19 replies to this topic

[wri5hty]

so when you make a right mess of it and crash, broken bike and broken bones can be solved by hitting the reset button. Oh how I wish that was possible.

[Old trials fanatic]

B40RT, on 14 January 2012 - 06:01 PM, said:

Calm down Pete, I've often thought that trials need to be more like a video game.

Isnt video games the problem ? As for the youth element being the future? dont be daft THEY AINT GOT ANY MONEY!!!! it's as usual always down to the bank of mum and dad to finance the idle buggers. I mean how many "youths" actually can be bothered to get a job? When i was 14 starting out trialing i had two paper rounds and a Saturday job at the local supermarket and had to do the paper round BEFORE we went to the trial on Sunday. All to pay for my Sprite. How many of these future saviours of our sport could be ar5ed to do that nowadays??? They wont get involved either as they are to used to being carried around by their soft touch overindulgent parents then expect the rest of society to carry on doing the same for the rest of their life.

Get used to it the youth element, as far as trials having a future is concerned, are irrelevant. Once they start contributing both financially and in giving up their time then they may become relevant until then trials should concentrate on the over 40's if it wants a future.

[wri5hty]

The youth of today are the over 40s of the future, we shouldn't alienate them altogether. Some youths help out at trials now, so we shouldn't tar them all with the same brush. In the same way as all over 40s are not clueless old farts.

As far as the ACU goes they have only changed the rules for the BTC, everything else can stay the same so it makes no difference to me.

[Old trials fanatic]

wri5hty, on 14 January 2012 - 08:18 PM, said:

The youth of today are the over 40s of the future, we shouldn't alienate them altogether. Some youths help out at trials now, so we shouldn't tar them all with the same brush. In the same way as all over 40s are not clueless old farts.

As far as the ACU goes they have only changed the rules for the BTC, everything else can stay the same so it makes no difference to me.

Not trying, or wanting, to alienate them, or anybody else for that matter, just that i keep hearing that they are the future as if the rest of the entry, which is by far the majourity, dont matter. Fact is if you eliminated everybody over 25 from trials then the whole thing would cease to exist. Getting youths into the sport, even more important getting them involved in the running of the sport, and keeping them in unlike so many wunderkindt that have come and gone in the past, remember Joanne Coles?, is very important but so many just come and go before they are 20 and what good to the sport is that? They arent the be all and end all that some people seem to think they are. We should be concentrating on attracting more people who 1. have disposable income and arent afraid to spend it. 2. people who have gained skills in their working life that are transferable and would become an asset to the sport giving it a sound future. If they have kids who also want to ride then that is a bonus but the kids arent the best or most useful target audience.

[wri5hty]

Joanne coles may return to the sport one day, no one will be sure if she will or wont return to trials except her, and who's to say she wont come back on the organizing side of things. many people disappear for many years, but most seem to return one day, I did also. if we send them packing they may never return and that wouldn't be for the best. we need to try accommodate everyone in this sport if its going to continue and hopefully thrive. I myself and a few of the lads that help me are under 40, should we sod off for a few more years, or continue to ride and organize trials?

I'm not trying to get into a argument with anyone over this next statement, but myself and the lads i work with don't own rose tinted spectacles, we don't hanker back to bygone days and we don't believe we know everything. when we ride at different clubs and centres if we see what we think is a good idea we adapt it to what works for us and use it. we brought in a extra route to our trials to help accommodate the diversities in ability and it has worked, to the point where other clubs in our centre have followed us. riders of all ages have complimented us on what we have done and believe its the best way to go(not all riders but enough to make us continue)unfortunately we were only able to do this once some older gents moved aside allowing us to do so. this is by no way a derogatory remark to the older gents who kept our club running long before we turned up, just a fact that the younger voices were not getting heard. I'm not saying i have all the answers (I'm not that arrogant)but i would like to see some things change, but would rather get my own house in order first.