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Trials Riding And Stunts


ErikW

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Here's a video of the pioneer of Obserbed Trials, Ot Pi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BgV2xIPreg

Ot Pi and Hans Rey pretty much put observed trials on the map.

I got into trials thing for a while, but the lack of balls to go off of high objects kind of limits you on what you can do. Plus it's really fustrating to master all the rear wheel moves since everything revolves around getting on the back wheel and doing pedal kicks.

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Very awsome riding!!!!!!

At twenty years old I did that stuff..then went to open class desert raceing.

Now at 50 years old...5 crushed discs and injuries too many to mention <_<

Then 1 more mega crash at the world finals in drag boats. :angry:

1 year in a wheelchair 1more year learning to walk <_<

I question whether It really was worth it :huh:

I think racing my gun is about all the racing I have left in me.

Well maybe a few stop light things :o

The smell of nitro burning still drives me insane :D

Jim

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Trials riding is a lot harder than it looks. It is harder than chasing someone into a 110 mph sweeper fer' sure!!!

Check out the old movie from the seventies called On Any Sunday. The section on Trials riding is great stuff.

If'n ya can't stand on the bike (both feet on pegs) at a dead stop and balance it for 1/2 an hour, and then without putting a foot down, stand it straight up on a wheelie then stroll it down the road and around a corner at walking speed completely crossed up and at the balance point all the way, then you ain't got what it takes to ride trials competitively.

I played at it for about a year in the late seventies (Honda TL-250 with rimlocks and almost no air in the tires) but only got better at wheelies and stoppies, never made it into the top 10 at local competitions. Went back to pavement after a year and demoted the TL-250 to a wheelie bike. You gotta' be really good when the boulders and logs get really massive. I found the low speed jumps off of vertical drops to be a lot scarier that the banking at Ontario Motor Speedway at 100+ on a GP bike.

DO NOT sell these folks short, they are the Olympic gymnasts of motorcycles.

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I wish I would have rode Trials before I tried to race MX back in the day. :P

(Then I would have learned the fundamentals of riding a motorcycle.)

Motocross tracks are easy when you have the fundamentals down.

Winning races is a different story. :lol:

FM

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I was racing professional Moto X in the early 70s and was a decent rider (National #72). I could win local races and be in the money at National events. I bought an Ossa Trials bike (a Mick Andrews replica) and gave trials a try. I did manage to win one local Trial, but that because no "real" Trials riders were there. All it takes to be a good Trials rider is unbelievable balance, impeccable throttle control and practice, practice, practice. The top Trials riders are like the top GMs in USPSA.

Bob Hanna

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I was racing professional Moto X in the early 70s and was a decent rider (National #72). I could win local races and be in the money at National events. .....

Bob Hanna

As in, the "Hurricane", Supercross winner in '77?

Edited by Turtle
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Good name for a MX rider. Did you ever get mistaken for Bob Hannah.

I still want my old 1971 CZ 250 back. It was one of the top stupid things I ever did to sell that bike. I bought that bike from Ryan Villapoto's grandfather. Wow am I old!

Art

I was racing professional Moto X in the early 70s and was a decent rider (National #72). I could win local races and be in the money at National events. I bought an Ossa Trials bike (a Mick Andrews replica) and gave trials a try. I did manage to win one local Trial, but that because no "real" Trials riders were there. All it takes to be a good Trials rider is unbelievable balance, impeccable throttle control and practice, practice, practice. The top Trials riders are like the top GMs in USPSA.

Bob Hanna

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Yeah I don't understand why they all wear open face helmets. That, and the spandex
Can't speak to the spandex (it wasn't around when I rode Trials), but the open faced helmet thing is understandable once you do it and realize the extra vision angles are handy in the tight stuff. You don't want to move your head around to glance down and around when the balance point is tricky. I always rode with a full-face helmet back when I raced pavement, but I went out and got a 3/4 for trials after the first meet. It also gets really hot in the full face helmets when you are only crawling along with no wind speed ;-)
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I was racing professional Moto X in the early 70s and was a decent rider (National #72). I could win local races and be in the money at National events. .....

Bob Hanna

As in, the "Hurricane", Supercross winner in '77?

Bob lives in Idaho.

BobHannah.com

FM

Edited by Front Man
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Good name for a MX rider. Did you ever get mistaken for Bob Hannah.

I still want my old 1971 CZ 250 back. It was one of the top stupid things I ever did to sell that bike. I bought that bike from Ryan Villapoto's grandfather. Wow am I old!

Art

At the first Motocross in the Houston Astrodome, Gunnar Lindstrom was manager of the Honda team. He took me over to the Yamaha team and introduced me as the "Original" Bob Hanna (I was racing pro before Bob "Hurricane" Hannah). I quit racing about the time he started racing National events and there were more than a few people confused about who was who. I had a 250 and a 360 CZ, they were good bikes, also raced 250 and 400 Husky and my final season on a 400 Maico.

Edited to add photo

post-3253-1173923316.jpg

Edited by CenTX
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Way cool Bob!

I started racing about '73 and was totally done '85.

My last bike was a 1983 Maico Spyder 490.

I wish my last bike was an "81 Maico because they were a superior machine.

I finished my youth turning wrenches for a friend trying to go pro at AMA Supercross's and Nationals. Lots of cool stuff you never want to forget. :)

You probably did the whole Texas winter series after the Florida series.

What did they call that?

The Supercross series ruined all of that fun. :lol:

FM

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Way cool Bob!

I started racing about '73 and was totally done '85.

My last bike was a 1983 Maico Spyder 490.

I wish my last bike was an "81 Maico because they were a superior machine.

I finished my youth turning wrenches for a friend trying to go pro at AMA Supercross's and Nationals. Lots of cool stuff you never want to forget. :)

You probably did the whole Texas winter series after the Florida series.

What did they call that?

The Supercross series ruined all of that fun. :lol:

FM

Way cool on the maico!!!!!

Mine was an 81 or2 mega 2 490 Hottest bike I EVER had about 200lbs WET 50 hp at the back wheel

The guy I sold it to had no respect for it(after severe warnings)

On his first ride he crashed hard..spent three weeks in the hospital!

jim

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Way cool Bob!

I started racing about '73 and was totally done '85.

My last bike was a 1983 Maico Spyder 490.

I wish my last bike was an "81 Maico because they were a superior machine.

You probably did the whole Texas winter series after the Florida series.

What did they call that?

FM

73 was my last season. I only rode about 1/4 of the nationals. I was 26, married and almost all the big races for 74 were a minimum of 400 miles away. Fighting all those "kids" was getting tougher and I was not in a position to cover a major injury, it seemed like a good time to quit. After chasing the big races, the local stuff wasn't fun anymore so I quit cold turkey.

I liked the Maico, nice broad power band with lots of torque. I quit at the time they were trasitioning from 3.5 rear shock travel to the Mono-shock and the laid down shocks which gave 6" or more travel on the rear.

Raced some of the Trans-AMA series with the Europeans, Early Texas series races with the likes of Brad Lackey, who left just after that to race in Europe and became the first US World Champion. Saw Joel Robert when he was World Champion, absolutly amazing what he could do on a motocycle.

Fun stuff and great memories.

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