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Polaris
Outlaw 525 IRS
ATV Links
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| 2008
Polaris Outlaw 525 IRS ATV |
Snowshoe, WV - When I heard that Racer
Productions was going to put on a Blackwater-type
GNCC event at the Snowshoe Ski resort, I knew
I had to go and be part of such an event. I raced
Blackwater 4 times and really missed the terrain
and atmosphere over the years. I made a quick
call to my buddy, Harlen Foley, at ATVriders.com
and discussed with him what would be a good choice
for the rumored rocky, muddy, and steep terrain.
It only took us about 2 seconds to agree that
the new Polaris Outlaw 525 IRS would be the perfect
weapon for this event.
I had tested the Outlaw 525 IRS last year in
Mojave, CA and was very impressed with its performance,
to say the least, so I couldn’t wait for
the chance to actually put it to the test in
a GNCC in nearly stock form. The only mods I
would make to the Outlaw would be a tether cord,
twist throttle, Maxxis Razr 2 tires, Hiper Racing
wheels, John Gallagher custom front hubs, and
of course TireBalls to make the I finished the
race without dealing with a flat tire.
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The
only update to the 2008 Outlaw IRS was
new colors & graphics along with a
new post style seat attachment, which
was changed from a hook style in 2007 |
Also, the Polaris Outlaw 525 IRS I raced was
brand new 2007 model because the 2008 Outlaw
525 IRS model was not available for review yet,
but the only significant change for 2008 was
a new red & white color schemes and the
two new straight axle Outlaw models were released
with the 525 S for the sand riding and the 450
MXR designed for the motocross market
To put the Outlaw 525 IRS through a true GNCC
race track test, I decided to race in the Afternoon
Race after the track already had several hundred
ATVs already pounding the track for two hours
in the Morning Race, so the track would be well
worn in with plenty of roots, rocks, and holes
to contend with during my race.
I signed up to race Vet A class and was planning
on just having some fun in the class. I drew
row number 29 on the start, so I knew I would
have my work cut out for me for a chance at
a descent finish. I think my day went about
like most of the other racers out there; lots
of bottle necks kept me from catching the leaders
of the class.
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| SnowShoe
GNCC Grand-Prix style live engine start
on the paved road |
The start of the race was held on the main paved
road heading to Snowshoe Resort with racers lining
up in rows of 5 ATVs in a non-typical live engine
start, and when the green flag dropped, the Outlaw
immediately hooked up and catapulted me out front
to grab the Holeshot over a couple Hondas and
a Yamaha. Once, I hit the tight trails in the
woods, the benefits of the Independent Rear Suspension
was very evident as I had a huge advantage in
the rocks, roots and mud due to the incredible
ground clearance. On the wide open fire roads
there was no other quad that I couldn’t
pass. On one road in particular, I had to be hitting
well over 60 mph tapped out in 5th gear and that
was on an uphill!
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The
Polaris Outlaw 525 launched Jeff Stoess
to the Holeshot, and he worked his way
up to 5th place by the 3rd lap |
Jeff
Stoess recorded a 33:48 laptime in the
2nd lap, which was the fastest lap of
the race for anyone in the Vet A Class |
By lap three, I had worked my way up to 5th
place, but on the fourth lap, I was getting
a bit tired and I made some bad decisions that
the even the Outlaw's IRS couldn't save me,
so I found msyelf stuck three times, which dropped
me back to an 8th place finish for the day,
which I was pretty happy with considering I
hadn’t rode an ATV in months.
One thing that was for sure, the extremely
rough and technical Snowshoe GNCC track provided
the perfect testing ground for evaluating the
Polaris Outlaw 525 IRS.
