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It seems all trials bikes made in the last 12 years or so have the huge gap in gearing between the section gears and road gears. 70's and 80's trials bikes were great as trail bikes. My 1995 bike also works well as a trail bike with it's evenly spaced gearing. I also think the older, heavier bikes feel more stable on the trails.

I have a copy of Bernie's book that was handed to me by Len Weed himself fresh off the press in 1983. We were setting up a local trials event in Hungry Valley, CA and Len strolls up with a box of books and hands them out to all the club members present. I remember Bernie was there helping set up sections. I also have a scanned PDF of the whole book and if anyone can get Len's permission to distribute, I could post a download link. He seems like the kind of guy who wouldn't mind.

I think the only way we can get a World Round back in the States is if the FIM gets rid of the rule requiring promoters to foot the hotel bills. Or if Trials becomes popular in the US, (highly unlikely) and ticket sales can offset the cost. Japan has rounds every year and it is much farther but they have a huge audience of ticket buyers. Big audiences also brings money from sponsors. It's too much of a niche sport here. The amount of spectators at the 2006 World Round at TTC was good, but in 2008 the numbers seemed down due to the recession and with today's high gas prices it seems like a losing proposition for any promoter.

Neat concept, but probably not good for trials with the unremoveable neck seal. It could be my next helmet for my dual sport bike. It doesn't take much impact to a tooth to kill it requiring an expensive root canal. Then that tooth will become brittle and can crack requiring extraction and then the even more expensive bridge or dental implant.

OK, I finally did some thorough testing on my cut up tire. The one in the photo was my ruined IRC that was my first attempt to mount a tubeless. I ruined the bead and it became a victim of the knife. I since bought a new Dunlop 803 and it took only half an hour to cut off half the knobs with my Knobby Knife. I test rode it in ideal traction conditions. Not much difference than a regular tire except on medium to large granite rocks where traction was worse. Good grip on logs. Test ride on rainy day: Mild muddy conditions. Test rode two trials bikes, one with a regular Dunlop, other with a modified Dunlop. Not much difference. Regular tire was better in some cases. I think I made the mistake of too low pressure on the modified tire (3 psi). I upped it to 7 psi for the next test. Test ride on very muddy day: Lots of sticky slop! On inclines, the only way to get traction is with lots of throttle to get the tire spinning to burn through. Regular tire would just spin/go sideways and modified tire was able to get grip. I could get enough momentum with the modified tire to get over the log at the top of the incline while with the regular tire I couldn't. Modified tire was also better in the deep wet sand pit. Results were logical. In sticky mud and deep sand, trials tires grooves clog up and can't get traction. Making more space between knobs lets the tire dig in and clean out better while spinning. I bought a spare rear wheel for quick swapping so my next test will be using a motocross knobby. It should be interesting to combine the low end power of a trials bike with a knobby. The main reason for these test is to get out and ride more. I used to avoid any mud riding but now I look forward to it!

40lbs

I was doing some traction tests on my trials bike and MX bike in mud and snow in a simple section in my backyard that has an off camber turn, uphill climb and over a log. It's an easy section when dry. When muddy, however, on my trials bike I'll slip on the turn, have no momentum, and spin on the hill without getting enough speed to get over the log. With my MX bike with knobbys, I can track through the turn, carry momentum, accelerate, spin and grab traction to get enough speed to go up the log. As soon as I hit the log with the knobbys, it will slip because of the hard rubber and often I won't make it over. The solution? A butchered trials tire transformed into the ultimate mud tire? It is still in the works but here is what it looks like so far. Trials tire don't work for me in sticky mud because the mud fills up the grooves and making it like a racing slick. Knobbys grab in the mud but the rubber is too hard to wrap around rocks and logs for grip. So how about a trials tire with widely spaced knobs to dig into the mud without clogging up. I know modifying tires is illegal in competition but I'm more interested in getting the best all around traction in muddy conditions. I took my knobby knife and started cutting off half the lugs and am waiting for a good rain to test it out.

I think your only chance is online video and if your lucky it will be in english. Some people can see cable coverage but only when there is a World Round event here in the States. Hasn't been one here since 2008 and none on the horizon. It may not happen here again since the promoter is required to pay $30k for travel and lodging for the teams. Promoters here can't afford that.

The Europeans now have a setup that maximizes Trials exposure by combining EnduroCross and Indoor Trials (renamed X-Trials) in the same stadium. The recent Italy event has the track weaving around the sections. I'm sure the Trials purists won't like the idea, but if that combination could happen here in the States it could be the hot ticket. Most top US trials riders already race EnduroCross so it would be a good combination.

I bought one of these overpriced lower shock bearings for my 07 GG from a GG dealer. I couldn't replace mine since I can't figure out how to remove the outer bushings without damaging them. I also found them for sale here, bushings included but not in stock: http://www.pivotworks.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=cProducts.view&productid=1839

I like the new name. I've always been a little embarrassed calling it Observed Trials while explaining it to someone who has never heard of the sport. It sounds wimpy and conjures up images of people standing around watching something. I would make one change and call it MotoTrials (plural). Without the S doesn't quite sound right.

Thanks for the money saving tip! I'm going to be doing this procedure soon. If the fan motor is squealing, is that a sign that it is ready to fail? My 07 fan has been squealing and I've been oiling the bushing which helps but I can still hear the fan motor winding down when I shut the engine off.

How is the new location of the gas fill cap? Last year's location seems like it would be a mess in a mud trial and the new location still looks like it will collect mud, maybe even worse. Maybe they should have a door covering the gas cap like a car does?

Try standing on the pegs while kicking to give you more leverage. I have a head spacer on mine to lower the compression and have not noticed much loss of power but it is easier to start.

If your son bashes rocks as much as I do, the reason your bracket cracked could be because your bash plate is bent and has metal to metal contact. Mine was like that. The rubber pad was cracked and damaged and the bash plate was impacting the lower mount, hammering it in but not cracking it. The stock plate is curved so if yours is flat and you can't bolt it on easily, it is bent. I can't figure out how to straighten it. I hammered it and drove my weighted down truck over it with the plate propped up on wood but it wouldn't bend. Heat didn't help. Would a hydraulic press work? What kind of shop has a hydraulic press?

The middle muffler has stainless steel shavings inside it that looks like real coarse steel wool. At least my 07 does. What I do about once a year is remove the fiberglass silencer packing, lay it on the ground, pour kerosene in it and light it with a torch. You will need to relight it several times in the beginning but after it heats up it will keep burning for hours with flames and smoke coming out both ends. Make sure you remove the rubber o-rings first! Afterwards it will have that new bike sound again.

Actually I was thinking about putting a trials motor in a small MX frame like a KX100 to make a stunt bike. Preferably a Yamaha or Honda 2T motor, but would also consider a Sherco or GG. I was also curious how much a Sherco would weigh with a GG engine, Mont/GG, Beta/GG etc.

I took my GG Pro engine out for service and it weighed 40lbs (18.143kg). Does anybody know the dry weights of Sherco, Beta, Scorpa, Montesa engines?

Remember last year the media was touting team usa results as the best ever in the top class 5th (last). This year's results can be spun as better than last year, 4th (actually 9th overall)

Is there any way to change the oil without it dripping on top of the bash plate? I've let it drip for years and after taking the bash plate for the first time I saw that the oil deteriorated the rubber between the plate and the engine. The back engine mount had metal to metal contact. Getting the plate back on was very difficult even after trying to bend it back into the original shape. I tried hammering and driving my truck over it but it would not bend back.

I had the same problem on my 07 250. If yours has a Ducati ignition you should check the aluminum finned box mounted at the steering head. If the green insulation on the back side has brown burn marks you will need to replace it. If you have a Kokusan ignition there is a small, less expensive part to replace. Not sure where that is. The thermostat is hidden in the upper right corner of the radiator. My first symptom was overheating, then erratic fan, then no fan.

I use Herculiner truck bed coating and black Shoe Goo. Herculiner is sold at most auto parts stores and clear Shoe Goo is at Walmart. I found the black ones on Amazon. I find a lot of uses for both of these items. Herculiner is meant to be used all at once and once you open the can, the can is toast. You can store the unused amount in a glass jar. I put teflon tape on the lip so it doesn't glue shut. That stuff sticks to everthing! You can use Herculiner as a base coat and Shoe Goo over it. As you start using up the jar, you need to avoid air space in there because it will dry out. I use an semi-inflated balloon but next time I'm going to try a condom. Another use for Herculiner is dilute it down with Xylene and brush in on your synthetic leather gloves, then wipe off the rubber texture bits. After it dries it will be stiff, but after it breaks in it makes the gloves very tough and you can pick up granite rocks without tearing up your gloves. I also apply some straight Herculiner on the fingertips. You can even put in on your handlebar grips.

I installed the S3 adjustable bar risers and have my bars rotated very forward with the mount adjustment all the way back. The main difference I feel is I seem to have more weight forward and have to be conscious to lean back more to get weight on the rear wheel for traction. My back tends to be straighter which keeps my weight more forward. Hopping the front and rear wheels is easier with the extra leverage. That is the effect for me who is 5'4". An interesting note is several years ago there were Renthal Kuroyama and Lampkin bends with the Lampkin bend being lower. I'm assuming Lampkin is much taller yet he has the lower bars. I think short riders can benefit from bar risers while very tall riders might benefit more with pegs moved back.

Can Cody's success this year be attributed to his switch to GG? Or 4T to 2T? Last year at the TN Nationals Pro shootout, Pat seemed to me to be clearly the better rider. Smoother, more controlled with less effort. Cody seemed to have to muscle his way around more. My theory is the lighter bike is helping his riding.

You can also check for a small tear on the rim strip that was caused by a tire iron. I had one on mine and it is hard to see unless the strip is off and you closely inspect it. I patched it with a bicycle patch kit as well as the silicone treatment and no more leaking.