This is the 144-inch tracked version of the new Apex with power assisted steering and after a brief ride in Yellowstone, Montana last March we were wondering if the sled had been changed.
This sled has tons of rear travel (14.5 inches) and uses the same skid as the Nitro XTX with dual shocks and torsion springs.
Instead of the Fox air shocks used on some Apex models, this one has aluminum bodied gas shocks with clickers front and rear.
First, there’s no shortage of power with this EXUP equipped mill and the power steering is much appreciated on a 144-inch tracked sled that isn’t particularly happy turning on tight trails and hardpack.
We rode mostly in powder (about 6-8-inches deep) so didn’t get a good feel for how well the suspension worked in stutters and moguls.
Traction is excellent with this longtracker and its 1.25 lugs deliver pretty good bite for a sled with this much motor.
From what we can tell, depending on your weight, you’ll need to set up the calibration on these shocks very carefully to get the maximum ride benefit from this sled.
It feels fairly heavy in powder situations and we’d hesitate to take it into the same deep snow off-trail situations we would a lighter sled with this much track.
We think riders will be happiest on lakes and open right-of-ways where there’s plenty of room to maneuver and keep the power on, using it to the sled’s maximum traction advantage.
