It's noticeableas soon as you push on the throttle. The secret to the Vmax 700 XTC Deluxe is its light feel. Polaris'Ultra 700 triple with single pipe is a player in this performance arena,but neither are as light nor as well outfitted with basic features. TheYamaha 700 fits into the single pipe, three cylinder category very well.There's Ski-Doo's Formula III 700 with more power, and more weight. Ski-Doo gets 115 plus horsepower from its 670 twin andeven the tried and true 583 series Rotax twin is capable of 100 hp. Heck, virtuallyevery sports sled is aiming at the 100 horsepower mark as the base linefor performance. For the vast majority of snowmobilers, the Vmax 700's 110-ish horsepoweroutput is more than adequate for a quick 100 mile tour. The XTC Deluxe has a mature, taller windshield thatdoes things like redirect airflow around the rider's hands and over hishead. The SX has an ineffectivebut sexy windshield. This is a sledthat people of all age groups will like if they'll be honest with themselves.The SX is a hot red. This is a sled designed with long travel comfort not stiff sports handling in mind. This is a sporty sled designed for quick, but not racing quick, trail performance.

While we have hammered Yamaha's SX a bit due to the under agressive bite of the skis and owner unfriendly suspension tuning, we are more forgiving of the same traits in the XTC Deluxe.

But as a sports cruiser with gonads, we'd choose the 700 XTC Deluxe. We still believe in the triple-piped SRX 700 for top honors in our sled files. It has the single-piped and less potent 700cc triple of the popular 700 SX, thought by some to be Yamaha'sbest model for both '97 and '98. Think of this sled as the Baby Boomer's SX.

The age of the 'geezer' sled is at hand.One of the best to date is Yamaha's Vmax 700 XTC Deluxe.

But those maturing fannies will need to be cushioned in a more comfortable manner.And basic amenities must grow beyond hand warmers to include standard keystart and reverse gear. As the leading edge Baby Boomers continue to age, they will want to continue to have the power of a top flight sports sled under their fannies.

Srx pipes on vmax