Family Fun in the Can-Am Maverick Max at the Idaho Dunes UTV Invasion

Posted on December 23, 2014

After a great time at Oregon DuneFest, the time couldnt pass fast enough for us to head to Eastern Idaho for the Labor Day Weekend UTV Invasion with the Can Am Maverick Max X rs DPS. With one of the shortest hauls from Boise all year, a quick 5 hour drive would land us at the St. Anthony Dunes, in the host camp of Idaho Dunes RV.

St. Anthony Sand Dunes have some of the largest bowls and hill climbs in the country

If any of you camp with kids, you know that having a trailer or hotel room is always a great choice, so thats what we did! We linked up with Luv 2 Camp, a trailer rental company that delivered a 28 camp trailer right to our camping spot at Idaho Dunes RV. Pricing is comparable to any decent hotel, but with the convenience of staying where the partys at. Its luxury camping with a great view!

Thunder Mountain Sand Drags

Once settled in, we headed out to Thunder Mountain to watch the big bore UTVs move dunes. The short trip to the hill revealed rolling sand hills, volcanic rock fields, and some larger shred worthy dunes. The sand was softer than Winchester Bay Oregon Dunes, so I quickly noticed wed be putting the 1000cc Twin-V powered Maverick Max to the test with our 30 GMZ Kahuna dirt tires. The nice thing about having dirt tires on the GMZ Lite-Loc beadlock wheels is it allowed us to rip through the rock fields, but still have low tire pressures to have good traction in the sand.

The Maverick MAX ready for family fun

For the next few days it was a whirlwind of fun in the Can Am Maverick Max. Jon Crowley and I took the Maverick Max on a quick Guys ride where we could really pound the sand harder than I normally would with the kids. Jon was able to get some seat time in the Maverick Max to see what Ive been raving about. After a few minutes of drive time he came back saying, Nice power, really responsive! Check out some photos of the action.

Jon ripping up the dunes in the Maverick MAX

Guy’s Ride in the Maverick MAX

After the shredding photo sessions, I gathered up the family to checkout Egin Lakes recreation area where the water literally meets the sand. Just a few minute ride from Idaho Dunes RV, the kids were having fun splashing in the water during the warm day.

Egin Lake

We spent the late afternoons in camp watching the Teeter-Totter competition, UTV dyno runs, and playing at the playground. I know what youre thinking, we had thousands of acres of sand dunes, and still ended up with the kids playing on the slides and playset. It worked great to prep and cook dinner while the kids were distracted.

Saturdays UTV Invasion Poker Run had us scrambling through the dunes grabbing social media selfies in front of each sponsor, but Sunday mornings group ride was one of the funnest days Ive had in the Can Am Maverick Max. With family strapped in, we set out on a flowing ride through some of the largest dunes Ive ever seen. Pinned wide open during most of the run, we searched for speed on each downhill to make it up the next dune. The power was plenty, but that day was the only day I had wished we had paddle tires for the towering dunes.

Poker Run Selfies at HCR Racing and TMW OffRoad

Raffle prizes were drawn at Devils Dune where my daughter won a shirt from Fullerton Sand Sports. The funny thing was the shirt probably will never fit her, but she had a smile from ear to ear because She Won! Its all that matters.

Group Ride Raffle at Devil’s Dune

Labor Day rolled around, and campers headed out early. We had enough time to sneak in one last ride before the drive back to Boise. We put Mom behind the wheel and let her learn what its like to drive in the dunes. She learned its a different way of driving with the steep climbs and decent, but she did really good for a Dune Rookie.

On the drive home we were thankful to have our Powertank set-up strapped to the Maverick Max. We had a trailer tire start shredding on the highway, and the spare tire was low on air. A quick blast of air from the Powertank helped us get the spare re-aired and family back on the road.

Flat tires are no fun!

Once again another great summer trip, the Can Am Maverick Max was flawless for family fun and shredding dunes with the guys. We pounded it against dune faces, and ran it hard in the huge Idaho Dunes and it continues to impress. Most importantly its helped create family memories that we can share forever. Special thanks to UTV Invasion, Idaho Dunes RV for a great event, we look forward to the next one.

Braaap!