Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/280528
March 2014 15 have liked to experiment with jetting and gearing changes as we are certain we could have easily gotten even more out of it. The handling is every bit as agile as we thought it would be. The claimed dry weight is 225 and while we didn't have a scale with us, we didn't feel the need to dispute it. We ended up with the sag set at 107 for the rocky muddy condi- tions. The back end rides a little high which makes it a quick turner; it also tracks cleanly through the sweeping corners. Between its slender feel and quick turning ability, the Sherco is easy to thread through the tight trees. In terms of agility, the Sherco is among the elite. With WP as the suspension provider, I had no trouble finding its sweet spot. When I first rode the bike, the forks were much too soft. They were great when putting along but when ridden aggressively they would blow through the stroke. I then added about 12 turns to the compression damping and found a great medium for rolling back the throttle and chugging along. All we did with the shock was turn the high speed compres- sion out 2 full turns, set the sag and run a little more rebound for the rocky conditions. I ended up with the shock com- pression clicker settings in the middle, while the forks were about 8 in from the firmest setting. An important thing to note is that I don't think I bottomed out the suspension once when properly set up. Overall, the suspension worked well in stock trim. The only time I was thinking about a revalve was in the slower, rocky conditions we rode on day two. So what's not to like? Access to the shock is a pain. It's dif- ficult to get to and makes adjusting the sag a slow process. Also, the stock tires are dumpster bait. The smooth motor on the Sherco was the only thing between me and cutting them off with a saw. As a side note, Vee-Rubber and Sherco are teaming up at the National Enduros for demo rides. If you take a Sherco for a test ride at a National Enduro, it will likely have a Vee-Rubber tire mounted to it. As we men- tioned above, if you are coming off a Japanese motocrosser, you probably won't like the smooth delivery of power. Aside from that, we've got nothing. Sherco came out swinging with their introductory 300cc 2- stroke. In terms of agility and a smooth delivery of power, Sherco already has much of the competition beat. If you ride amongst the trees and aren't afraid to get into some nasty, technical terrain, Sherco has just served up a winner for you.