This summer we saw a considerable influx of people up here, with many of these having decided to move away from the large desert metro areas to the south to settle here in the high country. For a time I thought with the weather rapidly cooling that most of our summer people would return to the Valley - which is what's been done in years past. But this year more and more say they're here for the duration, that what they do to make a living is doable remotely, and having to 'be at the office' on a daily or weekly basis is no longer required. Hopefully the winter rapidly approaching is so brutally cold and snowy that a bunch of these change their minds and return to the flatlands. We'll see..


Much the same here these past summer months. Still have a lot more 'side by sides' buzzing around this late in the season than we ever had in the past, but thankfully the majority have already returned to the Valley garages and back yards they emerged from, not to be seen again till next summer at the earliest. They kinda remind me of the Cicadas that emerge every few years to buzz around, create a racket, have sex and disappear again, leaving worn out husks stuck to every tree as a reminder that they were here and will be again.

It's just that these swarms of 'side by sides' show up not on a multi-year cycle but every summer to serenade our neighborhoods with their high pitched whiny Chinese engines as they speed through residential areas on their way to who knows where. All they seem to know is that they're 'out there, roaming freely, wind in their faces, exploring forest roads and community trails that must seem kinda magical in some sense compared to what they're limited to in the Valley.' Otherwise they'd stay home and not battle miles long traffic jams on their way up here to their 'big summer adventure' each year.

It's a real 'love/hate' relationship between locals and flatlanders, locals wanting the peace and quiet they moved here for not to be disrupted while benefiting from the money that flatlanders spend while here, while flatlanders want to 'blow off steam' and 'show off' their 'high dollar toys' to one another, no matter the cost. A 'knotty' issue that's tamped down but left unresolved each summer..

The side by sides are now turbo charged, if the originals didn't travel fast enough. Just finished up a county meeting with our sheriff giving his update. Incidents they need to respond to are up 40% which puts a drain on resources. Usually Fall, Winter and Spring saw some quiet times but not now. We can still get out and find a few places to enjoy. Sites like The Dyrt have made public just about every little hideaway that was quiet. There's no escape from crowds now. Even in rural areas which used to be quiet a few years ago. As I've said, no end in sight. Still true, unfortunately.

Crime is also on the uptick too. A fallout from just more people being in the area. Why work for it when you can steal it?

About 30 years ago I owned what was called a "sandrail" back then. It had a tube frame, no bodywork, and an air cooled VW engine. It was street legal. I used to drive it on the thousands of miles of dirt roads we have (or at least had) in the desert down here, but never took it off road. It was too big for bike trails without doing a lot of damage to the ground and plants. It was a completely different kind of vehicle than these RZR things everybody has now. I've never driven one of them, but I did sit in one. Way smaller and more cramped. And way too much technology for me. What I had was no faster than a VW bug, and far more difficult to roll over than one of those side by side things. It was much wider and had a longer wheelbase with very large rear tires. These days what I would really like to have is an older Jeep, maybe a mid '70s CJ-5, set up for off road use but still street driveable.

We have a Nissan XTerra (2015 w/Pro 4X drive train) which has been a good vehicle both on and off road. Last year was 2015 (Same for Toyota FJ). A used XTerra would fit your requirements ( I think).



The car has a good mix between an analog dash and not over cooked electronics. The V6 engine is rock solid. Ours has over 192k miles and runs fine. The mechanics I know work on Alpine Archeologists XTerra fleet with well over 200k. The car has a small wheelbase and tight turning radius. Does very well off road. Has low range and lockers.

Typical used XTerra

Had sandrails in the 60s, Jeeps and 4x4 Datsun & Toyota in 70s to 2011 and since then 1970 Jeep CJ5 and Arctic Cat Wildcat X 1000. Without questions the best ride and performance is the WildCat (a sidexside). It is the same size as my Jeep in length and width but is way more stable. I would get rid of my Jeep before I got rid or the Side by Side. Like a gun, the gun does not commit the crime the person does. Same with a Side by Side, the person driving has to be responsible. The side by side will be the replacement of not being able to ride a bike if that day comes. BUT have ALWAYS had a dirt bike or two!

rocmoc n Th SouthWest USA

My issue with the SxS's is the noise. They're MUCH louder than a normal car/truck, on the same order as the packs of Hardleys with open pipes that roam around here. Whatever exemption they use to get license plates, it's clear they don't have to comply with the drive-by noise requirements that other road vehicles do. They've become quite popular to rent here in the Smoky's and listening to them roar up and down the roads gets really old.

Most of the off-road use here is limited to the few OHV parks around. They drive like maniacs and destroy the trails as much or more than the ATV crowd. My boys want dirt bikes and I'd love to take them out trail riding, but there's so few places around to ride where I'd feel comfortable taking them, it's not worth it.

Two Thumbs ^UP^ for that, Peejman! The high pitched whine those Chinese engines make is beyond irritating, especially as they run in packs up and down Buckskin Canyon road through the summer months, pretending I suppose that they're somehow 'discovering something new' just because they're here and not down in the hot and massively congested Valley for a short time.

Actually there's nothing to discover unless you're willing to get out of these quaint 'old school' residential areas and head deep into the woods on your own. Pick your direction and go play somewhere else. That's where the real adventure is. But when you've spent gobs of money on a mega high dollar SxS, whose main purpose (underneath it all) is to impress other SxS owners and riders, ..actually going places off the beaten track with it seems the last thing on most people's minds.

Disturbing the peace and quiet all day long and well into the night as they 'run' Buckskin Canyon road in SxS packs of various sizes, as though this paved, narrow, twisty residential road through the woods was the 'be all, end all' of their SxS 'adventure ride,' seems the preferred way of showing off 'what they have' while comparing it to 'what others have' - in the competition of oversize egos that this SxS craze catches people up in.

Truth is most of these machines, factory stock, were never designed or built for the sort of rugged off the beaten path 'adventuring' their advertisements make it seem they were - at least not here in Arizona and the greater southwest. So it's plain to see why running up and down wooded residential roads is where they prefer to 'play offroad.'

If they ever got deep into wilderness areas where it's just them and their ability to get the most out of the machine they're driving without breaking something or getting stuck, they'd no doubt sense that's 'way above their pay grade' to pull off safely - so they make the community suffer with their 'noise pollution,' never giving it a second thought..

"Most of the off-road use here is limited to the few OHV parks around" It's the same way in AZ. If you have a non street legal vehicle, your only options for a place to ride it is either private property or OHV parks. Everything else requires a street legal vehicle. That is how it became so easy to register off road vehicles as street legal. Back around 2005 I had a Honda 250 quad called a FourTrax Recon. Very small. And it said "for off road use only all over it. It was unsafe on pavement because it had a solid rear axle with no differential, so both rear wheels turned at the same speed. Not good in a turn, when the outside wheel needs to turn faster than the inside wheel. Turning on pavement could cause it to flip over. On dirt the tires could slip. Anyway, I wanted to ride it on trails and dirt roads and trails out in the desert that required a street legal vehicle. I also hauled it up to Forest Lakes a few times and rode it on the forest roads. My former in laws used to camp up there all summer. It already came with a headlight, tail light, and brake light. All I had to do was put a horn, mirror, and license plate light on it to get it registered as street legal. Insurance companies in AZ are used to this, and getting it insured was not difficult, but did not cover it on pavement. With it's small engine and stock exhaust, it was slow and quiet. And I rode it with respect for the land and other people. I only had it a couple of years, and decided I'd rather have a dual sport bike. I bought a cheap Chinese dual sport that blew up at around 3500 miles, that's when I got the XT.

Way back then, most of the quads and side by sides were of the utility type, and weren't causing too much trouble. But that has changed drastically since then. Now they are basically off road race cars. And there are a lot more of them. People are running around in them really fast, making a lot of noise, tearing up the land, and having accidents. Things have gotten out of control. Two kids were killed by one of those things at Sycamore Creek this summer (down close to Phoenix, you get off on the Bush Highway, and go west) I realize it's not the vehicles themselves causing all this trouble, but just like sport bikes (which I call crotch rockets) they tend to attract irresponsible riders/drivers, because that's what they were designed for. Most motorcycle accidents involve some kind of a sport bike and an irresponsible rider. Vehicles like those belong on a track, not on the streets and recreational trails. I suspect that their misuse is going to wind up getting almost all off road riding areas closed. Which means that even responsible riders, Jeep drivers, and others will no longer have a place to go.

That is my one beef about my Side by Side, wish it was quieter. Going to try a different muffler even if it effects the performance. Just have not got around to it. Did it on a earlier sidexside I had so should work. BUT YES too da@ noisy.

rocmoc n Th SouthWest USA

Here is one of those irresponsible types. Removing the stock muffler and putting on a much noisier one. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EO4OdXIBMjk This seems to be what most people do. And it is that way with almost everything. Give someone an inch and they take a mile. Here in AZ, motorized bicycles are legal. They can even be ridden in the bike lanes. They must have an engine with no more than 48cc (that's 48cc, not 49cc) I believe it was intended to exclude mopeds and other 49cc vehicles that do require a license, registration, and insurance. They had a top legal speed of 20 mph, which, IMO is too high. I have built a couple of them. But almost as soon as the law was passed that allowed them, a huge business sprung up selling high performance parts. Guys are building them now that will go 40 mph and make lots of noise. They are even racing them on the street. I suspect that cops will get fed up dealing with those types, and ALL motorized bicycles will be banned, including ones that are currently legal (though there seem to be very few of those around)