control Customs show stopping “Spider Quad”. Also on display was one of Gary Denton’s former championship LTR 250 Quad Racer and one of the first ATV’s Suzuki produced, the 1982 Suzuki Quad Runner LT 125, which the Suzuki crew was thinking about entering in the drag races. “We were going to enter the LT 125 in the Suzuki Shoot-out drag races, but the quad was lent to us to bring out here for display,” stated Hansen. “It’s still in working order and I’m pretty sure the owner would probably like to keep it that way,” he said with a laugh.

Suzuki has been a huge player in ATV racing this year with some very impressive results. “We are really proud of Dustin (Wimmer). He did a fantastic job this year as did the rest of the team,” said Hansen. “Suzuki has always been heavily involved in racing and we plan to continue that tradition.” Another bit of info that the Suzuki crew let slip is that they will be doing a mid season release in September and have a few surprises lined up. Unfortunately, those surprises will have to be kept hush-hush until then.

1982 Suzuki LT125 Quad Runner
2008 Suzuki LTR450 Quad Racer Spyder Quad
One of Suzuki's 1st ATVs the 1982 Quad Runner LT 125
2008 Suzuki LTR450 Quad Racer Custom Built Spyder Quad
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