January 8, 2010
Apex vs Apex, sort of
We were out on Lake Simcoe yesterday to do some photography and run a few tests on our sleds. My old friend Gordo was nice enough to let us use his property on the shores of Cookes Bay where we knew the ice was good and safe. I have been evaluating the little Yamcharger from G-Force which is a low boost supercharger running directly off the crank that requires no engine modifications. I have been getting a lot of requests to post about my experience with it and what level of performance I’m getting.
First off I have to remind you, that Yamaha does not endorse any modifications or accessories which have not been tested and approved by us. That said, we are always looking for new ideas and technologies which would explain why I am running a sled that would not be considered stock.
The conditions on the lake were not ideal as the limited snow pack was allowing significant track spin even at speed. This was the first time I was able to hold enough throttle to check RPM and discovered I need some more weight in the primary, The Yamcharged engine was running up towards 11,000rpm and if I wasn’t on the rev limiter I was darn close. The next step is to do some clutching which I believe will yield a bit more when I pull the numbers back down.
The comparison sled we used is a current Apex LTX (136in) and my sled is a 121. We ran from a rolling start and were still accelerating past the camera. The clip here is the best out of three runs, it really depended on which sled was hooking up but the Yamcharger clearly had an advantage given enough lake.
Does it make the extra 20 ponies, I sure think so. Just remember it takes a lot of horsepower to go just a little faster on the top when you factor in all the forces involved. So is it worth the bucks? Only you can decide, there is nothing wrong with the performance of a stock Apex but alas, I can hear Tim Allen grunting in the background.
Thinking about playing ‘hooky’ next Wednesday and going for a ride somewhere north of town, anybody want to hook up to try the Yamcharged Apex and do some trail riding?? Muskoka / Haliburtons. lemme know
cheers cr
Great to hear more about the Yamcharger….looks like the video shows it handily pulling away from the stock longtrack….cant wait to see more!
what no video of the new sled??…lol
Dan
see, now there you done started it
January 8th, 2010 at 3:40 pm“anybody want to hook up to try the Yamcharged Apex and do some trail riding??”….ABSOLUTELY: You sure don’t have to ask twice around here you Big Tease! Speaking of which…Why is it you guys NEVER come out west?…And Yes;”What no video of the new sled??”…You know CR reading these articles in your blog, is kinda like eatting those little bags of chips from those vending machines….It leaves you wanting more as it Just Wasn’t Enough…LOL
January 8th, 2010 at 7:13 pmHey Chris, Last time we rode together was up at The Sportsman Lodge ,Tommy and I went for a couple of days to ride together with you and your freind.THE 2002 Viper and the SX700 triple-piper were there for fun. Also thats where we listened to Mobi and you recruited me into the brother -hood of Kneepads. Never ridden without them since. The other time I met you was back in the days of Summer Snow squall Summer races :when Tommy and I were talking with you about how Yamaha is an engine design and build co. Wish Tommy could get it off ,but I,m just down the road in Midland and would have a quiet hoot ridin in your C lake trail system.WEENER. Wayne Frith Let me know. Thanks
Hey Wayne… its been a long time! (and I’m due for some new knee pads myself). Keep Wednesday open and I’ll let you know the plan Monday, never know what I might have in the trailer
January 8th, 2010 at 10:31 pmcheers
Hiya Chris love the vid of the Yamcharger,have followed your blogs keep em comming,id love to hook up with you guys on Wednesday Dan Emard is already going and could catch a ride with him also Dan Baker is interested in comming as well youll remember him he had the RX1 with 30 000 km a few years back!!! let me know if me and Baker are able to join in,i ride with the 3 Dans and yes it gets confusing LOL Emard,Baker,and Ault aka Rockerdan Hey Ault you sure ya cant make it ??? LOL Thanks Chris lmk have a Great rest of the weekend the trails here In Huntsville are in great condition.
Tom
January 10th, 2010 at 10:13 amHey Chris,
If you’re riding Wednesday let me know, I’m in! I’ll have to be sure I’m back in Orillia at 5:00 for my son’s hockey (I’m the coach!):)
Love the blog, keep up the good work!
Hey Chad, you’ll need to bring your own sled, will confirm tomorrow
cheers
January 10th, 2010 at 5:34 pmcr
Chris, my week has blown wide open. Tell me where to be and when, and i’ll get there for any amount of riding you’re up for.
Allan
January 10th, 2010 at 8:17 pmHey Chris a little off topic but I think I’ve figured out why light weight is so important to Ski Doo. My buddy on his Vector, My wife on her Phazer and myself on my Attak went for a ride on friday with another freind who has a Rev. The Rev worked well enough to back out of the truck and then quit. That’s where the light weight comes in. It sure makes them easier to load!!! HA HA. Us Yamaha people had a great ride however.
January 11th, 2010 at 11:54 amHi Chris,whats the deal with the side markers on the 2010 sleds (like the bravo)placed near the front instead of the side of the sled?And why was the YAMAHA sno-cross team not in Utah for the ISOC race?Are they planning to only race the canadian circuit from now on?Glad to see you guys enjoying the snow,wish i had some snow to ride(if this keeps up i may need a NO-SNOW wheel kit for my warrior)
The reflector change is due to the way the regulations are set forth by Transport Canada. They are very specific to angles and location, we have no choice but to comply. The Bravo reflectors mark the first change, visually, in years, not a bad thing
Not sure about the race team, I’ll need to get an update from Andre, I believe they are planning on running some ISOC rounds… weird that you guys aren’t getting the snow this year but there is still lots of time.
January 11th, 2010 at 2:52 pmcheers
cr
Love the blog. Where on Wednesday? I have some time.
January 12th, 2010 at 8:13 amHello Chris! Thanks for a great day on the trails yesterday (and lunch!). Not sure when you guys got in but when I left you to go on ahead, I was an hour and forty minutes non-stop riding to get back to the truck at 4:15pm. Just as I crossed the road at the club house, Joe OPP officer was sitting in his truck, got out, checked my sled for permits and said, “have a nice day”. Thank goodness he didn’t catch me doing mach 5 on the trails!
Thanks also for allowing us to see and ride the top secret OMG. Great sled. I’d be happy to provide my thoughts on riding it, just say when and where.
Cheers!
Hey Chad was great meeting you yesterday, The other guys are all talking and posting the experience, riding the new machine> It would be great to get your comments as we didn’t have time yesterday. Please feel free to post your report here or let me know if you are on any of the forums like TY…
January 14th, 2010 at 10:47 amNice to know the OPP are keeping an eye on the clubhouse and parking lot.
cheers
cr
This is certainly a step in the right direction, Chris! It’s very nice to be able to read what “normal” persons think of the new sled, as one get quite a few different points of view of how it was. The magazines has their place, but I really like to read what a fellow sled-head thinks of it. And one can ask them a question if there is something that’s not quite clear, that’s the greatest thing about the forums IMO…
Keep up the good work. Can’t wait for February 2. to find out what they really rode… LOL
Thanks for the vote of confidence, wish everyone shared your insight
cr
January 14th, 2010 at 3:47 pmThanks to CR, I was one of the guys that got to ride the new sled. We rode out of the Sno Voyageurs club house in Midhurst yesterday with Chris and did about 180kms or so looping over toward Collingwood, Singhampton, Stayner and back (B103 to B to 804 to B111 to B to B103). Trails were in remarkably good condition for the entire trip with only sporadic rough spots.
On to the sled… For reference, I ride a 2009 Vector GT LTX.
From all points around the new sled it appears as an Apex since it had no graphics and we were not able to take any panels off for a closer look. It sounded more like an Apex and pulled like an Apex and a couple guys were able to wedge their heads into the air vents and count 4 headers exiting the engine (my head is too big to confirm!). The new seat and exhaust are packaged nicely and are far less bulky then the previous Apex. It really looks slim and trim. Reminded me of the Polaris Dragon in shape and support. The track was obviously longer than 121″ and shorter than my 136″, so the speculation is about 128″ with a newly tweaked Monoshock rear. This set up really worked. All dressed I’m 220 to 230lbs, 6′3″ and found the setup nearly perfect. I did not bottom on any bumps yet the ride felt plush, no harshness at all. The tunnel is also bent up a few degrees which is obvious with the trimmer seat.
Power was very smooth throughout the powerband as we’ve become used to with Yami 4-strokers, I was impressed. It definately pulls harder than my Vector. Steering this sled is absolutely effortless feeling like power steering and about halfway through our ride, one of the guys was playing with the new “trick” guage pod and saw EPS confirming what we felt, since we know Yamaha uses EPS in their ATV’s. I have to say without doubt, this sled was the easiest riding sled I have EVER riden. Whether it really is or not, this sled easily felt 100lbs lighter. I’d say the center of gravity has been lowered since there was NO roll in the corners, NO ski lift. The front to back balance was unbiased and there was obviously engine braking reduction in play.
The one downside I noticed (although other Apex riders said it was improved) was a wierd resonance inside my brain bucket at 45km/h. I know Apex riders have complained about a sound at lower speeds and I can’t be sure it wasn’t just the combination of me and my $150 helmet. Wasn’t annoying enough to bug me but it was noticeable switching back and forth from my Vector.
This is a flatlander, high mileage, trail rider special for sure in this configuration. We are all dying to see the actual specs on Feb. 2, 2010!
Hey Chad, thanks for coming out, it was a pleasure to meet and ride with you. Appreciate your comments and impressions, appears so far that we all got the same feeling from the sled, which is what I was hoping for… keep the soft side up!
cheers cr
January 14th, 2010 at 5:48 pmHey CR, congrats on the new iron and having 7000 sled blog followers (as quoted by the latest yamaha horizons). Excellent marketing, I think the new sled has to be ridden to understand its significance. “Easy steering”, “flat handling” “feels light” are the ty comments that have me thinking it may be time for my brother to upgrade his warrior.
Hey 7, glad you have been able to navigate around all the contentious comments from the sidelines and picked up on the key words from the guys that have actually tried the machine. IMHO it really does work well and is worth a serious look from anyone who appreciates the Apex bloodline.
cheers
January 14th, 2010 at 11:26 pmcr
I may have missed my opportunity to see this beast.I was riding those exact trails on that evening I believe. After following the four Yamaha’s for a few miles they stopped at a trail map. As I was passing by on my Apex GT I could not really identify one of the sleds. Could that have been your group, possibly? If it was I regret not stopping to say hello and identify that mysterious machine.
Maybe next time.
Timeline
We were a group of eleven sleds but at times we had a gap or two between us. Were on the trail from 10 until 4:30… would have let you take a pull on it if I knew you read Sled Talk
January 16th, 2010 at 7:47 amYes the timing is right.
I was following the lead group then before turning off towards the cottage in Wasaga.
Wow.. thanks for the belated offer. It would have been sweet to compare it to my current Apex. Judging by what Chad said it will be one nice sled. What I saw from following for a few miles I know this is going to be one very quick well handling machine.
Yes read here and TY as well, just not very vocal.
Happy trails Chris
January 17th, 2010 at 7:44 amChris, will you becoming up North with this sled anytime before the end of winter? Even though it looks like winter ended early…
I doubt that I will be there but the sled will be in your neck of the woods in February. You’ll need to stay in touch with your dealer as the plans are just now being confirmed with our field reps… cheers cr
January 18th, 2010 at 9:14 amcr,
Can you make a comment on the availability of the MT9 ski and carbide? I can see that the supposed part number for the ski is showing up in some of the Canadian online fiche systems but there is no price. The carbide part numbers are not recognized at all yet.
I am a few weeks away from some trips to western Newfoundland from eastern Newfoundland and I really wanted to upgrade my skis for the steep and deep this year. I really wanted to try the MT9 but if they are not going to be obtainable a heads up would be good so I can order something else and have it in time.
Any insight appreciated.
January 18th, 2010 at 10:50 amFor Display purposes or for trail rides?
both… select VIP rides and display, I think customers who supply Timbits when visiting and speak nicely about us on line will be first in cue
cr
January 18th, 2010 at 11:00 amChris,
From most of the posts submitted by the guys who have ridden and seen the sled, it sounds like you have a winner for the next sled in the “Apex Bloodline”
This sled sounds like the sled I am looking for to replace my 06 Apex GT.
“Better handling, easier steering, less ski lift, a little longer track, 4 holer with a little more power, better ski’s, better windshield and hot handwarmers” is what I am reading from those that rode it.
This is what I was looking for as a trail rider from Yamaha as I told you in so many words here last year, and then some.
Not sure about the higher seat. Hopefully I will get to ride one if you do Demo rides in N.B. this year and I will know. I have a bolstered 07 seat on my 06 GT I love, so it will probably be fine.
I lead some of the demo rides for Pat Hicks in March of 08. Do you know if he will be doing one in southern New Brunswick this year?
As far as the weight, A little less would be nice but I don’t care much as a trail rider. I don’t carry my sled around under my arm. My Warrior was one of the best trail sleds I had and it was HEAVY. I’ve ridden the XP 2 strokes and do not care for light bouncing balls. Weight gives stability,stability is what you want on trails IMHO.
Nice work!!! If it has EPS, hopefully that will get to the Vector line very soon too as I know my lady would love power steering.
Dave
January 19th, 2010 at 8:18 pm