IMHO (as a mx/enduro/trials guy) any vaguely modern bike that is in an OK condition is fine. like mx bikes, there is no real difference for average joe between them all. sure there a little things which some people prefer/niggle them.

250cc is good, anymore can be a real handful but not insurmountable, similary if your really light a 200 or 125 could be OK (they tend to be expensive because youth are capped to 125)

you can find 2nd hands bike on the classified pages on here, tmx, etc

Just keep in mind to HEAL UP first. Broken back is not something you want to push too soon and cause more damage. OK public service announcement out of the way. on to bike selection.

Generally from a price point of view modern 4T trials bikes will cost more to purchase than a 2T. Probably because there are so few of them in comparison to 2T. Personally I would go with 250cc or larger. If your plan is to use the bike to get back into shape and have some fun, and maybe a few competitions, any of the modern bikes after 2000 should serve you well. I rode a 2000 Sherco 2.9 (272cc) for the past 7 years at Club level events in the Advanced class and it had served me well. As you probably already know, buy based on condition not solely on year. If possible ride as many bikes as you can, they all do "feel" differently. Some drastically so.

Welcome to Trials and heal up and ride!

Do pilates to heal - it really helps and will improve your balance no end.

cool i'll give that a try pindie, best let the bone knit together before i start doing anything.

I don't think you take any where near the hits on a trials bike that you take on an MX bike

You don't case it on a double, you don't tumble from a 50kph endo, you don't blitz the whoops

They are pretty easy on the body until you start to go big but that's a few years practice

That depends how keen you are between sections I witnessed my pal's 1970's 50 kph endo, which still gets talked about. Even the guy in front stopped to see what had happened behind him. Fortunately no real injury and, being a Bultaco, the judicious application of a scaffold tube straightened the bike out, more or less.

Agreed. Once you can stand you can start very early Pilates exercises. I'd get advice from your hospital physio as that's where I started from.

Don't follow You Tube ones until you are pretty sorted. It's a huge range of simple exercises but you need to start at the basics. You will have the core stability and strength of an ox doing Pilates.

If its good enough for Cyril Depres for Dakar fitness it's good enough for me.

I have two burst discs in my back which have meant periods of serious agony and no feeling in my legs so been totally dependant on others - not nice at all. Pilates has got me on my bike again (which trials helps anyway) and I can now move better than most of my injury free friends. My balance is awesome since doing Pilates also.

Go steady and work back up from baby steps and you'll be fine.

Edited March 2, 201313 yr by pindie