Five-card draw in a four-wheel stud at the UTV World Championship
By Jean Turner | Photography by Doug Henry/KMC USA
A trip to the 2020 UTV World Championships with a Kawasaki KRX 1000 in tow wasn’t originally part of my plans, given that I don’t race UTVs, and if I did, certainly not at a world-championship level. But the good folks at Rigid Industries and onX Off-Road saw to it that anyone with a UTV could come out to Lake Havasu, Arizona for a good time at the 2020 UTV World Championships with their annual poker run. One call from the kids at Kawasaki inviting us to come sample the 2021 Teryx KRX 1000 Trail Edition on the 64-mile UTVWC Poker Run loop was all the coaxing I needed. And of course, it didn’t hurt at all to hear that the King himself, Jeremy McGrath, was would be joining us. With one deft swipe of my pen, I cleared my midweek calendar and prepared for some Havasu fun on four wheels.
Following the release of Kawasaki’s all-new KRX 1000 side x side, the green crew decided it was time to fatten up its showroom floors with added trim levels, including the Trail Edition and the Special Edition. The Kawasaki Teryx KRX 1000 Trail Edition, our weapon of choice for the poker run, features include bumpers and nerf bars, a roof, a WARN winch and some eye-popping dayglow graphics. The Special Edition, which our guide, Kawasaki’s Jon Rall, was piloting, comes in a white color scheme, and features a premium audio system from Hifonics along with the WARN winch. He could have easily rocked our entire caravan with that system, but he must have kept the Garth Brooks bumping at a low decibel because I never heard it.
Jeremy McGrath and his daughter Rhowan met up with our crew in the morning. From the get-go, it was clear we had different game plans. They both donned their full driving suits—a stark contrast to my casual jeans and jersey. Whether or not this was a poker run, they came to play; I came to get-there-when-we-get-there. So while I’d love to tell you that I “rode with” the McGraths, that’s not actually what happened. We said hello in the parking lot, took some group photos, and about a mile into the course, they disappeared in a cloud of dust. That’s what it’s like to “ride with” pros.
We set out in the cooler morning temps, but were quickly met with a 100-degree day. This normally would not be my cup of tea, given that I am usually on a dirt bike. But it brought a notable aspect of UTVing in sharp perspective. With a roof overhead, you’re in the shade, and as long as you keep moving and keep the air flowing, you’re able to stay pretty comfortable on a long desert ride, even with temps soaring into the triple digits.
The 64-mile loop gave us plenty of room to keep moving. I could have sworn we did a much longer loop than that, given the amount of time we spent out on the trails. The loop put us through a great mix of terrain, from twisting through sand washes, swiping our way around brush, to clawing our way up onto ridges. We did some faster-paced miles in the open desert, then crawled through some technical rock sections, and went flowing through hilly two-track that had me grinning like an idiot under my helmet.
The UTVWC Poker Run marked my second time testing out the Kawasaki KRX 1000, the first being a demo ride at the 2020 King of the Hammers in the stock units shortly after they first came out. I already had an idea of how it felt, the nice torquey 999cc parallel twin, the incredible suspension and handling from the Fox 2.5 Podium LSC shocks, the comfortable ergonomics. The longer day in the saddle brought some additional features to light, such as the power steering.
Our drive time was probably near five hours, and that’s a long time to be tugging at a steering wheel in sport conditions. I’ve done some go-karting in the past, and always wake up the next morning with aching triceps and sore shoulders. But the lightweight feel of the wheel requires hardly any effort, and the EPS also does a great job of absorbing any feedback or bump steer. In the beat-up sandwash sections (unavoidable, unfortunately), the wheels chattered and wandered in the sand, but there was no feedback to the steering wheel. Zero. (I wish I could say the same for my seat, but there’s only so much suspension can do in conditions like that!)
In the sharper hits, such as washouts or even G-outs, the suspension action never ceases to amaze me. No matter how many hours I log behind the wheel of a side x side, can’t say I’ll ever get used to hitting those at speed on four wheels. They are effortlessly absorbed by the KRX 1000, and even though I know it has the ability to hit it much faster (probably), I can’t bring myself to do it. So if you want to read about the limitations of the suspension, find a review from someone with the intestinal fortitude to slam a 2000-pound machine into a ditch.
Following a quick lunch stop, the sweltering heat made us eager to get moving again. We pressed on through some incredibly scenic desert, strewn with proud saguaro cacti and beautiful mountain-scapes. For so many, the river is the main draw of a place like Havasu. But being the desert rat I am, this is where I would rather be, and these are the views that take my breath. Between the scenery, the terrain, the technical aspects and the overall pace, I was impressed with the Rigid Industries Poker Run. I’ve done poker runs in the past that were little more than roads stitched together, but this course was well thought out, challenging and extremely fun—a real treat to sport UTV enthusiasts.
Speaking of treats, sponsors of the UTV World Championships pitched in some swag for prizes, and while I expected to see hats and T-shirts, my jaw hit the floor when I saw the actual goods: full sets of BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2 truck tires, Rigid Industries 30” E-Series Bars, $1000 Rockford Fosgate gift certificates (five in total!), Baja Designs, K&N, VP Fuel, Pro Eagle Jacks… the list goes on. Check out the full list of drool-worthy prizes yourself at https://utvworldchampionship.com/poker-run/. And while you’re there, check out who got 17th place. That’s right kids, two pair, sixes over fives! Proof that you need absolutely zero skill to score some sweet prizes at the UTV World Championships—just a kickass Kawasaki that will do most of the work for you!
Big thanks to Joslyn Petty and Jon Rall at Kawasaki for the invite to come play in the dirt. Also to Jeremy McGrath and his daughter Rhowan. It was a fun reminder of the family aspect of powersports, and wonderful to see a talented young lady out there honing her skills. (Seven-time UTV World Champion in the making?)
Find more information on the 2021 Kawasaki Teryx KRX 1000 Trail Edition and Special Edition including specs at www.kawasaki.com.
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