Ski-Doo arranged a mid-season ride for us on the new Summit X, an opportunity we couldn't pass up. We wanted to see just how the new 800 E-Tec works as well as feel how S-36 Package handled on, in and through the snow.
The narrower front end was definitely an advantage in the trees-where we spent much of our ride that day in Grand Lake, CO, because a) we love to ride the trees and b) it was snowing very hard, limiting visibility so the trees were the place to be.
We traversed some fairly long sidehills, climbed hills and hit just about every kind of terrain you can imagine. The new S-36 makes pulling the Summit X on its side and holding a sidehill much easier than the previous Summits. The reworked front end allows more rider input through body lean and knee steering. Those are our early impressions in deep snow but with no base.
We can't wait until we get the sled in some better conditions and see how it responds on snow with a base. Just a word about the engine-even though we were adamantly told it was still being calibrated. It rocks and is very strong.