ScottT, on Apr 17 2007, 12:46 AM, said:
As one of the people who has posted asking and modified my bike, heres my answer:
A standard 290 (or 250) is good enough with the right rider to win any trial in this country (except WC round) 95% of the people riding them arent good enough, so the bike is changed/moddified to suit that person and the way they ride, if the vast majority of riders cant use the bike to its limit, why not tame it down a bit?
For a lot of people (the over 40's) they have come back to Trials after many years away, modern bikes and the way the power is delivered is nothing like what they may have been used to. Me for example, I have ridden TY's, Beamish, Cota's and TL's 20 odd years ago and got used to them, now trying a modern bike i just cant get used to the way it goes, doesnt suit my style, what should i do? Practise more? dont have the time so the easiest option is to make the bike more like what im used to, thats they way i think and im sure many others feel the same.
What would be nice would be a modern bike, with its great suspension and brakes but with an engine like a old TY250 in its power delivery, but no-one makes anything like that, so we all buy whats available and change it to suit our needs.
i'm new to trials , having not ridden in about 15 years .
i asked an experienced trials rider , riding shercos in the expert class / nationals etc .
he advised to get a 200 (hard to find) or a 250 (he'd even used one in expert competitions). so thats what i did

excellent bike !! totally standard was was SOOOO easy on me when i first got on it .
since then i went "sub aqua" when practising , and ended up with the wrong plug in just to get it running (6 instead of 5)......
WOW !!! this thing has suddenly got a whole lot snappier !!!
i now have no doubt that a 250 is enough for a good rider competing at the top level .
i think the 290 syndrome is a vicious circle of people ignorantly thinking that its the best bike in sherco range so it must be the best bike for them . and when people look for a second hand sherco there are lots of 290's out there so that is another decider .
with hindsight , i'd have been happy on a 125 , knowing that any modern 125 has more tricks up its sleeve that i will never even know are there , never mind the balls or skill to try them !!!
now its time to upgrade and i'm thinking of a cabby . this is a 290 but that is not my choice .
if they made a 250 caby i would buy that !!!
i'm sure caby could ride a 250 as good as he does a 290 , but thats a different story ...........
Edited by ianc, 17 April 2007 - 08:09 PM.