F-Stop Junkie

The few times I've seen an F1 car on general display, it was put there by a sponsor. At Dubai airport, Marlboro put a Ferrari F1 car on display to try and sell more fags. The signage put up where races are taking place are put there by promoters. Team PR people try to create interest to get more people to see their sponsors, not for the good of the sport. Promotion does cost money, of course. Some football clubs run soccer schools for kids. Partly paid for by the parents, partly by the club. It does their image good as they're giving something back to the community, and they get a chance to spot young players and sign them. It's still the club partly paying for it at the end of the day. Currently, the one way the trials community is connecting with a target audience is through Martyn Ashton's demos. They're done at good venues towards the right demographical (largely 15-25) who are already into extreme sports. I know Martyn will talk about trials (at great length ) if asked, and he'd point people in the right direction. As would the Butlers or Ben and Fred Savage when they do demos. However, what trials should do is become accepted by the larger cycling world as a legitimate part of cycling, not as a sideshow or throw away trick riding. We have an increasing number of riders gaining international titles, but a lot of general cyclists don't know this. There are even journalists throughout the cycle trade with an interest in trials, but they never really get tapped into. Other cyclists already have the tools to give trials a go. They have bikes, helmets and some skill. In a way, there is almost a need to present a watered-down version of trials for general consumption. To move away from heavily specialised frames with high BBs and no seat, move away from 40" sidehops and 50" taps and say "with any bike with good brakes and a low saddle, you can ride simple trials routes". We then also need to say why this is good for general riders, the improvements in balance, confidence and brake technique. Speaking with normal mountain bikers, they want to improve their skills and ride challenging terrain. They don't want to be able to do what Martyn Ashton or Martin Hawyes do. We need to show a middle ground.

Ah, this is the problem. Assuming everything is built properly, it's pretty bulletproof. Built badly, then it's easier to comprimise. Two ways of beating it - get around the proxy (which depends on firewall config), or find a page not in the database.

Having administered Websense, I know it pretty well. Long and short of it is, you're not going to break it. Anyone who knows how to put a proxy in place will not allow web traffic from any user to go out through the general internet and bypass the proxies, it's too easy. Also Websense works by all users submitting URLs as they find them, and the database is refreshed every day. You may find a proxy site today, and it's blocked tomorrow. That's not someone at your college doing it, it could be any websense user. A lot of proxies will force a DNS lookup if you enter an IP. If no DNS name is returned, it will allow it to be requested, if it returns a DNS entrythat is blocked, there's nothing you can do. It's possible to set up different users with different profiles. The head will probably have unrestricted access, teachers can view most websites but probably still have gambling and hate pages (etc...) blocked. You're restricted to site categories deemed appropriate by the school. No way around it, unless you comprimise the account of someone with higher privileges. Still, if they didn't block TF and so on, you'd probably never get any work done... EDIT: Just to add, proxies can be set to log unauthorised website access attempts, and these could be audited on a regular basis quite easily. If it's shown that your account is continually trying to bypass security, you may be for the high jump.

Not durable enough. Carbon has a strange property where an inital impact - say a crash - causes delamination between the layers of carbon, but it happens inside the walls of a tube or monocoque. As a result you're riding a knackered frame which looks fine. The next big hit, it will fail catastrophically. Also carbon doesn't dent, it just fails. I wouldn't trust it for a day to day bike. Maybe a comp special, that's all. Many advantages, but just too heavy and complex. There would also be a problem with reliability as they currently don't handle high torque loads well. It would take someone like Rohloff to design a trials specific internal gear. The best way I could see of using it though would be to have a gearbox design like the Honda DH bikes. Almost a front freewheel, with a fixed rear cog, and a short joining chain going upto the Rohloff gear box partway up the seat tube. Not a simple design, but would be an interesting ride. Get Aran to make one When they're great, discs should be the way forward. Again, certainly a good step for trials, but can we seal tubeless tyres effectively with the way trials riders twist and roll them? I think the next couple of years will see people trying this more and more with DH and freeride rims. This is too fiddly and expensive for most frames. Maybe a few people will on small run bikes, but internal cables and hoses have been around for donkeys years, and manufacturers still keep going back to external routing. We've waited this long, I don't see these coming any time soon All good points though Mr C!

Rumour has it that the Cannondales Martyn rode were not factory specials that he developed or anything like that. They actually rode pretty badly, but he got away with it because they were light. Oh, and they broke. A lot. Would still love one to hang on the wall though. A single object defining my path to trials enlightenment.

If you read the singletrack story, you'll see that the two finger lever is an optional extra they're trying. You'd be able to get it in either lever style when it's in production. This is primarily a freeride brake, but I don't see why the lever shouldn't work with existing calipers. I'd certainly be keen to keep a Mono Trial caliper and disc rather than go to some 4 pot monster!

If Mike had actually linked to the story rather than just nicking the pictures, then people would have known more about what they can see! Full story from the lovely people at singletrackworld.com Yes, the lever does feature Hope's version of a TPA. Something that's been missing since the C2 disappeared... Expect to see post mounts become the new standard as a lot of manufacturers are moving away from the tabs we're so used to seeing. Not sure how quickly trials manufactuers will change because it seems to really be influenced by the big fork players, but the world will shift that way.

I don't know if there are some who have been fast enough, but the last woman to drive an F1 car was Sarah Fisher who drove a number of laps before the US GP in 2004 with Mclaren. Danica Patrick caused something of a storm with a great drive in the Indy 500 and IRL last year, got her kit off in Maxim or FHM, but hasn't really done much this year. Katherine Legge is driving for PKV this year in Champcars, and only really making up the numbers. If a woman was genuninely competitive then you can be sure they'd get a drive due to the sheer amount of publicity they'd receive. However, because of this extra coverage, they have to be on the pace as they'd generally come under more scruitiny than a male counterpart. The last woman to drive competitively in F1 was Giovanna Amati, and she failed to qualify for a grand prix start (when the slower teams had to compete to see who would go through to the actual race), and was replaced in the Brabham team by someone called Damon Hill... Was Perry McCarthy. He was the black Stig. In his book he lists a few of the other drivers who took the role of the Stig too, people like Julian Bailey. Do you think it really matters? If they were after parity, then they wouldn't let anyone run in the wet or cold... The Stig is some bloke in a Simpson helmet who drives the wheels off whatever machinery is put infront of him. Someone has even wiki'd him here.

Looking at the current setup, you have a router already connected into your broadband, so why would you need ICS? Just set the default gateway appropriately on both machines, and it's Internet-a-go-go. Looking at your current setup, yes, you would need a wireless card, but they're so cheap and easy, why would you not? One thing to keep in mind is that as broadband speed increases, you may start to find the limits of wi-fi if you're using an early version. Also if you're trying to copy large amounts of files from one machine to the other, it will take an age using wi-fi! What I would suggest is move the broadband modem and router next to one PC, then run cable to the other desktop machine. This will give the best speed, most reliability and most security. Then you can use wi-fi for the laptop, or connect it into a hub next to your new desktop or router if you need to transfer files quickly.

--> QUOTE(danny B @ May 30 2006, 10:59 AM) ←does that mean that all of the xc riders that run single speed are on oversized bmx's lol Singlespeed riders have a lot more problems than what their bikes are classified as... BTW, I actually did a singlespeed race in 1996, was daft but very fun.

Sounds like an event! I'll be there.

Many people are baffled by me... Yeah, a fast lens has nothing to do with the speed it autofocuses or anything like that, it's all about the fastest shutter speed you can use. The cruicial thing is understanding what a stop is. For each 'stop' difference, half or double to the amount of light is taken in. For aperture, the larger the aperture (lower the number) the more light is let in. F2.8 lets in twice as much light as F4, which allows twice as much light as F5.6. So going two stops smaller only lets in 1/4 of the light. For shutter speed, each stop represents half as much time as before. The sequence goes 1/60th, 1/125th, 1/250th.... Again going two stops from 1/60th of a second to 1/250th allows a quarter of the light through. Each step in ISO is ALSO one stop. So ISO200 at F4 is the same as ISO 100 at F5.6. You make the film/sensor more sensitive so it only needs half the light to capture the same image. For trials, two things are important. Shutter speed - to limit blur on an image - and aperture to control depth of field and blur out the background. If you want a shallow depth of field (a small number, to blur out the background), and a high shutter speed to freeze the action, then you can vary the ISO to suit. As the sun goes down, to maintain the same settings you'll need to bump up the ISO, otherwise you'll end up with an underexposed image. God, this is hard to explain. Come find me on MSN and I'll take you through it.

Hmmm, good use of a long, fast lens, but if ever there was a reason for fill flash, this is it! They've processed for the face skin tones, as a result the rest of the photos are overexposed. Good, could have been better.

It was a great event, but in order to continue doing it, someone needs to keep banging in a lot of cash. On top of that, having Red Bull gives it even more cache, so more people turn up because it's a Red Bull event as do more media. In the States they obviously think it gives a good return on their marketing investment and keep putting it on. You can even buy videos through DH-Productions of each year's event, but it's not a trials event any more, it's street and jumping. Guys like JJ Gregorowicz and Chris Akrigg have been pushed out by them changing the terrain and obstacles so it's suitable for the Aaron Chase, Eric Porter and Kyle Strait.

Of course you can't, but you can have a discuss in time for next year. Yes it can. Article 40 of the BIU regs allows countries to ammend the technical rules as they see fit for events in that country. NOTE: I'm in favour of gears on stock bikes, but just making the above observation.

I think a lot of people would be very suprised if some of us old schoolers built up our old dual frames and X-Torts with Taboo forks. High, heavy bars, DCDs and saddles... In fact, would anyone be up for an old school class at a club trial? Just as a one-off...

--> QUOTE(joe b @ May 23 2006, 10:48 PM) ←A problem for me is that i have never seen Hans Rey ride before. So this affects the aspect of him being such a god in trials world, in my eyes. If you get one of his old videos like Level Vibes or Monkey See, Monkey Do then you probably will still not get why he's so revered. He was doing trials when most people had never seen or heard of trials before. Not only was he doing trials, he was Famous and getting on TV left, right and centre. He's the reason a lot of people started doing trials at all. He took it out of the Spanish rocks and onto a major platform. And this was at a time when most of the world was doing XC, with a small contingent doing DH. Trials was just another planet, and No Way Rey was their king with a purple Bula crown.

James, if you went to a National level road race, I bet you'd be surprised what you see. The club/team jerseys are a lot more prevalent because that's the culture. The whole past of road riding - from Tommy Simpson to Indurain, Boardman and Armstrong - is based around shorts and tops while are prime spots for logos. There's also a much bigger industry amongst clothing companies or producing small run kit for cycling clubs. However, unless a whole club turns up, you'd see a rough collection of jerseys and jackets, with only a smattering of spectators. In trials, the idols and history is much more mixed up. Some come from BMX, from mountain biking, from moto-trials. As a result some would want to ride in MX gear, some Hebo, and some jeans and a T shirt. Trials isn't big because it's not promoted. It's not promoted locally where the competitions or riders are based, it's barely promoted in the wider cycling press, and within MBUK there's very little coverage these days outside of Martyn's features and HipHop. It's become a very insular sport with everyone looking in. The general trials population is very knowledgable, outside of that is very unknowledgable except for a very few riders. Most of never heard of Ot Pi, but all have heard of Martyn Ashton or Hans Rey. This isn't though for a lack of interest in trials. I know quite a few people who have been into mountain biking for a long time through XC who love watching trials, because they find it fascinating, but we don't make our competitions widely known. Then, when we get people coming to events, they may not be educated as to the rules or who is taking part, and without that any sport is not enjoyable to watch. We also seem to lack real show case events. I went to the Specialized Enduro 6 XC event, and there were lots of people, gift packs for all the riders taking part, electronic tags for all the riders for timing, a trade area, PA systems, sponsors banners, and lots of people out to just have a good time. I'd encourage anyone in the area to go to the Mountain Mayhem event on the 23rd to 25th of June (http://www.ssmm.co.uk/). This is a 24 hour race, with an entry so big that it was full within hours of entries opening, and several teams were turned away. It's a big festival that attracts a lot of riders, and is put on professionally. It's better attended and turned out than any trials event I've ever been to. It's not cheap, but then it's a big deal. I don't think team kits are the simple answer. What's needed is wider promotion amongst the cycling community, a better platform for promoting the riders and the techniques of trials, and only then will we get more casual interest from the wider cycling community, and that's the stepping stone to a bigger audience generally. If the Ashton team want to turn up in matching kit, spotless bikes and with a branded truck and awning, then it'll certainly look very professional. I think the team helmet is a great concept as it can be worn when street riding, comp riding, anything. If the jerseys, as Martyn's are now, are not available to the public, then that's even more exclusive and cool. We had a 1-2 in the Commonwealth Games men's XC event. Coverage in MBUK? About half a page...

I don't think it's a 10-22, I think it's a fisheye on 1.3x body...

Since the BIU rules have provisions for local ammendments to National competition technical regs (Article 40), we can change the rules to an extent to suit our events and still fall within BIU regs. That said, I'm very encouraged by the Biketrial committee's reponse to the situations that have arisen and the measures they have put in place to stop these problems reoccuring. The idea that the rider is responsible for their conduct and the suitability of their bike for the event is a fair approach which treats riders with respect, and not the nannying jobsworth attitude which can so often appear when rules and regs are involved.

The actual quote is two brothers, not two towers. Proof that if you look - and justify - something enough, then anything can be found in text, if you want to see it enough. Full explanation and quote here.

The same way you did the first time you rode with Maguras or discs? Of course not. I'm sure any rider using disc brakes for the first time, be it trials, road, mountain bikes or whatever, will always be a little cautious at first. Do you honestly think that people other than trials riders have no sense of braking feel? A roadie has every bit the same chance of going over the bars on a bike with disc brakes as you and I. Some roadies choose disc brakes if they're touring and carrying a lot of luggage, some because they're doing steep downhill sections in the Alps, and if they drag a rim brake then the heat can cause the tyre to heat up and either pop off the rim, or roll off if it's a tub which is glued on. Also Cyclo-cross riders because of mud, and because they want good stoppers. Certainly if I ever had a road bike, I'd be keen on discs.

Same pads, same discs, just a different lever arm to pull the correct amount of cable for road levers. If you can find them, canti levers may work, twiddling the speed dial almost certainly would not.

Road levers pull a different amount of cable. If you were to try using avid road brakes, then you would be pulling a lot more cable than your levers were designed for, and your levers would be coming right back to the bar before the brake bit.

A lot of manufacturers have dropped out the sport in the past five years, or been scared away before even trying. Consider: Pace Planet-X Megamo Dawes Orange DMR (Ok, never really a trials brand, but they no longer promote any frame as a trials frame) Decathlon Be-One (Thankfully, it was awful) Diamondback Giant Kona Cannondale These are not small companies, and yet they have decided that trials is not worth pursuing compared to their other interests. It's one thing to have a company the size of Koxx or Monty producing dedicated equipment, but they are an order of magnitude smaller than Specialized or Trek. To have a company like that, with the marketing power to truely push trials into the mainstream, that would make a difference. I also think that no single event has done more for trials reaching the mainstream public than the Red Bull Bike Battle, and that was 3 years ago...