ridgrunr

Not sure what a kitchen sieve is (piece of screen?), but I do put a piece of screen mesh across the air filter intakes of my bikes. It helps keep a lot of the big chunks, grass, bugs, etc out. A few years ago we had a meet that had sections in the beaver ponds (real bever ponds). One particular section, the first of the day, had been set that so that it dropped into the water, made a left turn then back up out. The water looked about twelve inches deep, but there wasn't a track one in that velvet muddy bottom. "Oh it's not deep", the trials marshal assured me. Not wanting to get my sidis full of water on the first section, I decided to go ahead and ride it, how bad could twelve inches of water be? So I rode first (thinking I'd ride it before it got all rutted up), nosed the KRoo off into the water and about died when it started submerging with no bottom in sight. Dowon down down into the three feet of dinosaur turds in the bottom of that pond the KRoo dived. Man the thing had no bottom. Grabbing the brakes of course did no good as the thing turned into a submarine. I hopped off, and stood there waist deep in water frantically pulling on the bars trying to keep the thing from disappearing, with only the rear fender of the KRoo showing above the water. Two guys jumped in and helped pull the bike back to shore. I was p****d! p****d that the marshals would set a section that they hadn't tried to ride first, and p****d that I hadn't walked it before riding it. Of course the bike had drowned out, and I could just imagine how that engine had sucked in gallons of dinosaur turds, which I knew would kill it. I pushed it back to the pits, determined to find a big club and then go find the marshal after I saw how much damage was done. I took off the fender and discovered that the picece of screen mesh I'd put across the air box intake was indeed plugged with mud and grass, but other than a tiny bit of water in the bottom of the box it had not ingested anthing. I sopped out the water wrung out the filter, and the thing started first kick. By time I got back to the section, they'd changed it, so everyone else got to go around. I demanded and got (who'd argure with an enraged KRoo pilot?) a reride. The new section went right over a behive in an old hollow log, lots of gyrations as guys rode those those swarming bees. Course they were good and wound up by time I got there , but that's another story in itself! The moral of the story is, that mesh screen over the airbox intake saved my bike. I've put one on every bike I've had since the U2 incident.

I've got a 74 TY250 if that's what you are refering to. Cable pull clutch. It was stiff, even after the new cable, so I put on an "easy clutch". There's a few companies that make them. Mine was made by O-neal. It goes between the cable and the lever perch. It's a small triangular mechanism that gives more mechanical advantage via a small internal lever. It's small not too expensive ( I think mine was $39 U.S.) and it really works. You can put them on any bike that has a cable type clutch. My buddy has one on his daughters Amigo and it really helps. The clutch on my 47 TY is a one finger pull now just about as good as the hydraulic clutches. I've included a pic of one. On the later TY's 84,85, 86 monoshock, we used an aluminum clutch lever extender. It bolted onto the end of clutch lever actuator where it came out of the engine, then the cable attatched to it. It basically lengthened the lever, giving you more mechanical advantage too. I've used both, and both work without having to mess with the clutch plates. The weight of oil that you use makes a difference. Maxima 75 wt light transmission fluid helps too. A lot of guys use ATF, but I prefer the Maxima.

Might try retarding the timing. Used to do it all the time on the Fantics, andwe do that on a lot of the GAS GAS TXT's to help them get smoother more tractable power. Not sure how that works on a Pro as I've never dealt with one yet. But retarding the timing works great to mellow out the power throughout the power band, and costs nothing to do. Might also put a slow throttle tube on it. The white ones are fast, and the black ones are slow. They help make the throttle no so explosive. Both are cheap to do.

Man I fight this every year. The manufacturers are merciless. First meet of the season I see the guys who show up on the shiny new bikes, and I drool over them (the bikes!), oogling the lastest gimicks that are put on there so they can say the bike is "all new" and way better than brand X. Sometimes those gimmicks work (liquid cooling), sometimes they don't (upside down forks) but they have to change them or else we wouldn't think we were getting the newest latest technology,and they wouldn't sell bikes. I admit that there is usually something in the latest newest bike that will probably work better than the previous years model, but not always. One thing that I know is true about the sport of trials...unlike many motor sports, the bike makes up about 30% of the equation. The rider makes up the other 70%. How many times have you seen all the guys in a class who are riding the latest techno wizzo machines get totally hosed by some dude that shows up on a ten year old bike that looks like it just got dragged out of the chicken coop ten minutes before the meet? Dougie, on a Honda Trail 90, could outride me no matter what I was riding. I think most any of the modern bikes bikes (say past 1994-5) are plenty competitive for the average mortal at the club level. If your name is Dougie Lampkin you need a new bike every year. Of course the newer the bike, the easier it probably is to ride...up to a point, but there have been new bikes put out that simply didn't work as well as the previous years model. New isn't always better. If you trail ride a lot, the new micro capacity fuel tanks on the new bikes definately are not a plus. There are guys who will tell you a new bike every year is a must. One guys says he buys a new one every year so that he never has to do any maintenance or buy new tires. I think that's great, cause it allows them to take that first year depreciation hit so the rest of us can pick it up cheap a year or two later. But the key to all of them is maintenance. I have a 99 GAS GAS 321 that is just as tight and feels just as good as my buddies brand new 2004 GAS GAS 280 Pro. Same thing with my thirty year old TY250. I keep them maintained. They run great and they look good too. Yes his Pro is lighter, and has all the new gimmicks, but my 321 has been paid for for 5 years (he's had three bikes in that time, but I don't think he's had three times the fun. He's spent three times what I have for sure). And it hurts a whole lot less (ego wise any way) when I fall over (and you are going to fall over) than when he does. The first scratches are always the worst. I imagine I'll be getting a new bike in a few years, but that 321 is way better than I'll ever be. You asked, so there's my .02 cents worth.

Part of Fantics problem in the years just before they went belly up was that they wouldn't listen to the guys who rode them. I talked with Tommi Ahvala about it when he gave us our Trials School. When the "Section" bike line came around, the head guy decided to redesign the clutch system to something that they all told him wasn't a good idea. I think that was on the 97 Section. The boss refused to listen and forced the clutch on to the new model. It didn't work, and Tommi said it almost got him killed ...literally. Tommi quit Fantic right after that. Same sort of thing happened in the early 90's. All the manufacturers were going liquid cooling, but Mr. Fantic (whatever his name really was) didn't think it was necessary and was conviced the radiator mounted on the down tubes was too exposed to hazards, so they stuck with air cooling two years too long. When it became obvious that the bikes needed to be water cooled to keep up with the Jones, he went with the horizontal configuration above the cylinder. The main problems with that is that is it made the bike really tall ( I had a 92 Fantic 309 and a 94 Kroo). The Roo was really tall at the top of the gas tank. Plus the fan hung on the motor bearing and it wasn't designed to work in that configuration. The motors weren't sealed units either and went south in a hurry. It was an interesting time in the development of Trials machinery. Some of you may remember that Fantic actually advertised the early KRoos as having a refridgerated (as in freon) type of cooling system, but when the bike actually came out it had the horizontal radiator above the cylinder. I'd sure like to see Fantic come back. Loved that motor. You could easily add flywheel weights to make it faster or slower. True hydraulic clutch too (unless you put brake fluid in there instead of hydraulic fluid...bad..bad)Motor made tons of power, and the thing had the best suspension in the business. Had lots of ground clearance too. Man that dude would roll over and up anything! Just point it, pull the trigger and hold on!

I imagine you guys are all joking, but I'd love to see an new Fantic Trials bike. I had two Fantics, a 92 309 and a 94 KRoo. That KRoo was one of the most fun Trials bikes I've owned. What a motor! Had lot of suspension, lots of ground clearance and would go up and over anything. Just point and pull the trigger! The only problems I ever had was when I put brake fluid in the clutch...bad bad, those plastic fender braces, and that horizontal fan over the cylinder. I finally put a GAS GAS fan in there and it was fixed. I'm riding a 99 GAS GAS 321 right now. I like it a lot, and it's been a great bike, lots better than I can ride, but there's just not much that really excites me enough to upgrade. I might for a new up to date Fantic though!

One really important factor anyone should consider when deciding how many cc's is needed is the type of terrain you ride in and te altitude. In slippery, snotty, loose stuff, the smaller bore is probably lots less likely to spin away it's traction. But on a forty foot long 40 degree granite slab at 8000 ft, a 125 or even a 200 may run out of grunt in a hurry, especially if you have to roll off that throttle for some reason and then get back on it halfway up. Another place the small bores are at a disadvantage is on rugged high altitude trail rides, such as the Five Miles of Hell. On a big bore you just put it in 3rd, and enjoy the scenery. On a small bore your clutch fingers and shift foot are going to be fanning through the gears continuously trying to find a gear that will work in the constantly changing terrain. If there's ten inches of sand in the bottom of the draw, which there is in many of the canyons of the 5MOH, the small bores are really at a disadvantage. So the type of terrain you ride in most and the altitude that you ride at can play a major factor too in how much enjoyment you get out of a particular steed.

I extended a swingarm a few years back on a 74 TY250. I had been riding with a fellow who had a Honda Reflex and the rear end seemed to work real well on it, so I extended the swing arm and repositioned the top shock mount trying to get the same angle as the Reflex. Also had to go to a Reflex shock as it's a lot longer for that long distance on that laid down positioning. It actually worked pretty awesome when I got it done. I doubt it would be legal in the serious vintage competition though as it had too much rear suspension. I rode it in the local club till I finally upgraded to a TY350. I've never seen it again since I sold it. Wonder what ever happened to it? I've put new rear shocks and new fork springs on the TY250 I have now, but have kept the dimensions otherwise stock. It works pretty good too.

Did you guys see that 75 TY250 on e-bay? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...item=2454626310 I haven't seen one that looks like that since I bought mine brand new in 1975. Wonder where he's been hiding it? It's over $1200 now. I paid $700 for mine in 75. How high do you think it will it go? There's still 10 days left!

In the rocks I run 7 front and 5 rear In the mud I run 6 front and 4 rear (I don't go less than that cause you never know when you'll hit one of those rim busting rocks down in that mud. Then as soon as you set up for the mud, they'll throw in a rock section on the loop. Depends on the tires you run too. The IRC's seem to have have a stiffer side wall and tolerate the low pressures better than the Michelins. I prefer the Michelins in the rocks and IRC's in the mud.

That would be clean by all the different sets of rules I've ever ridden under. Front axel had broken the plane of the end gate before the rest happened.

I simply go down to my local bike shop every January and buy a new medium grade 520 chain. I think this last one I got was an RK or maybe it was a DID. Anyway, they run about $30-$50. Like most of the Shercos have, I put a 10 tooth coiuntershaft sprocket on my GAS GAS (down from and 11) and that smaller front sprocket will wear out a chain more quickly too. I tried an o-ring chain once and started getting more stalled engine 5's in the really tight sections or when having to shut down hard after a big up to make a tight turn. Normally the engine could get that one more tick over when I needed it and I pretty much knew when it was about to quit and would be quick enough to get the clutch, but with the drag of the o-ring chain it wouldn't make that one more tick over and would stall out early, causing some really frustrating 5's. I hate stalled engine 5's more than anything. So I went back to regular chains and replace them every year. The stall problem went away too. So far I'm on the same sprockets and they still look good. The chains they put on most new bikes are junk. They wear out quick and a worn out chain will ruin sprockets in a hurry, but with new chains the sprockets last a long time.

I'm wondering if we really need the complication of liquid cooling. Radiators, fans, water jackets, water, water pumps, impellers, seals, thermostats, hoses, additional head gaskets. Just seems like a lot of stuff that I'm wondering if we really need in Trials. I keep thinking back to my 1985 Yamaha TY350 and my 1992 Fantic 309. Great power with fins. How about air cooled with a simple on board cooling fan? We could lose all that complicaton stuff and keep the air moving at the slow speeds we operate at. Might be lighter too.

Just thought I'd offer an alternative for those who don't have more money than sense. Adios.

Hey Guys, I'm on the other side of the pond, but thought someone might be interested in the header pipe heat shield I use on my bikes. Actually we use them on 3 GasGases, 3 Shercos, and a Montesa. They aren't really high tech, but they look pertty good, and keep you from burning your pants or your legs, and you can get them to fit just about any bike. The worst burn I ever saw was at a National on a gal riding a GG in shorts. Bike fell over on her and burned her clear through to the muscle. UGLY! Simply take a piece of paper and make an outline of the curve of your bikes exhaust, or take the exhaust off and take it down to your local autoparts store and buy a radiator hose that has the same bend and similar diameter. Then cut it to length and split it up the backside and slide it over the pipe. Secure with a couple of industrial zip ties or a couple loops of stainless safety wire. You can see the one I have on my GAS GAS in the link below. http://utahtrials.org/salepics/321r.jpg Looks pretty neat, and has been there since the bike was new in 99. It doesn't melt, even on long trail rides liked the Five Miles Of Hell here in Utah. It gets warm, but you can touch it and it won't sear your pants or your legs. It also provides some protection in a fall. I have a few scrapes on mine where it's contacted with the Utah Granite that would have scarred an unprotected pipe. In the states we can get a radiator hose for about $8.00. Just thought I pass it on incase anyone was interested. Cheers!

I was looking through the GAS GAS maintenance video and Jim Snell mentions a possible knocking problem in the mid ranges under load if the carburator float level is set incorrectly. Mixture leans out too much as the bowl empties and the bike knocks. So, you might check the float levels. I think he said they should set 18.5mm, but you should check to see if that's correct before change them.

I think this probably says it all. Seems to sum up the con arguments we've encountered when discussing this in our club. Thanks Ishy

I've been doing this since 1975 and have seen a lot of techniques tried over the years. The hopping is something I never mastered, and believe me I tried. Often have I been stuck against the ribbon and would have killed to just be able to do one hop! One lousy hop would have freed me from my predicament. So instead I plant a foot and take an intentional pivot dab. I have decided that maybe I'm too old and lazy to try to learn to hop anymore. Plus you have to be REALLY good at the hopping stuff before it does you any good in an actual section. Like Ishy says, more often than not, the hopper will end up taking a dab (or two) anyway. One other thing I know is that it seems to take a lot of energy to do all that hopping and a rider is tuckered out long before he gets to the end of the section. We used to have a rider named Roger Larson in our club. Rode Expert, and was a great hopper. Hopped the bike all over the place and almost always got a 3 by time he was done. Then along would come Kelly Oldroyd, who almost never hopped. He just rode through the section and would clean it. So I'm thinking that being really good at hopping will never get the low scores that being really good at riding will.

Two age old questions? How could you 5 me? I wasn't stopped with my foot down! How could you 5 me? I didn't roll back with my foot down! We've been dealing with those questions as a club for 30 years. So we're toying with just counting dabs...up to 5. That's pretty cut and dry. He either put it down or he didn't. The arguments are: A rider can be stopped for a long time with a foot down and only get a 1. A rider can roll back multiple times with only one foot down and get more than one shot at an obstacle and only get a 1. Anyone have any experience with only counting dabs?

Gary, those are definately different than the ones I put on the ATV. The ones I put on it replace the whole grip. Same on the ST1100. The ATV grips had a big resistor that had to be mounted out in the slipstream somewhere to keep it cool, but it looks like these have done away with that. I wonder how the grips will stick to the heat mats? Like Ishy says, 36 watts is a lot of power, and the power your bie produces won't be constant. If you try them, let me know. I might like to put a set of those on my ATV and Sabre. Gets cold out here in Utah! You don't even have to knit yourself a bar cover. Just buy yourself a set of hippo hands. They'll cover your bars and keep all those unsightly wires out of sight while your hands stay toasty all day!

I was talking to a buddy about bikes who was complaining about how hard it was to get parts for some of the older machines, I was amazed to discover he'd never heard of Bike Bandit. So I got to wondering if there were others who hadn't. They have full parts schematics and OEM and after market parts for just about any Japanese bike you can imagine. I've been able to get parts for my 85 Sabre, an 85 Honda ATV and my 74 Yamaha TY250. So far I've never found anything they haven't had. You might try them. http://bikebandit.com

I put a set of heated grips on my Dad's ATV for Christmas last year. They work good in that application because the ATV has a thumb throttle and not a twist grip. I did ride and ST1100 Honda once that had heated grips on them. The thing I noticed most, same with my Dad's, is that they are rock hard. They have to be to transfer the heat as they are epoxied on the bar. There is no give or cushion to them at all, so they do tend to send a lot more vibration through the bars to the hands. The grip on the right side twist throttle didn't transfer the heat near as well as the one left. I'm not sure if you could put them on a Trials bike due to the fact that they do not have batteries, but I'm not positive about that. They take a lot of constant power to run.

My favorite Trials boots have been the Sidi's. I've had two pair. The early Sidi soles seemed to wear quickly, but the new pair I bought two years ago seem to have a much improved sole. The toughest sole I've ever seen have been on the Gaernes. I actually resoled the first pair of Sidis with Gaerne soles (they were easy to get). The cobbler said the Gaerne soles were the toughest material he'd ever dealt with. Those Sidis (with the Gaerne soles) are now almost twelve years old and are still going strong. The leather has been almost indestructable. The early Sidi's had 4 buckles the new ones have 3, and like I said the new Sidi's seem to have soles made out of material similar to the Gaernes. Last summer I bought a new pair of Gaernes. They have been fine, but aren't as comfortable as the Sidi's were, in fact I bought the Gaernes for my son, but he took over the two year old Sidis and made me wear the new Gaernes, but that's ok, he rides better than I do, and like all Dad's I put his comfort ahead of mine (he got the new bike too!). Both seem to provide great protection. The Gaernes seem to have good leather and the soles are about indestructable. I really can't say anything bad about them. The Sidi's come with a metal toe protector like you see on the motocross boots because they also sell them as ATV boots. It's easily removable with a phillips screwdriver. DO remove it as the metal is like ice skates when walking rock sections, and it'll beat the hell out of your bike as you mount and dismount. I've never seen a Trials boot yet that was waterproof, well actually they all are. They let all the water in, but absolutely none out! If you are on a budget, a buddy recently got into Trials and just couldn't lay out $250 for Trials boots and bought a pair of Oneal ATV boots for $114. They have a vibram type of sole (good traction) and look like Trials boots with what appears to be decent leather. They seem to be fine for the average rider on a budget and are light years ahead of hiking boots or tennis shoes. He claims they are comfortable, but he's never worn any of the name brand boots, but they are $125 cheaper.

I ride road bikes with a buddy at work. His only dirt bike experience was with a YZ125...two weeks on crutches afterward, so I worked long and hard to get him out on a Trials bike. I showed him all the videos and stuff, and he thought they were neat, but they jast reaffirmed that there was no way he would ever try that stuff. It's taken a year, and 3000 miles on the road bikes, but I finally got him out last week, on my two GasGases, a 280 and a 321. Guy was real pensive at first, so I did a little pit training, then we just sort of played follow the leader and I took him on a gentle trail ride through the rocks. He couldn't believe how stable the things were, and rode things he hadn't dreamed he could ever do. Most important, he could touch the ground and he didn't crash. Grinned all day! He has two road bikes, a Buell, which has never run decent, and a Kawasaki Concours. The day after the ride on the Trials bikes, he took the Buell down and traded it for a new Montesa Cota. The Honda dealership in St George thought they would be a Trials dealership, and got in three Montesas, then they had a management row and fired all their staff, including the only guys who knew anything about Trials. So they had this brand new 2002 Cota sitting there that nobody knew anything about. They were tickled to unload the Montesa and he was tickled to get it. Now I'm working with him to get him ready for his first Novice ride in the meet next month. He's even already bought a new helmet and boots. He's stoked, and estatic to have finally unloaded that POS Buell. Showing guys the big guns on the videos doing their death defying thing usually will just scare them off. Wait till after they get excited about the sport...then show them what can be done. But the bottom line is...if you want guys to ride with...get em out on a bike. Usually it only takes once.

That's pretty much sums it up. Most of the clubs ARE "just doing their own thing" in their local areas.