the artist formerly known as ish Posted December 17, 2004 Author Report Share Posted December 17, 2004 Minding if I remember right started with the Lejune's Eddy's brother would enter the event and ride, this way he could pre ride the sections, move rocks and help his brother. Well other riders picked up on this and it was hard to know who was doing what, so they allowed each rider to sign on a minder. Now it's minders, bike holders, factory rep's who look more like minders than factory reps, then man and his dog to carry spare bikes, drinks, etc, it's got to the stage the only people outside the tape is the event officials. All the problems arose from trying to stop riders riding round for no other purpose than assist another rider. They say the numbers are dropping because of section difficulty at world championship rounds but the FIM do everything in their power to make it easier for the riders allowing them to pre walk the sections, someone to catch the bike if they do make a mistake, another person in a factory bib giving orders on which way the back wheel would be best placed, a whole fleet of bodies well camouflaged in bibs "meaning who knows what" to shift rocks and distract the section officials. If the FIM want a circus then allowing all the clowns in the section is spot on!! if the FIM want a world championship with more riders and a fairer result at the end of it, then easing of the sections to allow more riders to compete and eliminating all outside assistance to any rider once they are on the clock is the way to do it. I can't understand riders complaining about an event or pre walking a course and saying it's too easy, but they will still have many people helping them do the event, if it's too easy why all the assistance. I don't think the top men making the decisions for trials in the FIM have any balls, and prefer to please factories and top riders!! rather than make the sport fairer for all, their own rules say a rider cannot receive outside assistance, but allow them to have all they want, a trial starts and ends at the clock, everything in-between is the course. I still think without all the assistance and eased sections the best rider would win the championship, they just wouldn't win as many rounds. Like all top motor sports it comes down to $$$$$$$ and the strongest team, and this is one of the reasons in recent years we have only seen a couple of mega champs win all in front of them, unfortunately trials isn't a top motor sport and never will be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
widrace Posted December 17, 2004 Report Share Posted December 17, 2004 I went to Duluth with my video camera and got Dougies crash. It's the footage that was seen here in the States on the Top Dead Center show. I'm curious if it's the same footage that TrialsTV has. Could someone describe the footage? Maybe I can get a free copy eh? Don't worry, I'm not a jerk that's gonna cause a stink. It's neat to see your own stuff on TV....and maybe a video as well? Regarding Dougies performance on the horrible day...... as the conditions worsened, it was quite obvious to onlookers that he was the only one that could maintain command, and was well on his way to a win because of this - until the crash. After that he kinda blended in. It was impressive watching his crew fix the bike so fast. They had the triple clamp off a minders bike and onto his in a few short minutes - long before he was able to get back on it. That part took a good 15 minutes. I'm still amazed he even got up. Propel yourself backwards into a bed of jagged rocks, land kidney first onto one that sticks up almost a foot above the others. Now go ride. Geeesh Later in the day Dougie watched the crash and dragged his dad over to see it. "See...I pulled up!, look at this" Not quite enough, as the front tire found a spot on the ledge that was slightly undercut. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ringo Posted December 17, 2004 Report Share Posted December 17, 2004 it's got to the stage the only people outside the tape is the event officials. Personaly I prefer the Hawaiian style bib Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve fracy Posted December 18, 2004 Report Share Posted December 18, 2004 So Ishy, is it possible do you think to get the US Nationals back to a place where there would be NO minders at all? Just man and machine against the sections! God, I am making myslelf sound old here! Back in the day when I was Canadian Champ and riding ALL the US Nationals as well, you were almost considered to be soft if you had someone catching your bike! Not saying there is anything wrong with having a catcher when looking at most of the sections the Pro's ride, I'd want a catcher or two and some hay-bayles too! But, I agree with you that it is conceivable to really challenge to top guys in Nat'ls without making the sections over the top, and make them ride alone! If the factories could find a way to see that more rider's and in turn more people would be buying bikes, maybe the rules would change back again!! Cheers, Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ringo Posted December 18, 2004 Report Share Posted December 18, 2004 (edited) Or course this is my opinion, but it makes incredible sense to have a "coach" when you are competeing at any level of sport. The essence of a minder is just that. Just like any sport, your coach watches you practice and determines where your weakness' are and makes you work more in that area. During the competition the rider should focus on riding whereas the minder is their to: 1] help pick the line that is best suited for his rider 2] encourage and remind him that he can do the line because he did it before. 3] inspire him because we all thrive on encouragement. The coach/minder does not have to be as talented as the competitor and rarely ever is. [Jordi and Martin are definate exceptions] but even they should be passed up by their predicesors as the youngster should learn all of the masters tricks and then some [Dougie, Adam] The minder should not have a hand in catching bikes as the course should have specified people for that in danger areas [as they have become today] A solution to the problem would be to have a dedicated area such as the press area that is outside the section for the minders. The minder can verbalize everything that he/she needs to from that point and that would mean that only riders are allowed in the section. Damnit, did I just screw myself out of a killer picture position? I guess if it comes to that then I'll have no choice but to enter. Edited December 18, 2004 by ringo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rev3lee250 Posted December 30, 2004 Report Share Posted December 30, 2004 where can i get hold of this dvd cheers rev3lee250 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neonsurge Posted December 31, 2004 Report Share Posted December 31, 2004 where can i get hold of this dvd cheers rev3lee250 Errrmm... TrialsTV? Y'know, as mentioned several times in this thread Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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