I've ridden some zuki quadracers 250 and a banshee, though I'm motocross guy. banshees are da shit when it comes to hardcore performance. some quad 500 are scarier but almost impossible to find.
I would take the Polaris Predator. I saw comparaison test and its faster off the line and in top speed than the raptor even though its 160cc short. Also its the atv with the best suspension on the market now. Truly a great atv. The best new sport atv now on sale IMO.
And I ride a lot a polaris trailblazer 250 and I must admit I'm pretty suprised. The 2 stroke engine is easyli modded to respectable power output and the suspension is really good, it has a reverse and its dirt cheap. Its half the price of a raptor or something else and unless your into dune with a bit of modding it will be as fun as any of those with a lot of money left. I know its automatic but its a cvt like the snowmobiles. Perfect trail riding bike IMO.
Another predator shot:
I dont like polaris, ,but thats my personal oppinion
UncleBen: Banshee is great, ive driven it a few times, and its unique twin cylinder for soo long, its been about the same since the early 90s, but why mess with a good thing
the thing is I do mostly mud riding and really get into deep "bouette" so i need a 4X4, so thats why i love the Wolverine
Man that thing is fast.
I do a lot of trails so I needed a bike that is confortable. The suspension is not made for jumps but you don't feel the bumps when you drive in the trails.
To race a 2 stroke it would be a suzuki quadzilla hands down. 500cc of 2 stroke madness! And in four stroke... those atv that they put cbr600f4 engine in a chromoly frame! That must be sick! If stock then the predator its totally different than the scrambler. And those the ds650 has a reverse gear? Thats pretty usefull in trail riding. That the thing I like about the raptor.
guess what, there is a difference between trail-riding and race prepping
a race machine like a Banshee which is 2 cylinder and no question ONE of the best sport ATVs has no reverse to keep it light, a Raptor is not really the same thing, its heavier and has all the bells and whistles (also 4 stroke)
Also scrambler is crap, i love the idea because of 4wd potential but then after the first little while its out they discontinue the 2 stroke and MAINTENANCE on scrambler is killer in my opinion
reverse is great, especially when you are on the wrong side of a hill, but its associated more with amateurs of riding and not proriders... but for some places its a must, so all the power to you, whoever got it