mr neutron

I do believe you're on your way to getting this down, Mokwepa!!! Good Job! Yeah, if the front wheel is placed correctly, in conjunction with all the other "factors" involved, you will compress both the forks & the rear shock when you bring the front wheel into the obstacle. And from what I can see, it really doesn't hurt if you drop the front wheel down onto the obstacle a bit as you roll forward; just so you get that compression that you need for this technique. At most trial events, you have a very limited amount of room to work in, and I guess the majority of the time you'll have to bring the front wheel up & into the obstacle as you're rolling forward.. Whatever. You need that loading of the fork & shock to help bring the front end up to: 1) allow the skid plate to clear, and 2) to help "spring" (along with your legs here....) the rear wheel up & onto the obstacle. There are some really good videos from a log crossing thread at Thumpertalk, in the Observed Trials forum. And there are some really good videos a vimeo.com from a member named "2PLY" about this subject. One of them has some really good slow motion & explanations of getting over a decent sized log. I'll try to link you to them later, after I'm home & at my home computer (at work now....) Jimmie

Hey, Mokwepa!!! Mokwepa, try to heed these guys' advice about "riding loose", and keeping your knees bent slightly more than they are in the photo. Keeping my legs too straight./knees not bent is a problem I continually fight myself. It makes a huge difference in your riding....... Sometimes, on obstacles like you have in the picture, if I have enough room, I approach them with my knees flexed pretty good. I'll pick the front end up several feet before I get to the obstacle, and drop it downwards on the upper 1/3 or 3/4 (You pick your own fraction!) of the obstacle. As the front end rebounds from this, blip the throttle a small bit, and jump up as hard as you can; you have to put some effort into it. The unloading of the rear suspension as you blip your throttle/straighten your knees/jump up will usually pick the back end up high enough to help roll over the obstacle. Timing is pretty much everything in this "Zap" type of obstacle clearing, but even old Dorks like myself can manage to learn this. Sometimes...... Zippy, I try not to think when I ride, or most any other time in life, hee hee. It's worked for 57 years..... Jimmie

You;'ll need to carry a calculator & a tape measure when you ride now, Zippy....... Personally, I prefer the Texas Instruments Scientific series with the trig functions..... Jimmie

I've wondered if the move to Non-Stop wasn't simply a "Somebody do something, even if it's wrong!" type of deal by the FIM when it came out. Hard to see how it helps the sport. Most of us that like the sport of Trials (and have the time, money, & etc.....) will attend the WTC events, & still ride our local events regardless of the rules, won't we??? Jimmie

Hey, Zippy!!! Out of curiosity, where did your stem break at? Somewhere near the lower bearing? Jimmie

I almost posted this earlier, and thought "Naw, It wouldn't be that....."..... My bike had a rattle that would increase in frequency as the revs would go up, and I was certain it was piston slap. Seemed hard to accept though, since the bike was only 2+ yrs. old at the time. In the process of checking stuff out, I discovered the bolt was loose that holds the fuel tank on, and that was my "Death Rattle" I was hearing. I love it when merely tightening a bolt fixes a problem I'd thought was going to be much more complicate & expensive to fix. Be nice if something like that was the source of your noise, Blacky66. Jimmie

Hey, All!! I either got very "Brave" or (more likely) stupid today. Decided the log I have for practicing jumping over would also serve well to hop up on, and ride along the length of it.... Here's my first somewhat successful attempt, and one screwup. Now, almost all of the "Failed" attempts weren't filmed. i couldn't get my wife to run the camera until I'd already given it several tries. Most of those efforts were unsuccessful, with a few that "sorta worked". but she did get one short clip of one of my mishaps....... And btw, my bike is still in the "unwashed condition" it got left in after the trial event I rode this past Saturday...... Jimmie

If he's still not happy wiht the noise level after this, try hanging one of those on each of his ears........ Jimmie

The very first bike I ever bought (paid for with money from throwing a newspaper route in 1969) had a kill switch exactly as you described. It was used in hillclimb competitions by the previous owner. Most folks agreed that when the rider & bike became separated, it was handy if the motor was at least not running...... Jimmie Added in EDIT: Sideup, are you gonna ride the Trial next weekend at Goldendale? I'm gonna try to do a Saturday ride there....

Congrats on the trial yesterday, Andrew! I got through my first trial since last November yesterday also. Had a HORRIBLE, mistake-riddled first loop, then settled down to my "average" amount of mistakes for the last two loops. I kinda stunk the place up with a last place finish in the Novice class...... As far as my riding goes, things can only "Get Better", hee hee. The bike did good, and probably like yours, will need some serious time with soap, water, and a scrub brush...... Did I see ShyTed's bike all dirty a page or two back in this thread???? Jimmie

Lineaway, why would you consider it a terrible first bike? Not trying to be argumentive; just curious.... I'm likin' the heck outta that exact bike. It's my first trials bike, and I ride at the (lower) Novice level. I don't feel it's too much much bike, too quick, or anything else like that....I put the S3 Low Compression head insert in the thing to make it easier for my knee when starting the bike. Also have a flywheel weight, and really like that deal as well. The flywheel weight was meant to be a slight aid in starting, as much as what aI figured would be an aid for someone at my skill level. The only really negative items I can think of on the bike are the starting gears; I've had some trouble with those. But that was MY FAULT when I tried to start it while it was stuck on a stump, not really the bikes fault. And my compression adjuster broke really easily. I guess I'd say certain parts of the bike are way more "fragile" than I think they should be, but it's all in an effort to reduce weight. There's a trade off there...... Jimmie

Here's a video that's a few years old; forgive me if it's been shown before...... This young man seems to have mad balance & hopping skills. I'll never have this much ability, but it is nice to dream. How's he do dis???????? Hours & hours of practice, or is he just blessed with a ton of ability?? Jimmie

Cost shouldn't be an issue... No-Stop will help sales, and make it more affordable for everyone.... But really, I could see Gas Gas selling everyone of these (and hope that they do...). They're nice bikes, I'm bettin'.... Jimmie

I hope it's okay to dig up this old thread. I didn't feel it was necessary to start a new thread, so thought I would ask what I hope is a relevant question. And I apologize if it is a "thread hijack"..... 0007 said In my barn (concrete floor), when I practice balancing & then hopping, I find it nearly impossible to balance with the front wheel straight. I can balance with the wheels turned (when I'm having a "Good Day" balancing.... ) for a pretty good length of time. But the instant I begin to turn the front wheel straight, I'll normally need to dab before I can even begin compressing the forks. I've had afternoons in my barn where I've literally soaked my shirt with sweat from all my attempts at trying to pick a foot up with the wheel straight, and begin hopping. I've begun to view it as part of my exercise/weight loss program. But I really don't want to allow bad to technique to become so ingrained in my riding that I can't break a bad habit..... Does anyone ever begin hopping with the front wheel turned in either direction, and then turn it straight? And is it normal for someone new at this to have an easier time going in one direction (to my left, or counter clockwise) than the other? The few times I've been able to hop my front wheel, say, 4-5 hops before I dab, I've always rotated to my left...... Thanks for any help y'all may have, Jimmie

Hi, Mowen123! If your '09 is the least bit like my 2010 model, it's reallydifficult to tell the difference anyway..... I've read somewhere that it only makes a difference in the part of the ignition curve in the upper rpm range. Which my bike seldom sees; only when I try to "clean it out" by revving the crap out of it will it ever get revved that high. I definitely don't ride it in the upper rpm zone much..... Jimmie

Be certain you do a "SEARCH" here for an older thread from a year or two ago about "Linkage Bearings", or something along those lines. I'm at work now, and don't have a bunch of time for a long reply. But one of those threads had a number for a very good bearing that has the seals "built in" to the ends. It should work out much, much better than the stock separate seal/bearing setup. That thrread explains it better than I can right now..... Jimmie

I think it involves a lot of really good balance, really good clutch, throttle, & brake coordination/control, and a metric ton of leg effort/weight shifts. And those guys make it look so easy....... Jimmie

Neat video, Lewis! Great editing job, and some nice music to go with it! Jimmie

Who hoo, Ben! How cool is that? Did you get rid of the 125? Any pics? Jimmie

I have the "low compression" insert in the head of my 2010 280 PRO, along with a Hebo flywheel weight. I like both of them on my bike. I guess this falls within the relam of "personal philosophy", but I felt in the long run, the S3 low compression insert in the head would possibly be more reliable, or rather, less prone to leak past the o-rings. I can't really prove that it's more reliable than a head spacer, but it just seems that the way it's engineered, it would work more reliably. But I'm betting most folks with the spacers have little to no problems at all. It is the more expensive of the two compression lowering options (head spacer versus the S3 insert), so that may factor in a decision....... I did this to make my bike easier to kick over, and maybe a little smoother acceleration & such. The 2 mods did this reasonably well, and now, I can run 92 octane (US) non-ethanol pump gas, without having to mix in some very expensive race gas..... Jimmie

I'll second that. She was a very tough, remarkabale lady. Our friends in the UK lost a great one, in my opinion. Jimmie

I left mine out when I was doing the work on my kickstarter's pawl gear & idler gear. I think yould have to somehow lose your clutch cover for it to ever be a problem..... I know so far, there's been no problem on my bike running without the washer & bolt..... Jimmie added in EDIT: I might add this:After working on my K/S pawl gear & replacing the idler gear like mentioned above, I left that washer & bolt out. Put the bike back together, and realized I did something minor wrong. I can't recall what it was; i just recall that it wasn't major, but required me to pull the clutch off again to rectify the situation. Even with no washer or bolt, that clutch was stuck on the mainshaft as well as it was when the bolt had been used.... I had to pry the clutch off the mainshaft I after I removed that hollow bolt the first time I removed the clutch. And had to do that again even though I didn't use that bolt....

Really good point about the curb/rock comparison, Copemech! Really Good Point! Thanks! Is "Diet Beer" alright? Trying to lose some weight here..... Jimmie

My Advanced buddy here at work keeps telling me I need to do what you said, Triple-0 Seven. Bend more at the knees, & keep 'em out,,,,, It's a hard thing for my old arthritic knees (well, technically "KNEE"; I had one replaced recently....) to want to do for an entire trial. And I truly wish I had the ability to analyze & diagnose my shortcomings & mistakes after a dab, a Five, or whatever. The ability to figure out what you've done wrong, and then to be able to correct it, would be great to have....... In the meantime, that's why this forum is here, and I truly appreciate that. Jimmie

Well, the rain held off for this afternoon, so I hit again. I managed to clean it once while going up. But I have to confess I'm not 100% sure what I did to get that clean..... If I recall correctly, I slowed down a bit (used 1st gear) so when I hit the ledges, it didn't seem to throw me around as much. I do recall making a concious effort to ride with my knees flexed more, and really tried to focus on the end of the board. I cleaned it once out of what I'd guess was 10-12 attempts..... And then I had struggles with going down the goofy thing, and with my rear wheel hop at the end while going down. Had a tough time focusing on the end this afternoon. Gave up on the steps, and went & practiced turning & floaters. I pretty much suck at all of this. Gave up for good, went and washed the bike, and hopped on my rowing machine. I think I did that correctly, hee hee..... Again, thanks for your help and advice here, Fellas! It's very much appreciated! Jimmie