the artist formerly known as ish

None of my business really, but isn't the above asking the minority of riders what they think is best for the majority ? Shouldn't the governing body, if so concerned about getting it correct, send every trials rider with a registration card a return postage paid post card asking a simple question, tick the box of the rules you would most like to ride under.

Didn't some little 125 butter knives, beat 280 machine guns in Duluth ? How do you guys posting, Judge the ability between a US expert class rider, a US pro rider, a Euro 125 world championship rider, and a world championship rider. If the 125 world butter knife champion rode the US championship series on his little butter knife, would he win it ? If the power of a 125cc machine becomes the excuse when a rider is in their early teens, what will be the excuse when a 280/300 plus machine doesn't get the results either ?

Posted on the SSDT site last Wednesday 14 th of Dec, 292 entries received 10 days to go. So last week to get thi entries in, ballot odds will be a bit better this year.

Does em in every time, our lads son isn't old enough to drive a car, last time I called he was cleaning out the tractor so he could go down Silsden and meet some young lass. Dad puts all that $$ into bikes training whatever and some little sweety can kick all that in to touch with a smile, I think as far as my lads are concerned, they both have a bike they can have fun on any time they want, but when school is over they will have to get a real job.

I think them Limey's are just tekin pizz now Lane, truth is they still share the old T'bag while watching re runs of Colditz. http://video.msn.com/v/us/req.aspx?r=3&hf=...3DSource_JibJab

They don't mark the sections with split markers like above, in fact up until the day I left the UK, they didn't have splits, and only three classes, Nov,Int,Exp all rode the same line, the world round riders of those days were the top experts. Things changed a lot since!! now the world round riders are too good to mix with the peasants at club trials, but I have noticed the waiting in line at world rounds isn't quite the issue it used to be. Scoring by writing the score down is still the norm in the UK, often a club trial would start around 11am and you could be in the pub lying to your mates by 2pm Gleaning ideas from different clubs around the world is probably the way to come up with a format to cater for the majority, I don't often come up with an original idea of my own, but I do try other peoples ideas, it's the only way to see if it works or not.

thas just never happy is 't

Sorry Al, had to get the kids to school, rushed my post. We have four classes, Novice, intermediate, advanced, expert. Pre printed section splits with all four classes printed on them when marking the course you delete the class that doesn't take the direction the split is indicating. If we run two courses, then only the higher class take the split. In the works at the moment is permanent numbers for the club members, starting with club champ # 1 down through the classes, but yes we just gave any numbers out on a card up to date. The marker is reverse printed on the other side so one marker can go ether way.

I think he will stay with Mont, but one little twist, Beta UK are now Repsol sponsored

Correct Al, other than world rounds I don't think I had seen punch cards used in trials until I came to the US, all trials I rode in the UK were run this way. The observer can sit at the best location to view the section without having to run back and forth punching cards, this alone gets the job moving along faster.

Not my idea but something that seems to be snowballing and doing well in our club. more events and chances to ride, over the past couple of years our club started holding Wednesday evening trials in the summer, this year I think we had eight wed night rounds. The format is quick and simple, the trial starts about 6pm, five section four loops, five sections make it easier to get observers, all riders use a number plate on the front of the bike and the observer jots down the score, the thing only takes a couple of hours. The events are very popular and are attracting entries of over thirty riders, some of the reasons for it being popular, it doesn't interfere with the family weekend, it only takes a short time to run, observers are family or friends that don't mind too much because of the short time it takes to run the event. Our club is based in and around Portland Oregon, so a good metro area to draw riders from, members with property set the events on their own land so can be done quick and easy any time of week prior to the event, we have enough members with their own land so eight different locations can be used over the series. I don't think it would work if riders had to drive more than one hour to get to the location, all started from lads getting together on a wed night for a practice. You married men will know, a quickie is a lot better than nowt.

I only have a few pictures of the oil cooler on my old bike, but the oil line came from the pump and into the top of the cooler, then drained down the cooler and came out into the bottom tube which then ran up to the head plug. One way to make sure of getting the right plug hole at the case, is get some nice chap to photo copy an RTL right side case gasket, I know one fellow on here has some because I sold them to him, then compare that gasket with the right side case gasket of the 200, the 200 will have a hole blanked off in the gasket, the RTL will have this open to allow the oil to go into the external pipe.

Regardless of rules!! I think the C of C can mark a trial in a way that it is no benefit to pratt about hopping, those that do set a trial in this way will soon see if attendance goes up or down, and those that mark a trial tight step turn step tight hop hop hop dab dab hop dab pheeeeeeep whistle went, it's ok he was within 30 ft of the end cards we'll give him the benefit of doubt will see likewise.

You old dog, I saw you ride the old Bult at Donner last year, you pulled a floater round a tight exit corner ona thrity year old anchor clean that the rest couldn't do on the megga light pogo stick. Given the right sections like the ssdt you would still claim a first class award.

Good post Sting, your comment about the big four, when they were involved the numbers riding were better than now, but I still don't think it was enough for them to stay involved. Having standard class levels. At this time a rider can choose what they ride age, agenda, what they feel like without moving up or down in class, their comfort zone, until classes are set by ability not gender will you get any standardization. The big question is! will the few that do ride trials accept being told what to ride, over having the choice ? When the national championship had only two classes, champ and support many more could attempt the champ lines so you had two large classes, now three are four riders in national and world championships are so far in front the most even bother trying to keep up. It's hard as a trials enthusiast saying trials is boring to watch, but in reality it is boring to watch, great to participate in though, I think working on the participating side will get better results, others think working on the publicity aspect will produce better results, both are just trying to improve the sport. I can only go with my mixture of old and new and do what I think is best for trials in this area, the same goes for the other posters, hopefully one of us can come up with something that works.

I agree with the other two posts, a tiny bit of dirt in the pilot will cause the symptoms you describe. The test for plugged pilot, when bike at operating temp, (fan has kicked on) lifting the choke lever a little makes the bike run better,clean pilot jet.

This is the topic starter by ringo, followed by r2's reply Over the years I've seen all of you debate over how to get an American rider to be competative at a world round. What I haven't seen are suggestions with regards to sponsorship. The reason the other countries are so competative is that the sport of trials pays money over there and is considered a professional sport. Here in America, trials is an amatuer sport. Our professional sports here pays nice little chunks of money like 25 million dollar contracts therefore our kids are motivated and their parents are turned into "soccer parents" doing all the things that create professional sports players out of them. Take motocross for example. Notice all the adds on tv where the whole family rides and the kid turns into an RC. Notice the tv shows that show how big the estates are of professional sports heros today. For discussion of a realistic solution, why not bring back the attempts at a professional trial wherein there is prize money. Nothing motivates more than money. Ricky Carmichael didn't have to go to another country to be #1 Tiger Woods didn't. Shaquile O'neil Babe Ruth, etc, etc, etc. -------------------- Everyone is entitled to my opinion r2wtrials Dec 7 2005, 04:41 PM Post #2 Advanced Member Group: Members Posts: 1865 Joined: 14-November 04 From: wick st-Lawrence, north somerset. uk Member No.: 48 I would like to point out that here in the UK only the top 2 or 3 riders have any sort of income from the sport. Obviously Dougie has done well after being world Champ but i don't think you will find that he was on a good earner before his first world championship... When they had their "strike" in the Spanish championship a couple of years ago it was mainly to do with the loss of income for the local riders when the top foreign guys came over and pushed them down the finishing list. They got paid by position as well as sponsorship money. Doubt if you will find much money changing hands in the British Championship. As far as i am aware there is no one here who rides for the money... as there really isn't any.!! This post has been edited by r2wtrials: Dec 7 2005, 04:42 PM Keep in mind, as r2 points out, there is a miss conception that the lads in Europe make money, when some would jump at the chance of the support riders of lesser caliber get in the USA.

Finding an angle to interest the viewer is what makes anything like that fly. Kickstart was close to trials but a little different, I think some of the things from kickstart carried over to what is now the indoors. What if it was celebrity sports/trials rider teams, the trials rider does his stuff then has to compete doing what the celeb from another sport does, like wise the celeb has to compete against other celebs on a trials bike obviously on a course that didn't kill em. Or balance beam suspended a foot above water, the other riders can try knock em off with space hopper type balls on a long rope, more of a lottery to win than just skill, also gives the spectator a laugh. This gets people who follow other sports watching the trials

Naaa, it's an hour meter, so Malc can charge Grimbo for the time he used it

CT, take note how the Brits use barbed wire to keep them lads from stretching the tape with their legs.

I think I do my fair share of encouraging the Kids. 04 season I marked a trial out for the kids at every PNTA event, took my own section markings, bought the trophies out of my own pocket, and made sure every kid got one. scored the kids through the sections and helped with their bikes has a lot of the time their own parent would be riding the morning trial, I was going to charge a small entry fee, provided their parent signed off I didn't, when it came to my time to ride, I was knackered. 05 did the same at some events, but at others the shortage of riders made it not worth bothering with, I don't think it was the kids that didn't want to ride because the sections were very easy, I think it was more if mum/dad doesn't bring the kid they can't That is on top of the six other events I put on this year, and each one of them had the novice class geared toward the kids. What bothers me about we should be raising more funds for our pro riders, and kids, it has got to the point some people give me hassle if there isn't an event for their kid or they can't go ride because ishy isn't running the morning day care, and they have to look after their own kid. Yes Ron, your one of the few who go out and do it, I don't want people telling me how I should be doing it, but I have no problem with them showing me how they can do it. Less and less people are coming forward to volunteer in the sport of trials, why

no doubt there will another 50 or 60 asking the same question.

So what you are saying Wayne, Ringo, the AMA, NATC, individual clubs, should come up with ways and funds to sponsor little Johnny. I don't know how your clubs operate but finding volunteers just to put on, and run club events in this area is very hard, judging by the massive response for clubs to host a national in 06 looks like a few other clubs are in a similar situation. I always thought it was up to the individual, if good enough, to go out and secure their own sponsorship, I don't know about you two, but I also thought trials was an amateur sport run by volunteers not some kind of social security service. The day some snotty nosed kids comes up to me and says I think you should give me a purse for riding the champ class in this trial, that is the day I will hand them the purse of section ribbon and tell them to spend it wisely cos it's all you going to get off me.

This is just what I'm on about $3000 pay 5 places pro class 5 pro riders come take the three grand thank you very much. World championships, five riders get something out of the game, five riders takes all available funding, thank you very much. $3000,that would take a couple of events to empty our club bank account then the five pro's wouldn't bother turning up anymore, club would just be left to carry on the same as is now but with an empty bank account. Looking at what they do in world rounds and the US champ class, the general public say cool and move on, the lad who has an interest says "wow! over my head and moves on". Isn't the idea to get people into the game, not show what they can't do. Many of the suggestions in the topic have been tried numerous times in one way or another, I'm not trying to burst your bubble just let you know it didn't work before why will it now. How I think on the subject is what did work in the past, or worked better than current situations. Our club once had over 100 novice class riders turn up at a single trial here in the Portland area, that is the question we should be asking, why did over 100 novice class riders turn up. Sections, straight forward, easy for a rider to get the bike from start to end cards paddling to do it clean was still a challenge. Bikes, TL 125 ty 125 175 etc, cheap, but also good for trail use if they didn't like trials. The Yam, Honda, dealer stocking those bikes in the high traffic area for all types of motorcycle riders to see, and ask the question what is it. Most trials bikes seem to be hidden from view of the General public. The best thing trials has going for it is it is great fun as a cheap participant motor sport, I would work that side, as the spectator, sponsor side hasn't produced much in the 30 odd years I know of, yes before anyone jumps up with a spectator attendance at a Japan world round or some world indoor, in some cases it does well, but it's not the norm. Catering for the best few riders in the world, country, club, only will take care of those few riders, without addressing the real problem declining sales and participation.