Trials In A Couple Of Years.

[TrashZen]

If you ride where people are, people can see you ride. Think about how many times you've seen families stopping in the street while they're out shopping so their little kids can watch the funny men on the silly bouncy bikes climb over stuff?

Every time that happens or every time some little snotbag comes up and says 'oo, how do you do that?' you've introduced somebody new to the sport

I totally agree. So many times you see these kids completely hypnotised and surely they will want to try if you explain them, rather than make it look impossible. Comps are good to keep the level up and surely this is where the people in the know will appreciate more the technicity of trials, the balance and precision that big-move street trials typically lacks (I said typically). If you think about it, comps are never really the place for promotion (in any sport that doesn't receive huge media coverage), but setting up demos is really the big thing to do (in the past I did a few either grafted onto public family events organised by city councils, or even indoor some sports' shops). That reminds me that I should try to organize one in Cambridge (the council organize plenty of events all year long) These have much more visibility than comps because they become part of a whole family day-out experience rather than an exclusive sports-event. And this leaves plenty of room for contact with passers-by. Actually, onlookers will dare more ask about the sport in a demo, because of the official-event atmosphere, compared to street trials where people shy away from asking any questions when faced with a group of riders (street vandals that cannot be taken seriously )

I still believe trials is growing a lot (see the cheer numbers of manufacturers involved)

[F-Stop Junkie]

I still believe trials is growing a lot (see the sheer numbers of manufacturers involved)

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...

[ogre]

I've not been riding trials long although since i got a t-bird back in november three of my freinds have bought trials bikes, and i've noticed more riders in local towns etc (then again untill last summer i didn't realy know alot about trials). So i think(and hope) that trials will be growing. just out of interest if and when trials becomes more mainstreme or at least so we'r starting to rival skaters and similar "small" (is skating small now? or is it quite big?) sports would parts become cheaper?

[TrashZen]

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...

What if these big companies came to trials too early and were deceived? Because they make so much more money with mainstream bikes, even making money with trials would be considered a loss (compared to dedicating all their ressources to selling even more mainstream bikes instead of developing and selling few trials bikes). Actually, the bigger the company, the more likely it is to think that way.

Whereas smaller companies will take any profit, even from niche markets. Hence, I don't agree with your argument. Many more trials specific brands appeared and are doing a much better job.

But, yeah, if trials was growing much bigger, maybe the big companies would give it another go.

[Waynio]

Theres no Ashton or Hawzee anymore to do what they DID back then.

i think thats half the problem, IF like said above the other "mianstream" brands got back into it, it wouldnt take some "1" person to do it, it needs "6" or maybe "7" decent riders to go to each company. so 1 at each mainstream brand, i nearly did something with kona a 3/4 of years ago. but i wasnt THEN as "knowledgable" as i am now, if they owuld do it now, i could do something more productive

Waynio........................

[Mr Dave]

I think its already started the next stage of evolving... i think Trials Dvds are where its at, Nick Godards GET1 dvd, if that was produced to lots of bike shops ect, then normal people are guna buy it, as a consiqunece, more people get into it.

Then i think the next stage, after its grown a bit more, and more DVD's have been produced, then other shops like WH Smiths ect will start to stock them, then thats opening the sport to an even wider range of people..

Well thats how i think the sports guna evolve next.

I think proof of this is Tricks and stunts, that was a very funny video, but also at the time had AMAZING stuff on it, now lots of riders can do 90% of that stuff, people dont find it so motivational anymore, but things like Get1, that blows your head off.

DVD's are the way forward for premotional steps!!

Dave