Hi,

I'm a complete newbie here, so please treat with care

I'm a bit of an oldie at 42 but have always fancied having a go at trialing although I have no prior experience of motorbike riding!

Now that I have a little spare cash and a bit of time now that my girls are getting a bit bigger I've started thinking about getting a bike to have a bit of fun.

I was thinking of spending about

Edited February 25, 200620 yr by TedM

Best bet for practise is either pratise days that a local club may have or go and ask a local farmer/landowner

Buy a beta sooooo much nicer to ride than gas gas and a 250 will be fine

i learnt on an oldish fantic and that was heavy

now seven trials on im moving up to the intermediate route

It all depends how much you practise!!!!

Hi Tedm,

Yes go for it, I have been falling off for about 3 years now, started when i was 38-39 with no previous bike riding experence. But remember as ferretflasher said its not as easy as it looks and it can be painfull and energy zapping but it is great fun.

Thinking about why you want to take up trials is a bit more difficult. If you have never before been interested in bikes then what has changed to make you now wanting to try?

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Gee ferretflasher I never realised that I needed to have ridden a road bike earlier in life to qualify for having a go at trials!

You know, maybe I just didn't want to ride on the road. And maybe I had plenty of other stuff to be doing when I was younger (dinghy racing, windsurfing and snowboarding) - does that mean I can't try now?

Oh, and I wasn't presuming that I could use someone elses paddocks.....they're mine.

As for fitness, I dunno. I'm 13 stone, ran a half marathon in May last year and did a sprint triathlon (500m swim, 20km bike and 5km run) in 1hr 15mins in September.

Blimey triathlon, marathon..

the last thing we need is more ultra fit and healthy blokes making us look like middle aged has beens ( or never beens in my case)

buy a bike and enter a trial, trials has to be the easiest sport to access in the world

ps its addictive and the spending never stops

welcome to trials tedm.i like you had no real bike riding experience.a few of my mates bought trials bikes so i thought i would get one too.i bought a sherco 200 for a 1000 quid .now i,m totally into it .did about 10 trials last year all beginners which were brilliant.if i were you go and have a look at a trial first then have a go yourself.everyone is really friendly and always willing to give help and advice.

Try motor-cross then, I think you will do well.

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I can't...... too scared

welcome to trials tedm.i like you had no real bike riding experience.a few of my mates bought trials bikes so i thought i would get one too.i bought a sherco 200 for a 1000 quid .now i,m totally into it .did about 10 trials last year all beginners which were brilliant.if i were you go and have a look at a trial first then have a go yourself.everyone is really friendly and always willing to give help and advice.

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Thanks for the advice guys. I'm certainly going to take a look before jumping in at the deep end.

Any bike buying tips you'd like to share?

Ride before you buy then you will know that the bike is right for you dont listen to people say oh get so on so... becuase half the time its the bike they have and its you whos riding it not them.

The only tip I could think of is:

If you're just starting out, and never ridden a bike before, maybe get an old bike for cheap. That way you don't feel so bad destroying an '06 beta or something. Mind you, I do think the new bikes are AWESOME.. but for someone who's just starting and doesn't know if it's the sport for them, pick up an old trials bike.. and if you end up not liking the sport, you've always got a great little trail bike! (With a seat too!! )

Take care

There are plenty of half decent bikes around for

Good avdice from all parties.

Like you TedM, I always fancied a go at trials. (Being 37, it probably started when I first saw "Kickstart" as a boy).

Anyway, I have just bought a 1993 Yamaha TY250 for

I'm new to this too. Am just about to take the plunge on 03 Sherco 290...anybody have any views? (...as I also have the option to buy an '03 Beta 270).

which would u pick...both in good nick BTW.

cheers. J.

Test ride both of them and see which you like most eg riding position

I would personally go for a beta but thats only coz ive got one

Surprising how many are in a similar situation.

I've come from other disciplines, but decided to have a go at trials this year.

First bike was a 2003 250PRO Gasser, which I used for the first two trials, which I enjoyed even though the conditions were not at at all favourable and I didn't finish either.

As I now know that I will be enjoying a few events this year, I have (this week) been persuaded to part with the 250 to someone else who wants to try, and so tomorrow I will be collecting an 06 200 Gasser (the capacity I wanted originally).

Regarding the land, I also have a couple of acres, and did receive a letter from the local council advising that if I wanted to conduct motorsport on my land, then I'd have to apply for planning permission, which probably wouldn't be granted. I told the council that I was using the bike to survey and inspect the land, and they advised that this was acceptable.

Whilst you're having a wobble around your field, join a club, and go and look at a few trials in your area. Look at the beginners and Novice routes. If you feel that you are competant to tackle some of the sections, then get yourself entered into a trial.

At the end of the day, I compete for fun. If it stops being fun, then I stop riding. Good luck.