Halloween weekend has traditionally been one of the busiest times of the year at Sand Mountain Recreation Area in Nevada. The 2012 crowd seemed slightly smaller than the year before, possibly because Halloween landed in the middle of the week, but the mountain was still packed with dune machines.
Sand Mountain was busy for Halloween weekend.
A Quick Trip to Sand Mountain
I met up with Dave Kuskie and Jason from Fullerton Sand Sports and arrived early Friday. It was a short trip for me because I needed to leave by noon Saturday, so I wanted to make the most of the limited time.
I brought two new Polaris demo units: a 2013 Polaris RZR XP 900 and a 2013 Polaris RANGER XP 900. Both were equipped with Sand Tires Unlimited Blaster paddle tires supplied by Fullerton Sand Sports.
The RZR XP 900 had its paddles mounted on Hiper Technology beadlock wheels, while the RANGER XP 900 used OMF Performance billet-center wheels.
2013 Polaris RZR XP 900
The sport side of our two-machine lineup was a 2013 Polaris RZR XP 900 EPS Orange Madness and Blue Limited Edition. This was part of our long-term test program, giving us another opportunity to evaluate the RZR XP in real dune conditions.
Read more in our 2013 Polaris RZR XP 900 long-term review.
2013 Polaris RANGER XP 900
The Sunset Red Limited Edition RANGER XP 900 was the more unusual dune machine of the pair. Although the RANGER was designed primarily as a utility side-by-side, its new 900-class engine made it an interesting candidate for a set of paddle tires.
Dave Kuskie behind the wheel of the 2013 Polaris RANGER XP 900. See how the utility-focused RANGER performed on paddle tires in our Polaris RANGER XP 900 dune review.
Out in the Dunes
With such a short window, I was eager to get both machines out on the sand. We connected with several other groups and spent the available time tearing around Sand Mountain.
Factory UTV
Placerville Polaris
Fullerton Sand Sports
Pat’s Turbo Hayabusa Rhino
One of the more memorable machines at Sand Mountain was Pat’s Yamaha Rhino powered by a turbocharged Suzuki Hayabusa engine. Engine-swapped Rhinos were among the wildest high-performance sand builds of this era.
Sand Mountain Jump Shots
Plan a Sand Mountain Trip
Sand Mountain Recreation Area is located southeast of Fallon, Nevada. Its massive main dune and surrounding riding terrain have made it a longtime destination for UTV and sand-car enthusiasts.
See our Sand Mountain Recreation Area ride spot guide for more information about the riding area.
For more from this trip, read our 2013 Polaris RANGER XP 900 dune review, which covers how the new RANGER performed at Sand Mountain with STU paddle tires.
