Your first time?

[TooFastTim]

OK nothing about carnal desires here, so if I've lost your attention you may leave.

As a long time trials rider (I started at 13) and with quite a lot of enduro/off-road experience under my belt (15 years) I've wondered how people with off-road experience react to the first time they ride a trials bike. Obviously I've long since ceased to be objective.

I used to think, 25 odd years ago, that trials bikes were pussy cats. Docile, small, light and nothing intimidating about them. These days I'm not so sure. My Raga, if not treated with appropriate respect will bite and badly. I would describe it as "highly strung".

So those of you who can remember the first time you rode a trials bike and who had off-road experience please share your impressions.

[AZRickD]

My first impression was, "Not as easy as it looks."

I ogled my first trials bike in 1974 via some sort of video display at a bike shop. I can't recall if it was film or an ancient form of Beta/VHS. I deviated to enduro-style riding instead. Then, many years later I hopped on a Beta and realized that it is "not as easy as it looks." That is, it sure is cool to watch the experts climb walls and hop rocks, but most normal folks I see on trials bikes are doing little more than what a decent rider would attempt on a non-trials bike.

Now when I analyze trials riding I look at potential damage caused to bike and body from falling off the side of an obstacle.

Bones are brittle. Sucks gettin' old.

[Loosenut]

My first real ride on a trials bike was fun and short. It was short because it so different than riding my race bike that I tired myself out in 10 minutes. Yes, it's harder than it looks.

[d2w]

I'm not trying to hijack the thread, but I have a begineers trials riding question having never been on one. As a proud father of a 3 year old boy, I'm planning on buying Evan the smallest OSET electric trials bike. For years I'm sure I can keep up to him by walking, and then on a mountain bike, and then on my GG. But if it ever comes the time for me to purchase a trials bike so that we can learn together, what does one consider when making the decision to purchase a 200cc vs a 250cc vs a 300cc? Basically, all the trials bikes look the same feature for feature, less the displacement. So why all the different sizes?

Thanks for the education.

Dale

[roostafish]

My first trials bike experience was really funny. A guy I know used to race pro motocross many moons ago. We invited him for a trail ride and he shows up with this Fantic 305 trials bike with a piece of canvas where a seat should be, and funny looking tires. My brother in law and I looked, he offered for us to try it. We did, and said to him, "good luck." Then he proceeded to kick our butts all day. It was very interesting. This was about 15 years ago, and he let us each try the bike, showed us some trials techniques, and really opened our eyes. From that day on, Dan and I became stand up riders, and we've not looked back since. I even took that bike on a trail ride once to get the feel of it. It felt foreign at first, but I adapted within an hour. Trials bikes are a hoot. They're very capable, and you can sure humiliate people who don't know about them on one.

[TooFastTim]

Thanks for sharing your experiences so far but I was considering that 20-30 years ago I would happily have handed my trials bike to somebody who'd only ridden a bike a few times. Nowadays I'd insist that the rider had considerable experience.

My bad for not expressing myself properly.

Anyway a few weeks ago, my bosses son popped round to my place and I offered him a ride on the Raga. He's no mug and has a KTM in the garage. He's also a professional racing driver (NZ V8's). He got off the bike pale and a looking a little intimidated and said something it wasn't what he was expecting.

[roostafish]

I've only ridden a couple of recent trials bikes, a 280 pro, and the new Monty 4t. Niether one of those seem particularly violent to me. I'd happily stick a novice on either one of them.

[TooFastTim]

d2w, 50s are for kids starting out. Sort of the trials version of a pw50. Not for serious trials. The 80 is a big market for the 8-13 yo. Serious stuff. Big seller in the UK & Spain. The 125 is the mandated capacity for competition for up to 18 yo (Why? I don't know because some places 15 yo can race 450 MX bikes). But a very capable bike. I'd have no hesitation riding one in competition and I'm sort of between intermediate and expert level.

The 200 is a sort of in between capacity. Not legal for kids and arguably too small for adults. Nonetheless it's a popular capacity for adults in competition. Do not under-estimate them. The 250 is Gassers best selling trials bike. Great bike for everybody from novice thru' to expert. Why in gods name the 280 still exists in Gassers line up I don't know. Relatively difficult to ride it doesn't really fit anywhere. The 300 is quite docile (unless it's a Raga in which case it's a fire breathing monster) but deceptively powerful. It can get you into trouble as quickly as it can get you out. Really only for an intermediate to expert level rider.

For a bike to share, I'd suggest the 200. But try the 125 & 250 too.

Thanks Roosta. As I said I've long since lost my objectivity.

[skid jackson]

Originally Posted by TooFastTim

I used to think, 25 odd years ago, that trials bikes were pussy cats. Docile, small, light and nothing intimidating about them. .

This quote totally describes my 04 beta 200. I let my buddies 8 yr old kid ride it. It was exactly what I was looking for in a trials bike because I had no idea what I wanted but have had plenty of experience with big bore dirtbikes. I know what it's like when the bike wants to take you for a ride. I figured if I was going to be operating a new kind of bike in tight, slightly dangerous to down right dangerous quarters I did not need one that would launch itself at the slightest misstake. In fact I test rode both the beta 200 and a gg 280 pro back to back. I had one minor slip on the throttle and the 280 hoooooked up in hurry. I almost hit a damn house!! I was like screw that .. don't need that happening in the tight stuff. I took the beta. My first impressions from my first real ride was, this is cool, not so easy, who knew riding around a little rock out crop for twenty minutes could wear your ass out so fast.

A raga in the wrong hands could be fatal!! Not a bike for noobs .. thats for sure. I've had a number of older, very experienced trialers tell me the 200 is perfect and I should not need to upgrade to anything bigger. And if I want something bigger I should not gt it until I can ride the snot out of the 200!! I'm a long way from that!!

[Metalefty]

My first ride on a trials bike was a couple of years ago when my GG/Sherco/Scorpa dealer got the new Scorpa with the 4 stroke Yamaha engine in. It was the first and only one in the country at the time. Someone else had tested it and when they sent it to my dealer they wanted pictures taken of it being ridden and pictures of the engine. The write up and pictures would be in a trials newsletter. He asked me if I would take the photos and we went out to a nice rocky area. I took pictures for about an hour and he let me ride it some. It felt really different to me and I could see how with some practice that climbing difficult sections would be far easier than on an enduro bike. I would definetly like to own one someday.