Not since Little House on the Prairie have we been so fond of a Pioneer family. The Pioneer 500, 700, and 1000 all have their unique uses but they share one very important feature; they’re all infused with a healthy dose of Honda DNA. Each is outstanding in their own way and recently we had an opportunity to ride all three and try out new features.

 An old expression comes to mind when it comes to the subject of choosing an ATV for a young rider. “It’s like shooting fish in a barrel”. Your choices are far from limited. The problem is that while there is a large pool to choose from, there are very few that are worthy of taking up the space on your garage floor. You can’t pick up a weekly auto-swapper magazine without seeing the ads for no-name 50, 90, 110, or even 125cc youth ATVs, many of which can be had for less money than a monthly payment on a new diesel pickup.

We’ve always liked the Cub Cadet Volunteer Side x Sides. They’re tough, dependable, and they get the job done. When Cub Cadet let it slip they were getting ready to introduce two new Side x Sides that were to be crossover models, bridging the gap between work and sport, we were doubly intrigued. Any time we can probe the details of an all-new machine and then get it on the trails is a great day.