2 things I have to touch on. This could get a little long winded so be pre-warned.
1) Engine performance.
It's important to note that Yamaha has not been any closer in overall performance in the past 25 years than they are now.
What has changed, is that no longer does a modified Yamaha motor compare, it blows the offerings from the other brands out of the water. And still have bullet proof reliability.
Let me put it another way....Since the late 80's Yamaha sleds have always needed pipes/heads/reeds to compete on a performance standpoint. Chassis/suspension aside. That was a $1500-3000 hit right off the showroom floor to have comparable HP to the other 3 brands. But in today's world of Yamaha 4s they not only have comparable HP, they dwarf the other 3 brands when adding forced induction. Suspension is pretty much on par, and the chassis still leaves some room for improvement(weight-wise)
The V-Max 4, Mountain Max, SRX, Viper 2 strokes all needed some serious massaging to simply compete. Let alone chassis modifications. Now we have a $2000 option with factory backing to surpass any 2 stroke available....with warranty, and reliability not known to the 2 stroke world? I'd say Yamaha has done more than we(non 4s crowd) want to give them credit for.
Meanwhile our beloved 2 strokes are getting less reliable and can no longer "hang tough" at elevation compared to our 4 stroke brotheren. Modify them and we lose any factory backing(warranty) and even more important, reliability(if we can even call it that)
2) Riding style.
I had a SxViper with a 144" that had the pipes/heads/reeds combo and it was one of the funnest sleds I've ridden. Of course there was suspension and chassis work as well. It fooled many 900 Cats back in the day. Not to mention 800's from SD and Pol. A lot of people couldn't believe it worked as well as it did.(I can thank my then step-brother for that as he was the PO) That's all about set-up and a little about how people conform to new chassis'. Like many early XP's and people claiming they could never ride them. If you rode it like a IQ or an older Edge or ZX, you couldn't get out of your own way on one. The trick is to mold your riding style to the sled you're on. You don't drive a Dodge Viper like you do your 1 ton Diesel do you?
I own a 2005 T-Vec with everything done to it minus a full blown tunnel. I run it in the 220hp-250hp range every ride. It's considerably heavier than my other sleds, and I'm ok with that. I ride it for the machine it is. And I can still go everywhere I need to, to keep up with the groups I ride with.
Like Christopher mentioned earlier, it takes much more energy to ride it like I would my Rev or M sled. But if I need to, I'll get down and dirty just like I would my other sleds. I won't be riding aggressive all day, or for multiple days, but I change my riding style to fit the sled and its power.
I use more throttle control, make the Boost throw the sled around instead of trying to manhandle it. This is what most people fail to do. And some flat our refuse to alter "the way I ride" for the machine.
I've literally jumped from a almost stock 670X, to my Vector, then my XP, and back again and I can't say I 'struggle" on any of them.
I don't ride them all the same, I don't pretend they are the same. Different animals all together. Honestly, the number of people that swear up and down that they can't ride a sled for 'X' number of reasons boils down to this simple fact most of the time.
I remember the first time I rode a Dragon, I was laying in the snow twice within 50ft of pulling the cord. I was trying to ride it like my XP. Stupid right? I found that balance point and where my feet needed to be and it looked like I had been riding one for years.
I can't stress this one enough, people need to understand that their riding style has to conform to what the sled is capable of, and not the other way around. It should be an extension of you, not simply something 'we ride'. I used to fight this nearly everyday I had the demo sled out with new or potential customers. There was always at least one guy in the group who scoffed at me for how easy I made riding the sled look while he struggled. Then I'd take his sled for a ride and be just as fluid. I remember one lost sale distinctly because the potential customer flat out stomped his feet refusing to change the way he tried riding the sled. Luckily I got thru to most everyone else I've ever had to explain it to. That guy, to this day is still riding a 2001 RMK 800.
How does this tie into whether or not 4-strokes are making any headway against 2-strokes?
Everything. We aren't riding spec sheets and we don't take dyno's out to our favorite riding spots. We take the sleds themselves. Like any good rider, they can find the strengths and weaknesses from any sled. Push that sled to the limit and get the most out of it.
Whether it's 80mph down a 1-2ft mogul trail, straight up a Revelstoke chute, or busting a boondocking line that shouldn't be possible....get a good rider on any sled and they will amaze you beyond what you think was capable, in terrain you never though possible.
I mean, it shouldn't have been possible to highmark 800 Revs and M7's with a bone stock Apex, but my brother and I had an absolute blast in '06 doing just that. Literally buckled over laughing our lungs out because these spodes read in the rags and saw online that it simply wasn't possible. I'd venture a guess that 75% of all people I've met on the hill need to focus on their riding and not the performance of their sled. And I've ridden with some heavyweights of the sledding world. World Champs, X-Games medalists, and simply some bad^ss riders in general. Not to mention my riding consists of 90% Revelstoke, Sicamous, Valemont, and Whistler areas.
And for those that want Yamaha to 'catch up' to the others right out of the box, keep waiting. It's only been since the '84 Phazer that the men in blue(which the Phazer was not offered in) were on top of the heap. What's a few more years when you've waited 30 right?
I'd love to be a Yamaha or Cat dealer with a boosted 4 stroke offering showing people just what these new sleds have/will do in the past and for seasons to come. Hell, I wanted a Tundra Extreme as my demo for '11 just to should people the capabilities of such a machine.(Might have been a good thing I was denied that request)
