Day 3 – Picture Frame Arch In A Cub Cadet Challenger 750 Camo
There were no new revelations when we spent the day in the Cub Cadet Challenger 750 Camo but a couple of things were reinforced and even one or two that “exposed” some things we didn’t notice when we first drove the Challenger in southern California.
One thing about riding in Moab is that the riding will show a vehicle’s strengths and weaknesses. With that in mind the Cub Cadet Challenger showed it can indeed tackle some—but not all—of the trails in Moab. The Challenger, along with any other side-by-side with a short travel suspension, isn’t equipped to take on the bigger obstacles on some of the most technical trails. The Challenger’s front travel is 9 inches and rear travel is 8.1 inches, which is respectable and the ground clearance is 12 inches so it can take on some of the obstacles on the Moab trails.
We proved that when we rode the Picture Frame Arch trail and bits and pieces of the Behind The Rocks trail.
The Challenger does offer 3-way adjustable coil-over shocks but we didn’t adjust them at all during our ride. We probably should have played with them a little but for whatever reason chose not to. Part of that may have to do with the fact that the Picture Frame Arch trail is fairly tame and the Challenger’s ride was good for those parts of the trail.
There are several features on the Cub Cadet Challenger that comes stock where as on some competitors, those accessories would have to added at an additional cost. Those include full doors, a full front windshield (which would have been handy the day before in the snowstorm) and roof, along with a horn, turn signals and side view mirrors.
And what is missing? Power steering for one, which will be available soon on the Challenger. A place like Moab almost demands power steering. You can get pretty worn out from holding tight to the steering wheel over all the obstacles on the trails. There is so much jarring and it comes right through the steering. Second is a touch more power. The Challenger has good torque, which is very helpful when negotiating the obstacles on the Moab trails. But it is shy on power. Cub Cadet claims the Challenger 750 has 35.8 hp and can go 45 mph. The horsepower figure could very well be spot on, but in two different rides on the Challenger 750, we yet have to come close to 45 mph. Granted, many of the trails around Moab don’t warrant speed, but there were a couple of open stretches where we could press the gas and open it up. We maybe got to 38 or 40 mph, but very briefly.
Now this isn’t a knock against the Challenger, just more of an FYI, if you will. Over a couple of the obstacles on the Behind The Rocks trail, it was a bit of a stretch (literally) for the vehicle to reach from obstacle to the ground, like on a ledge. The wheelbase on the Challenger is 76.8 inches, compared to the Wildcat Sport’s 84.6 inches, Kawasaki Teryx’s 85.8 inches and Polaris RZR 1000 Turbo at 90 inches. Fact is a longer wheelbase allows a driver to tackle more obstacles. Again, it’s not a knock, you just have to be aware when you’re deciding what you want to tackle.
One more highlight of the Challenger 750 is something that just can’t be overlooked—the MSRP of $11,299.
Day 4 – Metal Masher In A Polaris RZR 1000 Turbo
It was our last day riding at this year’s Rally on the Rocks and we couldn’t have picked a better way to end our week. The ride this day had more power, more suspension travel and bigger, gnarlier obstacles. The weather was back to being Moab-like and it was a trail true to its name: Metal Masher.
We got to tag along with Starting Line Products’ Jerry Mathews and Klim’s Dustin Pancheri, who were the official guides for the trail that day. We rode with Mathews in his Polaris RZR 1000 Turbo and this side-by-side was every bit up to the challenges from one of the most difficult off-road trails in Moab. You can’t usually go wrong with obstacles named Widow Maker, Mother-in-Law Hill, Mirror Gulch, Rock Chucker Hill and Climb Challenge.
Most off-roaders who want to tackle Metal Masher probably aren’t doing so because of the scenery but there were plenty of amazing views, especially from the rim, where the trail allows you to get right next to the edge of the cliff. This trail was another first for us in Moab and we couldn’t be more impressed—with the obstacles, Mathews guiding, Mathews RZR turbo and the spectacular scenery.
Metal Masher makes a loop off the Gemini Bridges trail/road, that is one of the easiest trails in the area. There were sections of the trail on both ends that were open enough that Mathews was able to show off his RZR Turbo, which flat out hauls down the trail. The power and power delivery are very impressive and it’s no surprise Mathews had his Polaris running in tip top shape. Polaris claims 168 hp on this turbo model and Mathews did his best to wring every last bit of it out on a couple of stretches of trail.
We have to admit there were times we wondered if the horsepower was a bit much for the obstacles, meaning, when did the turbo kick in and spin the tires too much to allow Mathews to ease up a couple of the ledges. But he is an expert driver and harnessed the power (and let enough air out of the tires so they would grip) to take on all the obstacles. It was fun to be in the vehicle and navigate those obstacles and also stand and watch (and take pictures) Mathews and others take on those ledges, rock walls and slickrock faces.
It wasn’t just the power that was so remarkable on the RZR 1000 Turbo, the ride was equally as impressive. The vehicle floated over the bumps and any other rough spot that dared rear its ugly head in front of the RZR. It literally soaked every thing up and was especially noticeable when we would climb over edges that were sharp and presented more challenges than just a sharp edge.
Floating over all those obstacles comes courtesy of 2.5-inch Fox Podium internal bypass shocks (with 24-position adjustable clickers) and 16 inches of travel on the front and 3-inch Fox Podium shocks with remote reservoirs and 18 inches of travel in the back. And plenty of ground clearance. The 64-inch width provides plenty of stability and a pretty big footprint, which is kind of handy when you’re going over some of the obstacles we encountered.
While some may claim that this RZR Turbo is a sand slayer, we think it is an excellent choice for the kind of trail we rode that day.
