city trials

#12. Jeff Knaack. I betcha the bike listed (Bultaco) is buried in Noel's barn. I think I saw it in milk crates this winter. His skills have surely declined over the years. LOL.

Even banned. Mich Lin rocks.

Not to mention his wife is a cutie too.

I think what Kramit is saying is, the over-the-pond types have a different way of communicating. Much like the youngsters now days do when they text or SMS messages to each other. It's like some sort of writing code. Ishy is prolific at this type of "Englishman posts." It's even move fun trying to figure out what they're saying after a few beers in a Irish pub. But, I'm use to it. As I have to decipher Noel's emails every time he sends me one.

Dear OSET Customer, You may have heard about a new law that came into effect on February 10th. The law is a broad, sweeping law called the 'Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act' (CPSIA). The law was enacted as a knee jerk reaction by Congress to the importation of lead tainted toys from Mattel etc. The new laws give very strict guidelines that have had unintended consequences for many industries. Many metal alloys often contain lead. Engine casings on mini motorcycles, valve stems, spoke nipples etc all now fail the new standards. The fact that lead in metal alloys is 'insoluble' has escaped the Government and the CPSC. The lead content in alloys poses no health risks whatsoever. The law was entirely political, and will do little or nothing to protect our children. How many of us have seen kids sucking on motorcycles? At this point in time, all motorcycle manufacturers have stopped selling youth motorcycles for kids age 12 or under. Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki, KTM, Polini, Cobra, Polaris and OSET are all in the same boat. Any bicycle with 24" wheels or less is now illegal to sell, although the bicycle industry appears to be ignoring the law. To be clear, none of the above companies are now selling youth motorcycles! You can NOT go to a Honda dealer and buy a CRF50, CRF70 or CRF80, or their youth ATV's. This is clearly a HUGE issue that needs to be fixed. With the economy in recession, what sense does it make to stop dealers selling inventory, and to effectively close thousands of American businesses, costing tens of thousands of jobs? We emphasize that this law has no effect on what you have already purchased, only on products you buy going forward. OSET, and all the above companies, have satisfied all lead in paint and other applicable laws, and put a high emphasis on safety. Of course we want to keep kids safe from lead, but the law should focus on products that kids can eat, and that have accessible lead! There is something we can do. Congressman Tom Self is a moto-Dad, and has taken up our cause. Tom has a standard letter that needs to be signed by every motorcyclist in the Country. If you go to http://www.tomself.com you will see the letter on the home page, and can sign & send in less than a minute. OSET are being as proactive as possible, on blogs (see http://blogs.dirtrider.com/6470022/news/yo...psia/index.html and http://www.racerxonline.com/article/urgent...on-waiver.aspx). There are many other active blogs and industry groups that can be found by searching for CPSIA. OSET attended press conferences for local TV in Denver yesterday, and will be interviewed for 'Dealer News' later. We will attempt to get this on CNN as well. All is not lost. The CPSC and Government MUST see sense, but we want them to see it quickly. Please go to http://www.tomself.com and sign the letter to Congress, and please pass this instruction to whoever you can. There are suggested amendments on the desks of the CPSC right now. To quote the Tom Self site: 'There is a waiver now setting before the Consumer Product Safety Commission in Washington DC, but has not been acted upon as of yet. We need every available rider, Mother, Father, Grandmother, Grandfather, Aunt, Uncle and any relative, friend neighbor, business or personal contact or any person who is a legal us citizen to get involved. They need to access this website, read the sample letter, type in their name and address then click the "send a letter on my behalf" icon below it. This will generate correspondence to all the committee members in Washington that are on the committee that oversee the commission that could act upon this. The commission members as well as my office will also receive copies of the letters set so we can be the most effective voice we that we can. The sport as well as the industry is in turmoil and time is short. The future of small powersports is at risk! PLEASE ACT NOW!!' Ian Smith President, OSET Corp

Unofficial. Taddy wins. Lampkin 3rd. Jarvis 4th.

Unofficial end of the first phase of contest sees Blazusiak first, Botturi second, third to Oblucki, fourth to Jarvis, fifth to Sagar, sixth is Lampkin.

First was the 100% tariff the US proposed on motorcycles, 50 cc but not over 500 cc, in retaliation to the EU ban on hormone beef. Now this? I'm fed up with all these tree-hugging, imbecilic and idiotic Washington politicians and beaurocrats!

I rarely fawn over riders in general, but Dougie is simply amazing. Jaw-dropping amazing. My hat tips to his performance last night. If anyone has witnesses a 450 four stroke in one of these crazy, tight courses, it makes his achievement even that more spectacular. Well done, Dougie.

Rush hour in Chicago. Or a loop back up in trials when the sections are placed too close together.

Click here.

Noel, AKA Northern Norm, Patrick and I will be making the trip across the pond. But, we won't be traveling by ferry. With -3 degrees temperature, 7 inches of snow on the ground, not to mention the sheets of ice today, we should be prepared for the chilly weather Northern Ireland can toss our way.

She seems to like to "chest puff" too.

Oh boy.... That's ripe.

I just finished reading Dougie's report. Starts really are an issue for trials riders. Plus, as you mentioned, the big Beta is much heavier than the 2 strokes. Makes Dougie's finishing position all that spectacular. Whoo-hoo for Dougie! On a side note, I can just picture Martin going verbally ballistic on the sidelines when something goes wrong. Dougie's got his full face helmet on, just laughing.

Had a gut feeling Dougie would get the hang of it.

Anywhere we can get results?

You didn't get the memo? This donation bypassed by the board of directors -- and went directly to the "functionally challenged rider."

I've been hunting best fares from Chicago to Belfast the last couple days.

I'm guessing we'll be flying into Belfast then? Don't forget to warn the Mayor I'm coming.

Very, very funny comment. That said, this was the most incredible stunt, successfully done, I've ever seen in my life. Can't wait to see what this loon will attempt next New Years Eve. I'm going to Vegas to watch it live.

(From the article) It was the 100s of laps that he completed during the day qualifiers that may have put him off the pace a bit in the main Again, this is a stretch. At best Cody did 50 laps. Maybe 60 with the practice sessions. Not 100. And certainly not 100's. Please. Cody's great. Really, really great. Super great. But he didn't do hundreds of laps - and he wasn't the fastest trials guy in Vegas. Three others were. And he didn't make the main. To say he anything different would be disingenuous. Geoff Aaron was the fastest trials guy out there, followed by Taddy and Patrick. This writer owes his readers an apology.

The interviewer, Mitch Elson claimed....'At the Las Vegas Endurocross I would say he was by far the fastest trials guy there, on both his trials ride as well as the dirt bike." What a load of crap. What was this dude smoking before the races? Second in the trialscross and not even making the main event hardly qualifies as being the fastest trials guy.

What's all this "Pat" talk have to do with this killer photo of Fuji and his army of minders trying to conquer the Ireland seawall? And yes, Patrick is down at the Trails Training Center in Tennessee honing his skills for the upcoming 2009 WTC campaign. Northern Norm and Patrick's newest sidekick (girlfriend) are down there too. Next thing you know, Patrick will be riding with her in the Wisconsin sidecar championships.

It's so hard to choose a favorite photo when you take so many. This photo keeps catching my eye every time I view it. This was at the Ireland WTC event, during practice. Quite an army of minders. Check the number and placement of each spotter all the way up the wall. I'm guessing about 20 feet straight up with no run. Frankly, I don't remember if Fuji ever made it or not.