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annmariec

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  1. thanks copemech, i'll see if i can figure it out! thanks to anyone who shares the event flyer for us!!!!
  2. PLEASE JOIN US!!! Trials Inc & NITRO combined sanctioned, first trials ever at the Tilton ATV Park, not far from Danville IL (home of past events at the Kickapoo state park in the 90s, I'm told). Fully observed, no class checking, self checking or 50/50 here. Broad range of sections, surfaces, hope to have fun and challenge for all. At least 2 sections per day right by the pitts for spectator enjoyment. YOUTH and YOUTH A - free -- in the AM prior to adult contest start, perfect for the Osset riding crew!!! Classes... Novice Intermediate Sportsman Advanced Expert Champs (Ryan Young expected) also Offroad for those wishing to bring their dual sport or motocross bikes to try out a trials!) SUPER easy access .. you can see the park from the interstate! very primitive camping only, or great hotels near by. .5 hours east of Champaign/Urbana and the home of University of Illinois; 1.5 hours due west of Indianapolis; 2.5 hours south of Chicago; 3.5 hours north of St. Louis 4 hrs from Louisville KY 5 hours south/east from Madison WI 6.5 hours south/west from Detroit MI DETAILS ONLINE... https://www.facebook...47610367/?ref=2
  3. hey, Gents! AnnMarie from the States here. The soft puffy decals are peeling up on our '00 GG TXT 280. Can you suggest what glue to use to re-secure? Also, the replacement decal for my GG 80cc doesn't want to stay even with the supplied adhesive. Can I use the same as what you suggest above to resecure hers? Thanks!!
  4. we'll not harrass Chris too badly. Hey doug, how would you do twin kill switches, where, and to what benefit? And to everyone -- WHY did they move kill switches to the center of the bars??? Our 84 and 91 trials bikes both had them just to the right of the left grip which seems like SUCH a more logical location.
  5. Impressed you remembered my GG280, thanks Doug! <AHHH doug ... I didn't ercognize the username at first. Nice to see u here Mr May!> We are relocating her kill switch as we did mine as well, thank you also for that suggestion. I hadn't thought of twin kill swiches, but that's an idea!
  6. thanks all! SUHMIC knows about perssure washing et al, as he taught me. he did not, however, take the whole bike apart and work over every inch of her as he did my new-2-me used bike a few weeks ago. Just got distracted and didn't get there ... so, he says to pass along a thank you! the iarbox was clean but the air filter was dry and there was dirt binding up teh carb slide. also found some other minor issues along the way. in the mean time, my friend the new rookie got a few hours ride time on my Gas Gas 80, which has been good for her as well! And, I got about an hour on the Sherco 125 once SUHMIC was pertty sure it was fixed but he wanted it ridden more before the new rookie took it in hand again. conclusion? I LOVEEE my GG80 and do not like the powerband of the 125. But luckily the 125s momma DOES like it and she happily rode her again this evening.
  7. A friend of ours just purchased a used 125 sherco, 2006 model year. We know the former owner, he never had a problem with this as far as we know. twice today, the bike suddenly revved to or near the limiter with no provocation by a novice rider using very little throttle (once was a crash, once was a nice save by a very rattled rookie!); then Mike (my hubby/our mechanic) rode the bike and eventually was able to repeat it. When it screamed, he could snap the throttle several times until it shut back down. no binding whatsoever at full lock either direction. the throttle cable had a small amount of excess freeplay which he removed. still could make it stick and scream. cable is good otherwise. We found that, when an adult rider is sitting on the seat-less seat area (not on the fender), the tank actually could pin the throttle cable. Zip tied the cable (loosely) to a segment of frame that keeps it away from said pinch point. Not certain if the bike reved out again after that adjustment. Obviously, the new rider is nervous to get back on her bike, and Mike is nervous to let her ride it again until we're certain the problem is solved. has anyone seen anything similar? any ideas what could be happening? HELP????
  8. Ramblings from a Rookie – Round 1, 2013 season I’ve had several riders ask me to continue to describe the sections from a novice’s eyes. I hope at least some folks will enjoy the view…. To the Baumert brothers aka trialmasters of Taylorville, thank you for a fabulous loop. While it may not be as picturesque as Wildwood, it was infinitely more ridable than many loops we’ve seen. It had places for the upper classmen to play and be silly if they felt the urge, but I cannot think of a single segment at today’s loop that was even remotely intimidating. Even had it been muddy it would’ve been manageable. Given that this first event of 2013 included 3 new novices, I’d like to say an extra thank you on the behalf of all of us. I know that some events it is nearly impossible to manage an easy and safe loop; it deserves mention when it appears a CD has gone out of his way to do so. (It also is very much appreciated by our spectators!) THANK YOU! So, let’s ride! When I first walked section one, I was mildly worried. The rock step in this creekbed appeared to be at the limits of my comfort level. But as I walked it again, I found a line that let me ease my way up the creek, from flat shale-like step to small shelf, up a small V onto the flat above without having to really lift my front end. Then, I had enough room to route right into a little grassy paddock before sweeping left, uphill across a small root, narrowly between two trees, and out the gate. The entry line required me to pay attention and ride along a narrow shelf … but if I did so, I was rewarded with a very manageable route that didn’t require a wheelie. (I was afraid to try to lift the front end on the damp loose shale.) CLEAN! Immediately after my ride, I watched another novice, and found that he and his minder had found an alternate path – entering the section at an 80 degree line to the entry gate, shooting up the rough bank immediately inside the gate, weaving through the trees atop the bank rather than riding the rocks, and then out. I was told later in the day that I was the only rookie to choose the river route … since I’d succeeded in cleaning it on loop 1, I chose to stay with the plan. It was VERY nice to have two options open to me … yet another thank you, Trialsmasters! And on my way to section 2! This was an interesting section built along a very shallow dried creekbed. We entered perpendicular to the road, stepping up onto the bank on the left side of creekbed, weaved through a few trees, then turned right to ease down into the creekbed, and had a manageable distance to prepare to ride -- not quite squarely across and over a pair of roots shaped like a retired steel workers’ massive and gnarled fingers; then a second pair the consistency of a sailboat’s rigging, sweep a 180 across some hiding loose wiggly rock to step back out of the shallow creekbed, along the bank and a hard 90 to exit. Thanks, gentlemen! Several pieces that were nice technical challenges, but very little fear factor and little chance of hurting your novices. Then came my nemesis, section 3. Novices entered the section, weaved left across a stump (dang, I dabbed on that bugger twice!), along the length of a huge downed tree then a right hander past the end of the tree that led into a 180 in a tight spot…to a mixture of 3 small logs, cattewompus, with the 3rd log angled (and initially slick) toward the righthand ribbon. The first loop, I gave my best effort to commit and lift over the first 2 logs, intent upon carrying the front end to clear the 3rd – but with too little space for me, I slipped and slid, the front wheel skidding down the 3rd log to my right all the way until my right toe got caught briefly on a cut off branch still sticking back into the section. I muddled my way out of the section. The section had dried nicely by 2nd loop. No lift, no float, no carry. WHEW. I managed to clean it on loop 3. Now to section 4. Time for technical as we return to a shallow dry creekbed, this time about 10’ wide. Roll off a thick root into the creek, stretch the left tape to maneuver a relatively tight right turn, roll over a loose log that didn’t require lift but did want a square approach. From there, novices had a wide open loose flat shale type rock road to the exit. I took a clumsy dab in the tight turn here each loop, but they were all driven by my rattled confidence. The line was VERY ridable, and could easily/confidently/safely be paddled through by a nervous novice. Thanks, guys. Let’s go find section 5! Here we found Champ rider Chase Harker checking, standing on top of a MASSIVE downed tree – the top of the root end easily stood well over 6’ above the base of another dry creekbed. This section genuinely frustrated me, and also the other novice I saw ride it. We dropped into the creekbed across some roots, made a very tight right around the root-end of the felled tree, through some potholes large enough to swallow an electric Osset, up a slick little bank, a tight technical left that required us to roll through a nasty little ditch, then another technical 90 left that just provided room to square to a small downed log that was partially in the air – with the sportsman riding across the higher segment of the log that was also to the outside of the turn. The closest I managed to success became a 5 as I got all the way to the left just before the log, still clean, and tried to bring the bike in position to clear the log on my side of the markers but frustratedly wheelied across the novice/advanced marker pair for a 5. Another loop I fived by getting the bike wedged within the 2nd nasty ditch and falling off the bike. While it didn’t have a high fear factor, it also wasn’t simply a “paddle away if this is too hard”, and so it did have a high frustration factor that was outside my idea of novice, especially at the first event of the year where we had several young and/or new competitors. Deep breath, shake it off. Let’s find 6! Section 6 had a fabulous ‘novice saving’ layout – there was an intermediate line that consisted of a very sharp right hand almost 270 degrees on and then up a mildly offcamber bank. This was the primary option for the novices as well, but we also had the choice to drive down to the flat below, complete our 180 down there, drive back up the bank and continue on without trying to balance on the offcamber ledge. All 3 loops, I rode down into the flat, swept a long right hander (sometimes with a dab), then up to the top of the bank. At the top, then, we rolled to a left hander going around the edge of a funnel-shaped sinkhole twice the diameter of a 55 gallon drum and about as deep. The line offered plenty of room and was easily a ‘paddle your way through’ for any novice who found their eyes being sucked into the vortex of the black hole (er I mean sinkhole!). Section 7 was a really interesting layout. This was, literally, ridden on the hillside. The advanced riders had to blast up the steep creekbed bank to the offcamber hillside, do a fall off 180 back down into the creek and up again, then on to other obstacles along the way. For the novices, we rode into a shallow area of the creek basin, up an easy bank, swept a 90 degree around a large tree, and then started to work our way across the bank. While the section had a high potential fear factor of the 6’ bank back to the creek, the trialsmasters had generously provided us a large, wide open swath with just a single novice gate along the bank. Afraid of the edge? There was plenty of room to ride higher up the bank on a slightly steeper off camber, where you were more likely to dab but less likely to find yourself hypnotized by the irresistible allure of the seductive edge; if your relationship with your ride made you immune to the edge, then a smoother, cleaner groove was ground in with less loose rocks and hidden treasures beneath the leaves. My first loop I tried to go high and ‘safe’, and ended up pulling my clutch, dabbing all along the way and taking a 3; my second, I still stayed high but took a single dab while moving. My third loop, I chose to trust the road and, with the “look at the gate” mantra going full steam in my head (and coming out of my mouth!), I rode the lower line smoothly and CLEAN. Section 8, likewise, was ridden on a hill side, but rather than starting and ending at the bottom, section 8 began at the top of the hill and worked its way to the bottom. Section 8, again, had a high difficulty level for novice. We entered the section by riding across the bank, a tight 180 and then some around a tree with not a lot of rock ledge to play with, onto a nice nearly flat ledge, then a hard 90 down the hill and thankfully a wide swath was again available but this time across the shale ledges that jutted horizontally from the steep bank by the dozen. Had the section been a straight shot from the entry gate to exit, it would’ve held fear factor for a novice, but would’ve been less intimidating. It was a magnificent day at a great facility. The loop was fabulous, the weather great, the sections challenging. And as always the event was superbly managed by a GREAT trials organization in the Central USA!
  9. Taylorville Trials – Think 2013! The weather was pretty crazy on Saturday, including a brief hail storm(!) - -so I exited the truck with trepidation…we haven’t had a single puddle of mud in our extensive 5 months of trials competition in 2012. But, to my great relief, the grounds were damp and small amounts of water were in the creeks, but most of the event was mercifully dry. It was a gorgeous day in a fabulous setting to ride. The loop was wonderfully wide – much of it tractor roads up and down the shallow hills. The sections had an interesting variety to them – some were within rocky sheets of shale in shallow creekbeds; others were weaving patterns through trees in varied grass conditions. Two were on significant banks – one with most of the rock footing covered with leaves and loose greenery; the other was somewhat steeper, with blades of shale sheet sticking horizontally out of the bank. Downed logs were plentiful in today’s sections, but they weren’t the sole focus of the weekend either. With a typically great turnout, the event was busy, but excellent event management kept the riders moving rapidly and there were few bottlenecks. As always, the checkers kept riders moving at a prompt pace, and several extra spectactors kindly assisted by punching scorecards. It was great fun to watch the flock of former novices who had all moved on to intermediate class at this first event of the new season. The new intermediates had the impression that the CDs had made their lines a touch easier than normal for the newbies stepping up today. Young Elliott Key cleaned a loop, or was it two?
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