Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/730410
www.PowersportsBusiness.com ATV/UTV Powersports Business • October 3, 2016 • 59 It's fair to say my fingers hurt for days from gripping the grab bar so tightly. Nelson, you see, has the innate ability to become one with the machine. I thought I got some air on the first small berm that greeted us; he sent us fly- ing higher than I've ever been in a side-by-side. While I'm wondering exactly how close we can get to the tree that appears headed for the front right (closer than you can imagine!), he's already looking ahead, hundreds of feet ahead and taking in his next line. An exceptionally long stretch of ruts had me baffled all day. I'd try to find a line, and wonder if I'd somehow find a way to land a tire into a deep spot, causing all sorts of havoc. I somehow managed to avoid any trouble, but I never even considered approaching it the way Nelson did. "You think about it, and you're hesitant, and you slow down, and that's when you get in trouble," he told me afterward. "In those cases, you want to create as little opportunity as pos- sible for the tires to even have that opportunity. So you pin it." He did that, and then some. That's when I felt myself taking deep breaths, and slowly exhaling. "You OK?" was his cordial way of tell- ing me the fun was just beginning. And it was. Never have I gone so fast in a side-by-side, especially in the woods and through the mud and up and down crazy steep hills. Nelson showed exactly how much fun the Yamaha YXZ1000R SS can be. I'm not sure the skills that Nelson possesses can even be taught. But it's good to have something to aim for the next time I'm fortunate enough to get in driver's seat. It's also more reason for the expert driver at your dealership to invite a prospective customer to come along for a ride. It might be the most memorable thing they've done in awhile, and provide them with a story to tell others. PSB YXZ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 58 Takes Pro Stock UTV Class in YXZ1000R Yamaha Racing's Corry Weller won The Off- Road Championship Series' (TORC) first-ever Pro Stock UTV Class over Labor Day weekend in Crandon, Wisconsin. Weller's victory in the YXZ1000R marks the pure sport side-by-side vehicle's first national championship in its debut year of racing. Weller's success made history for herself, the YXZ1000R and the TORC series. Just this year, TORC introduced the Pro Stock UTV Class to its lineup of short course off-road races, making Weller and her YXZ1000R TORC's first ever Pro Stock UTV Champion and the only racer this series to podium in every race. Weller is also the first racer to win a national short-course championship in a YXZ1000R and the first woman to ever win a TORC championship of any class. "As a West Coast racer, it is a great feeling to drive nearly across the country to race the Midwest series and bring home a champion- ship for Yamaha and the YXZ1000R," Weller said. "We're not just winning races, but we're already breaking records in the YXZ's first year of racing. And other racers are taking notice: If you want to compete in side-by-side racing, you'll want to strongly consider a YXZ." In addition to her success with the TORC series, Weller has also been racing the YXZ1000R in the Lucas Oil Regional Off-Road Racing Series in both Arizona and Southern California, currently second behind fellow Yamaha factory racer Dustin Nelson. Weller also competed in August's Vegas To Reno, finishing seventh overall in the YXZ1000R and beating many other UTV class winners on adjusted time after starting the punishing race in 26th place. "This is the first of what we expect to be many national championships for both Corry and the YXZ1000R," said Steve Nessl, Yamaha ATV and SxS group marketing manager. "Leading the Stock UTV class takes the com- bination of a skilled and experienced driver like Corry, and a truly race-ready and reliable factory vehicle like the YXZ1000R." PSB Yamaha's Weller wins TORC Series Corry Weller won the TORC Series Championship in the Yamaha YXZ1000R. The namesake Sport Shift allows for loads of fun at stop thanks to its "Launch System."