Who has one? On a whim Bendejo and I decided it was it would be a great training tool and a good way to get quickie rides in when the mood struck. This beauty is currently in transit and will hopefully arrive tomorrow. We've been lurking over at OTN and learning as much as we can. We're super excited to get the bike here to start playing.
None of the bike shops around here wanted to have anything to do with us so we called Matt at Midwest Bike Trials last week and asked him to quote a solid beginner bike for about 1k. He came back a little higher and we gave him the go ahead to start building it on Thursday. Ben talked to him today and he said he shipped it on Saturday and then emailed the pics. We decided to go with Matt as opposed to buying a pre-built complete bike because he really took the time to talk to us about the bikes and it was apparent that he really knew his shit. He had the parts in stock and was able to build the bike without any delay. We're very excited.
Unfortunately a sawzall won't turn a BMXer into a Trials, there are lot's of subtle differences. You could probably find a used bike for 300-500 but that's still kind of spendy for a bike with no seat.
If you just want to practice your balance then there's really no need for the sawzall, any bike will do. I've been practicing my trackstands on Ben's mountain bike the last few days. I think I'm up to about a minute balancing and I figured out how to pop a wheelie today.
There is going to be an RMTA bicycle trials event in Salida you should try. It's almost as much fun as having a motor.
You guys are taking this seriously and doing all the right stuff. Wish I had done a lot more when I was both younger and more flexible, and less fragile. You cannot have a thread like this without Danny MacAskill...... 23 million plus views and still going strong. No idea how to post with the little pic, so click the links. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z19zFlPah-o And another. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj6ho1-G6tw&feature=related I am sure there are many other guys who are as good as he is, but I always find myself drawn in by the music and editing on his clips... well, stories. Last one for now. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbJ1sseQVbY&feature=related
I've got a Monty X-hydra that's really good at showing me how bad I am. 15 minutes on it can be a heck of a workout. You can ride it around a basement and have a blast. Geode: the geometry is pretty different from a BMX, plus the gearing is really low on the trials bike, plus mine has a bash plate. That said, you can work on some basics on just about anything. Most of the guys I've hung out with ride urban trials on homebuilt 26" bikes that have a jumping pedigree.
That's a very cool looking bike Charla! I'll be curious to see what you and Ben think of it. I've been thinking about getting one myself as a cross trainer for trials.
We really would love to attend that event but we already have concert tickets for that night here in Denver.
Totally good with that too! Our March event is this coming weekend so might be able to try a couple of bicycles out then too. I've only ridden one before and it felt very strange, but I think it would be a great training tool and probably a lot of fun too!
April 16th at Riverside Park, Chris Hertrich is organizing it. It was this video that made me want a trials bicycle. If a nine year old can do it, I can do it too right? <object width="640" height="390"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/bqEClzP5F7M&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/bqEClzP5F7M&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="640" height="390"></embed></object>
i wouldnt bother with the sawzall untill you have some time on the bike and decide that it is necarry mine is basicaly a mountain bike with stout wheels
For those of you who do have a trials bicycle how do you use them? Our thinking is that it will be a great training tool for moto and just general fitness, but the more I learn the more I think that the hooks are going to sink deep. We don't even have the Echo yet and I'm already thinking we should start collecting parts to build a 20 inch bike. Ben and I spend A LOT of time hanging out outside when the weather is nice so I'm expecting this bike will see plenty of use.
