bruceinal

I am a novice trials rider, but have been riding "regular" dirt bikes for 35 years, mainly in the woods. I bought an '03 SY-250 Long Ride last spring, and I am very satisfied. A more advanced rider might have a different opinion as the bike has a more mellow response (heavier flywheel?) than a GasGas or Sherco, but for me, an overgrown, semi-old guy novice, it's perfect. The only problem I have had is that the primary muffler (small expansion chamber) split when the engine backfired during starting. I have since found that this does not happen if you give the bike a solid kick. Otherwise, the bike has been completely trouble free.

I know this sounds goofy, but there was a kid at the local MX track with nice looking black wheels on a KX-65. He said he just colored them with a Sharpie permanent marker. I didn't look real close, but I couldn't tell any difference from four or five feet.

Something that hasn't been mentioned here that is worth considering is support, which of course varies from place to place. At the TTC Trials Training days last spring, there were only 2 Scorpas out of over 100 bikes. Plus, Gas Gas and Sherco had support people there to provide parts, and help fix bikes. This could make the difference between riding or getting a DNF, which could be a big deal if you had driven a long way to ride, and/or were competing in a series for points. As a novice trials rider, I am very happy with my 2003 SY-250, and would buy one again. But, I want to add that before buying the Scorpa, I rented a Gas Gas, a Sherco and a Montesa, each for a whole day, and they were all excellent bikes as well. I ultimately chose the Scorpa because I found a clean used one that came with both the long ride kit and the competition tank. Another big plus was the Yamaha engine - I kept thinking about how many old TY-250s were still running.

I have ridden dirt bikes for 34 years, and I recently bought my first trials bike, a used SY-250 Scorpa Long Ride, and I am very satisfied. The seat isn't much use on the trail as it's too far foward and too low to allow good control, but you can use it on smooth trails and dirt/gravel roads. Plus, since there is a solid mounting point, I don't think it would be too hard to make a better one. To me, the bigger plus was the extra fuel (1.1 liters) capacity. At my level, I don't find the extra height of the LR tank to be a hinderance, but if you were serious about competition, it might get in your way. In my case, I was lucky enough to find a used Long Ride that also came with the competition tank. The final reason I chose the Scopa is the Yamaha engine. It is very smooth, with good, clean throttle respone and a little more flywheel effect than most modern bikes. Plus, it has a 6th gear which will cruise effortlessly as fast as you'd ever want to go. More important, while all the current bikes are well made, I just felt that the Yamaha engine would be more trouble-free in the long run (same would apply to the Montesa's Honda engine). After all, look how many Yamaha TY's from the 70's are still running. Many of these bikes have never even had the bottem end apart. I'll bet you can't say the same about very many of the Spanish bikes from that area. As far as your friends and the enduro bike, if I could only have one bike, it probably wouldn't be a trials bike, but I also have a street-legalized KTM 625 SXC. Between these two bikes, I can do anything and go anywhere that I want on a bike. You could always get a trials bike and then pick up a good XR250 or KDX200 for under $1000.

I also had the good fortune of staying in the cabin next to Alan during the first part of the week for Kid's camp. He embodies everything good that you always hear about trials people. My son and I are fairly new to trials, and Alan never seemed to tire of answering questions and giving advice. He's quite thebreakfast chef, too. THANKS!! As far as Ryan working as Alan's son's minder, from a business prospective he could not pick a better family to help. Alan has to be Sherco's best non-employee spokesperson, praising both the bikes and their support to everyone who ask. Bruce Arnold Huntsville, AL

It sure does, as I found out this weekend. Fortunately, I was able to bend it back shut for the day, but it will still ultimately need to be welded. I have found that the backfire happens in two different cases. The first, which is totally avoidable, is if you let off the kill button too soon; before the engine has COMPLETELY stopped. The second is when starting, and it seems that it's most likely to happen if you give it a half-hearted kick, which I usually do since the bike starts so easily. After mine split this weekend, I was careful to give it very solid kick every time, and it didn't do it again. Of course, one afternoon isn't enough time to say for sure that it won't still do it, but at least it might be less often.