old trials fanatic

Well i must admit i'm gobsmacked. I dont know what the "land issues" are but i always thought you guys could raom as far as the eye can see. Home home on the range and all that. Makes me view the "issue" of stop non stop in a different light. I just assumed trying to find land and keep it was more of a British thing what with us being such a small island with 68 million plus peeps. Sounds like the NIMBY phenomina isnt just confined to our side of the pond. Makes you put the stop no stop arguement into perspective because it will be access to land that will kill off the sport not fiddling with the rules at the end of the day IMHO.

Surprises me but if you say so then i bow to your local knowledge. Over here the piccys of the US we are fed show it as spectacular scenery and millions of acres of mountains and woodlands with stream and river beds aplenty. Just goes to prove you cant believe what the haunted fishtank in th ecorner of the room feeds your mind. Sorry

How much to make it into a "decent trials machine" ? well somewhere between £1000 and £4000 depending on how competitive you want it and how much needs doing to the motor. Basically all you will keep is the frame and motor and possibly the hubs all the rest goes either in the skip or onto e bay. Most of the more competitive Bantams have "replica" frames too but you dont "need" to go that far unless you are mega competitive. Well you did ask

5 to 6 psi front and 4 psi rear. works for me.

You sure you are fitting them the right way round? Just asking as if you fit the left on the right etc you dont have to remove the lugs but the rests are then too far forward. Thats from memory on a bike i had in a while back. I just cut em off and fit a new bracket and modern rests.

The kit is ok taking into account jon V8 comments but a better option is to just weld a plate and footrest brackets to the frame then you can choose which pegs to fit either cheep steel ones as per the SM kit or some nice titanium raptors if youre feeling flush. Definately lowering and moving the pegs is a great improvement i just dont get why they all had them so high at the time? Strange

Surely thats the whole point ? Finesse and control not look at the size of my bo11ocks !

Would have thought if you wanted to ride road trials your first priority would be to pass your bike test?

Central Wheel still list Morad rims 40 hole 21"

So so true. It always used to make me laugh when the cycleing fraternity all got wet crotches because they found a component that could save them 4 grams.Just remember guys the heaviest part of the bike and therefore the best and cheapest place to start weight saving is the monkey that rides it LOL Perhaps thats why i've given up on the titanium this and alloy that cos i'm 17 stone

Good point made by zippy above. I another post on the same subject i mentioned that i had packed in trials in the late 80's because the sections to me had got silly with massive steps, drop offs and what people now call splats, god i hate that term, and at that time i lost interest in trials because to me it was becoming a sport that had lost it's allure there was no beauty and finesse in it anymore all the nuances had gone just rev the nuts off it a dump the clutch. Trials became more about the size of your gonads and less of a thinking mans game and strategy counted for naught. 20 years on and i discovered the world of Classic trials all run non stop and i was hooked again on thinking mans sections beauty control and finesse the rest is history. So thats wher i come from and obviously why i'm a non stop man. In the 20 years between trials i went off to work in the ski industry and one of the things i just couldnt understand was the obsession with the majourity of snowboarders in buggering about in the board park all day. I mean there was this massive ski zone covering 4 valleys and miles upon miles of runs and superb off piste and all they did all day was prat about in a half pipe and try to skid down a pole derrr. So i taught myself to snowboard between jobs and i still didnt get it prefering to cover the whole mountain not just a small corner of it. Now the preocupation with mickey mouse man made sections in trials to me reflects the self same thing and i feel that is why we have the preocupation with hoping and boping and general buggering about with man made sections instead of riding what nature gave us. Dont really know if i've explained that very well? I can see that to some, because i suppose they dont know any better, this is what trials is. To others they think differently because they have experienced a different way to do things. What zippy says does make sense if you want to combine the two but is it time we just recognised that like skiing and snowboarding the two "sports", though similar in so many ways, are just different and therefore we just have to try to make efforts to co exist in the same world and let people decide which persuit they wish to follow because that is the one that appeals the most to them? Does it have to be one way or another? why cant there be stop allowed clubs and non stop clubs? Perhaps non stop could be called Classic Trials and stop allowed Progressive Trials ? Just a thought

Eloquently put p.o.v. even though i'm pro non stop i respect your opposing p.o.v. and wish all the other anti non stop posts were so well thought out.

Totally agree with Woody and many other contributors on this. Dont quite get why you would go to all that trouble moding a Cota 200 instead of just buying a much better twinshock but thats up to you. On the legal illegal cheating point i have to agree fitting discs or hydraulic clutches most definately is. However i think you would be welcome to ride at many club events just that your bike would be marked "ineligable machine" on the results well that applies to the clubs i ride at but they are "Classic" clubs doubt if modern clubs would give a toss just take your money and turn a blind eye. As for the "convert a mono to twinshock" premis well if you cant see it's just blatant cheating then theres not much point in trying to explain further. If youre determined to stick with the Cota then i would have thought you would be better spending your money on stocking up on gearbox parts and kickstart shafts.

OK not for once passing a judgement because everybody knows where i stand on this but have you guys watched a recent video of the SSDT, one of if not the premier event in the Trials year, an event which is run to non stop rules ? It proves if the sections are laid out correctly with non stop in mind using natural terrain instead of micky mouse man made obsticles then it works. Please dont tell me you dont have suitable terrain in the US because i just wont believe you. So just dont get how it can work for one international event, whose competitors also ride stop allowed in their own countries, and not work everywhere? Surely proves the "arguement" is purely down to personal preference

Look at the pipes attached to the rear shocks too.

Well spotted and a very fair point well made. Cant argue can i.

Seriously no insult intended. Just saw the usa ref and just dont think the idea of a wheel sensor would work as i regularly lock the front momentarily when descending slippery muddy slots and gullys but dont cease forward motion or dab whilst doing so. Same with the rear wheel locked as a sliding anchour whilst descending but again no cesation to forward motion. Lastly rear wheel still spinning on muddy terrain but bike and rider have come to a halt.Suppose i'm biased and dont see the problem with non stop as it is all i have ever ridden. When the stop hop and bop merchants arrived on the scene is about the same time that i packed up trialing as all that was just something that held no interest to me and i never would aspire to, just no beauty and finesse in it IMHO, so i went off to France and became a ski instructor for the next 20 odd years. Had a bad injury ski racing, broken vertebrae femur shoulder etc, so that all came to an end. Just happened to be chatting to an old mate over a beer and he talked me into going to a Classic trial which just happened to be happening over the other side of his fence. The bug bit again and the rest is history. As you know Classics are all ridden non stop so that is probably why i just dont get all the negativety about the adoption of the non stop rule. From my point of view after watching the FIM video i thought the demo of non stop was far more aspirational and skillfull than the usual hop bop rev the nuts off it and dump the clutch all with a couple of monkeys to catch you or the bike. As i said just no beauty in it for me. So if me mentioning the word Yanks caused you offence i appologise but to most Europeans that's what everybody is over that side of the pond no offence meant. Does make me laugh when you meet some of the yanks that are so full of how Scottish, Irish whatever they think they are but cant seem to pinpoint exactly where Scotland etc is on a map of the world i.e. one that isnt just of north america but includes the other 3/4 of the planet.

You WILL need a wider swing arm for tyre clearence with a 4.00 x 18 trials tyre. Plus usual mod is to offset the motor to the left and make a corresponding spacer ring to ofset the rear sprocket to maintain chain alignment.

Just reflecting suggestions in billyt and dbell posts both showing locations as being usa. "Ignorant B****** " been called worse on a regular basis Still dont get why front wheel or rear wheel for that rotation is the same as forward motion. So if you pull a wheelie and put the front brake on therefore the wheel stops by your logic you have ceased forward motion? Hmmm strange logic. Doesnt seem to work that way over here.

Hi Charlie sadly no news is bad news and also sadly i think you are correct. Perhaps the van was nicked just for the van parts and the bike bits are just a bonus? I doubt very much that the bike bits will be crushed or melted down and that you are correct that at some point we will be sitting in a queue along some or all of those parts unknowingly. They will have been repainted, remodled etc but you can bet your bottom dollar that no matter what principles some people express if offered a "bargain" they will accept and not question. Sad comment on the human race but life has taught me that it is fact. The problem as always is proving they are the stolen parts Charlie even if they do resurface. Just take a look around any trial paddock and ask yourself the question "are any of those parts here?" just got to accept it. Dont like it but thats how it is in todays world.

It always makes me sigh when the yanks keep going on about sensors on the wheels because the non stop rule has never been about the wheel stopping i.e. lock the front or rear wheel whilst descending doesnt mean you have stopped forward motion so is therefore irrelevant. We have all done this at some point and know it to be true that you havent stopped forward motion so lets just dismiss that as an irrelevance used by people who just dont understand the premiss. OK back to the video. Firstly i commend the FIM in releaseing it to try and explain where they are coming from. After watching it a couple of times i think it comes down to a gut feeling for the observer that they maintained forward motion or not. Lets face it no observer is going to be as close as the camera view so it will always be a gut feeling call. Either you accept the idea of non stop or dont. If you dont you will always find arguements for saying that the rider did stop when the observer didnt think he did. I have even read arguements that reiterate newtonian laws that would only normally be discussed in a laboratory or a phd thesis. Unbelieveable. Whatever this is the fait acomplis that the FIM have presented to us for this year so make the best of it. IMHO i find the techniques much more watchable and skillful than stop allowed but i firmly believe that trials should be non stop anyway so thats my starting point so i view it differently to someone that comes from the opposite strating point. You see i remember wht trials evolved in the first place and still believe those core values should remain however i also think the time has possibly come for a persuit along the lines of stop allowed WTC of previous years to run as a stand alone sport because i dont see how the two can coexist in the same confine. It works for moto cross so i see no reason why it shouldnt for trials. As for the riders and those bloody minders etc argueing with observers then it's time to introduce the yellow card for ANY objection to the observers decision and a red card for continuing the arguement that would apply to the rider and minder, why the hell do they need to exist anyway surely they come under the heading of outside assistance?, and a red card results in exclusion no appeal allowed. The observers decision is final as it always was. If you have a gripe or whinge direct it at the clerk of the course thats why he's there. Anyway good luck to the riders this year and i hope it's a sucess and the whingers and whiners finally shut up. I still feel that the course designers can do a lot to eliminate some of the more contentious areas but lets see how it pans out.

We would like to thank the great turnout of riders who attended and supported the club it made all the work laying out and behind the scenes worthwhile. Another person I would like to mention and thank is Jim Wickstead whose firm S & J Autos of Ilkeston, which is jointly owned and run by Jim and Sean who both ride at our events, helped the club immensely by agreeing to sponsor the event which left us totally gobsmacked but extremely grateful. Jim who was observing on section 3 wasn’t riding this time as he recently had a very bad accident almost severing his finger with a circular saw. Thankfully the hospital was able to reattach the finger and Jim is recovering well and hoping to be able to get back to riding sometime later this year. Jim manned his post bravely almost to the very end of the day but eventually had to give in due to the pain in his hand from the cold and I am sure we would all like to express our thanks for his and sponsorship of the event and wish him a speedy and full recovery. I hope you all enjoyed the event because we had to cancel the previous event at Clifton I was praying the snow wouldn’t come and mean we had to cancel another one. As you know the weather eventually was kind and I think most of you had an enjoyable if sometimes frustrating ride. Simon Critchley riding his Majesty took the win in the Expert Twinshock class on 13 marks just beating Stephen Bisby, Ossa, also on 13 by the most cleans tie break. 2012 Championship winner Robert Carson kept them honest by claiming 3rd place riding his Yamaha for a loss of just 15. Anthony Sprinks carried on his winning ways from 2012 by taking the win in the Classic Expert Twinshock category on his Bultaco with 21 marks lost from Ian Bend in 2nd on his Ossa who lost 34 marks. It looks like the fight is on again for 2013 lads. In the Intermediate Class it was great to see David Pattison riding at one of our events and he secured the win in the Twinshock class on his Bultaco with a respectable loss of 7 from young Matt Dixon, Ossa, who took 2nd place with a loss of only 12. Nice to see a youth rider challenging some of the older hands in Classic events. Whilst on the subject of youth riders young Harry Lyons who is only 11 years old riding a BSA Bantam built by his uncle Colin Fray took a convincing win in the Clubman British Bike class for a loss of 41 marks just beating Dave Pickering riding a Francis Barnett into 2nd place who lost 42. Dave is also competing for the over 60’s cup whilst Harry is also up for the Youth award so this year in the Clubman British Bike class looks like an interesting competition between youthful exuberance and experience. Watch this space. After the event we had the presentation of last years awards and our good friend Mick Andrews again agreed to present the awards to the lucky winners. The Miners Standard provided a great spread and I think everybody had a full tummy when they left and quite a few helped themselves to sandwiches for Mondays lunch at work. We still had plenty left which went into the bar. Nex year we will also be having the presentation at the Miners Standard so feel free to come along and have a bite on us and cheer on your mates who have worked so hard all year to win an award. Who knows next year it may be you? Finally we had a scratch card where for a pound you had the chance of half the pot, won by Peter Cotterill, with the other half going to Angels Animal Rescue a charity close to Donna and Myselfs heart. For more details about the Club and forthcoming events, Club Championship standings etc then please visit our website www.peakclassic.co.uk Our next event round 2 of the Championship will be at Stathams Farm opposite Matlock Golf Course on 31st March so please come along and support the Club. Expert Twinshock 1st Simon Critchley Majesty 13 marks 2nd Stephen Bisby Ossa 13 marks 3rd Robert Carson Yamaha 15 marks Expert Pre95 Air Cooled Monos 1st Chris Garlick Honda 6 marks Classic Expert British Bike 1st Peter Carson Bantam Rigid 0 marks 2nd Richard Turner Triumph Cub 29 marks 3rd Geoff Gadsby BSA 43 marks Classic Expert Twinshock 1st Anthony Sprinks Bultaco 21 marks 2nd Ian Bend Ossa 34 marks 3rd Peter Kearsley Honda 55 marks Intermediate British Bike 1st Neil Walker Francis Barnett 26 marks 2nd Mark Elvidge Francis Barnett 43 marks 3rd Colin Fray DOT 70 marks Intermediate Twinshock 1st David Pattison Bultaco 7 marks 2nd Matt Dixon Ossa 12 marks 3rd Deane Wakeling Fantic 21 marks Classic Intermediate British Bike 1st Kevin Scott Triumph Cub 8 marks 2nd Paul Beswick James 10 marks 3rd Jonathan Harrison Triumph Cub 11 marks Classic Intermediate Twinshock 1st Philip Clarkson SWM 0 marks 2nd John Morley Honda 5 marks 3rd Peter Elvidge Honda 11 marks Clubman British Bike 1st Harry Lyons Bantam 41 marks 2nd Dave Pickering Francis Barnett 42 marks 3rd Arthur Tomkinson Greeves 48 marks Clubman Twinshock 1st Steve Fletcher Yamaha 57 marks 2nd Glyn Ridgeway Ossa 69 marks 3rd Mike Watson Fantic 69 marks

Well said Charlie. I too am far more worried about who comes around to my house now and i am sure Alan is. Thing is a friend who can be trusted could inadvertantly and innocently mention calling and that you had a really nice whatever in the workshop whilst talking to a mate in the pub or wherever. Johnny Scroatbag is earwigging and logs what was said. Next thing you know the workshop has been cleared. This is the modern world the lilly livered liberals who emaciated our education system all those years ago have now saddled us with. Trouble is if we quite rightly chopped these scroats hands off the state would step in and give them a 3 bedroom house, unlimited benifits and free holidays every year. Perhaps instead of taking callers we are going to have to go back to meeting in laybys away from where you live. At the very least if you sell somebody something and you dont know and can trust them well i am seriously considering taking their photo. Sounds harsh ? well what have they got to hide? It just makes me feel sick when you consider how hard we all work to fund our passion only for some idle scroat who's only really useful contribution to society would be to be an organ donor takes it all away in a flash. At least if we and by that i mean ALL true Trials riders only buy everything from reputable sources will there be any hope of trials not going the way of road bikes.

Well the year is already two months old and with the arrival of February it must be time for the Peak Classic Trials Clubs 2013 Club Championship to commence with round 1 at Dudwood Farm, near Elton, Derbyshire. Start time as usual will be 11.00 am and also as usual we will be having classes for British Bikes, Pre85 Twinshocks and Pre95 air Cooled Monoshocks. One new award for this year will be an over 60's championship so along with effectively 5 routes namely Expert, Classic Expert, Intermediate, Classic Intermediate and Clubman , the two Classic routes being 50/50 combinations, there is something for everybody. Unfortunately due to circumstances beyond our control the catering service will have to be suspended for this event but we should hopefully be back to normal for the next round onwards. For more details then please visit our website www.peakclassic.co.uk After the event and starting at approx 3.00 , dependant on clearing up after the trial quickly as we cant leave till we do, there is the presentation of last years awards at the Miners Standard Inn close by. So hopefully see you there.

All i will say is after the recent spate of thefts. 1. Watch out who is watching you or your van when you leave. 2. Only buy from registered reputable dealers as at least then you know they came by their items honestly. 3. Be careful when buying from the autojumble as your joy at finding that "bargain" may be somebodys nisery at having their bike stolen or shed ransacked. Bottom line is there are too many bikes and bits being stolen and they must be going somewhere. Seen it all happen before with Superbikes and people buying "bargain" bits no questions asked.