I took my turn on the new YZ, and the first thing I noticed was how quiet it was. It sounded more like an off-road model than a motocross bike. The muffler is choked down to a very small diameter to reduce noise, and it works. At first, the lack of sound bothered me. I’ve always liked my bikes to have an ear-drum-damaging tone to them, and the YZ450F was very meek-sounding. I got used to the sound after a couple laps, though, and never thought about it again. In retrospect, I applaud Yamaha for taking the initiative to reduce the sound of their bikes. With riding areas closing around the country faster than you can say “99 decibels” (mostly because of the increased noise of four-stroke engines), the sport needs the manufacturers to be responsible, and Yamaha has taken the lead on the issue.
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