Rather than present this as a moaning whinging old git it ocurred to me to seek a concensus regarding what we are prepapared to pay for our passion. This thought was "sparked" off by realising that we are now in the age of paying

Your calculations suggest your bike has no value after a years use. If you assume your costs 6K writing off the bike after a year but get 4K back on selling it, your costs are really only 2K (

I suppose my nature means that I broadly agree with you but if I sit back and take a realistic view then costs have not risen that badly.

Entry fee for last week's trial was

Trials is the cheapest form of motorsport that you can find. We get a good deal, the sport on the whole is relaxed and friendly, it is open to all ages, we can ride almost every weekend, most can use their bike to practice mid week if they wish and at the end of the year a new bike doesn't cost the earth. What other sport can you compete side by side with your children and your parents if you want to?

I have no experience of MX so I won't comment on that, but compared to road racing, trials is run on 'petty cash.'

Here's a guestimate of the costs.

• Typical entry fee: Trials - £13, Racing - £100 (+ £25 for each additional race.)
  
• Licence: Trials £10, Racing £65 + Medical at £100 = £165
  
• Minimum new Clothing required: Trials - Boots and Helmet £200, Racing - Boots, Helmet, Leathers, Gloves, Body Armour - £1500
  
• Tyres: Trials - 1 set a year £140, Racing - (Ten events per year x £240) = £2400
  
• Bike: Trials - £4600, Racing - £14000
  
• Machine Preparation: Trials - None, Racing - How much you got? Minimum of £2000.
  
• Tools: Trials - Plug spanner and a foot pump, Racing - If you've got it you will need it, plus tyre warmers, plus van, etc etc
  

And here's the big one and it's not money, it's time spent on the bike in each event: Trials 3 hours, Racing 45 mins!

You can ride in 50 trials a year, you struggle to do 20 road race meetings even if you travel all over the UK.

Trials is very, very good value for money and long may it continue!

Edited January 19, 201115 yr by Pete_Scorpa3

falling into the under 30 catergory, by doing 74 hours a week to be able to pay for everything but then the bike usually ends up sat in the garage as i'm too knackerd to ride on a sunday

"Trials is very, very good value for money and long may it continue! "

Spot on Pete.

Its also good fun, good exercise, pretty laid back and normally allows for a least one good mickey take per event.

From what I remember, 40 years ago a new trials bike cost about 20 times an average weekly wage, and trials seemed affordable for lots of people.

Say a new bike now costs

Its just **** that in 2008 a new bike cost

Do you really need a new bike every year to be competitive?

(I would guess not, in fact I would think skill would always win though in trials)

I

Its just **** that in 2008 a new bike cost

New bikes every year are not really necessary, just look at what Wiggy and Sam Haslam made bikes from the 90s do in Jersey! A 2 year old bike can win center championship trials and score points in the Novogar/S3 rounds and the lower classes of the British Championship if it is kept in good condition and the rear shock gets refurbed/replaced when it's gone.

For me the biggest problem is time. Time spent travelling, washing and maintaning. I also live in a city and so garages are hard to come by, and places to wash a trials bike are non existent. To start from scratch there are a lot of things that need to be in place, which probably puts people off a bit. Once you've got yourself set up with bike, license, van, helmet, boots, garage, spares, tools, insurance, floodlit washing facility? things tick over nicely, but that's a lot of stuff to think about for a beginner! Compare that to a mountain bike, a bike lock and a cycle helmet and you can begin to see why many potential off road motorcyclists stick to pedal power.

My son does downhill MTB and trust me it's far more expensive than trials.

bigfoot

Posted Today, 05:04 PM

My son does downhill MTB and trust me it's far more expensive than trials.

your not joking. and this is not the dearest out there.

how much is the entry fee for a event bigfoot.

i dont think so

Biggest problem is this idea that Trials is a cheap for of Motorsport.

There isnt a cheap form of Motorsport. If it's got wheels and an engine then it's never going to be cheap! Even Lawnmower racing isnt cheap. Nothing is. Why should trials be any difference. Ever priced up fishing?

I was talking to my accountant the other day, he happens to be a trials rider also, he told me my biggest problem with my business plan was that i was trying to make a living selling stuff to trials riders

Worse thing is he's right

your not joking. and this is not the dearest out there.

how much is the entry fee for a event bigfoot.

i dont think so

One of my son's pals ride one of those. You're right you can spend more than that too. Then add all the riding gear, trousers