Sorry its long.
When I was in your shoes Chad I had lots of confusion on which orange bike to get. First off, I had to call Yamaha and voice my feeling with them. They pretty much just said that they were happy with where they were.
I texted, called and emailed pretty much everyone I knew that had or has a KTM 300. I actually thought I was getting Vonski's friends 2012 300XC from Oregon but deep down inside I wanted a 2011 and I will go into that in a minute. Anyway, I was leery about how to get it to Utah and he said he wanted to come down and ride in a month and I told him I would pay him and he could come down later. I was going to be in Atlanta for 3 weeks anyway so it didn’t matter to me. Just before we were to do the deal, he finally got a guy locally to buy it. He had a hard time selling it up there for some odd reason but it was a really good deal. When that one went away I started looking again and then Tyson texts me on a killer deal in Logan on a new one they were discounting a grand so I called them and sure enough, they were really giving a deal on it but it was an XCW which after all my research, I really wanted the XC, not because of the rear link suspension but because of the gearing difference. I told one of my riding buddies about the 300 in Logan and told him I wanted an XC so he asked if he could buy it, I told him sure and then 5 minutes later I figured what the hell, I can’t pass up that price so I called back up there and the salesman told me I just missed it. Sure enough, my friend had given them a credit card with a deposit. He then called me and said he did it. I told him I knew because I called up to buy it. He then asked me if I wanted it and I told him no and that I will find an XC.
On an XCW, the only difference is 1st is lower, all the other gears are the same and the front sprocket is a 13 tooth where the XC has a 14 tooth. The XCW has no rear linkage (PDS) in the rear as well as no speedo or headlight.
The gap between 1st and 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] was too big, especially with the 13 tooth sprocket, being so low, I knew 1st would be a gear that wouldn’t be used much and I planned on getting a Rekluse anyway. If the XC gearing was too high, I would put the 13 tooth on the front like an XCW. There is a lot of argument on the rear suspension as to which is better. Me, being old, fat, slow and worn out, decided that the linkage was not what I really cared about and I had heard that for trail/single track riding the XCW(PDS) rear suspension was better for that type of riding.
In 2011 they added the 6th gear which I wanted, the frame changed a little and BOTH the XC and XCW came without the linkage rear suspension. I wanted the XC gearing and the XCW PDS rear suspension so that’s why I was looking for a 2011. I would have been fine with linkage either way but the 2011 had exactly what I wanted.
I began my search, there were a lot of well-worn bikes with lots of hours without rebuilds on them and some of these people wanted all the money for them so I started looking out of state and found one in Arizona. One of my riding buddies just happened to be in Phoenix at the time so he swung over and took a look at it. An older than me gentleman owned it and he called me mad because Craig had REALLY RIDDEN IT HARD up and down the street. It was a 2011, 300XC, low hours, Rekluse zStart Pro, vForce case and reeds and suspension work already done. I paid $5,200 shipped to my door. Shipping was $220 which the PO split with me. I posted the shipment need on UShip and let the bids come in. The guy that brought it to me had a house in Phx and one in SLC and he would haul loads between them when he wanted his gas paid for. My bike was insured for $15,000 Greg so I don’t know if the guy you mentioned is whining over his $500 deductible.
http://www.uship.com/learnmore/cargoinsurance.aspx With uShip, you get a release code emailed to you. If you inspect the shipment the driver doesn’t get paid unless you give him the code. That’s really unfortunate he got his bike stolen.
I have bad shoulders and when I rode my WR450, my shoulders would ache for 2 days afterwards. One thing I noticed with the 300 is my shoulders didn’t hurt much at all. The 40lbs difference was so nice. I love how with this new bike I am actually looking for a harder line up obstacles. With my WR, I always looked for the easiest line.
In my riding group we now have 3 of the new KTM 250 FreeRides. Very cool bike, its really about the same size as a TTR230 or CRF230. Light, nimble and really fun to ride. It has crazy bottom end and a top speed of close to 65. The really crazy thing is it is 211lbs wet.
http://www.ktm.com/us/freeride/freeride-250-r/highlights.html#.VJmPfF4AAA
Beta is coming out with their version of the FreeRide and it is a little bit bigger plus it has a 300cc smoker in it. One of my riding buddies ordered one last month and it will be here in February some time.
Be patient Chad, you will find what you are looking for. I will keep my eye out for you too. I love my 300. Can’t believe I was too love blind with BLUE to make the switch sooner. Until the Jap brands pull their heads out and make great trail bikes with 6 gears and two few strokes, I will stay with KTM. Ever since you and your dad joined us on the ride in Moab last year, you have declined to come with us again. Was it too easy of a ride? Come spend some time in the saddle of mine.