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July 12 NATS Bicycle Trials
 The American Trials Training Camp for teenagers is winding down and this weekend brings the return of the Bicycle Trials, thanks to Mike Friddell and the NATS organization. This is a fun event and lots of entertaining bicycle trick riding on the rocks that the motorcycle trials folks used in the world championships a couple months earlier. Signup is at 8AM Saturday, July 12, competition starts at 9, all times CDT. $20 entry and free for spectators.
Maybe some of the motorcycle teenagers will hang around and enter, some of them are pretty good on a bicycle! dan p.s., free TTC t-shirt to the first one who shows up Saturday and can guess who's coaching this rider in the photo from 2003. Mike Friddell is the observer, and he doesn't count.
Posted by Dan Brown on Thursday, July 10, 2008 | PermaLink
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U.S. Indoor Championship
L-R: Will Ibsen, Cody Webb, Patrick Smage  Webb Retains U.S. Indoor Title
Cody Webb (Sherco) retained his AMA/NATC U.S. Indoor Trials Championship title Saturday  evening in an extremely close battle with Will Ibsen (GasGas) and Sherco team mate Patrick Smage. After his dominating championship in the outdoor last season, many picked Smage as the favorite to take the indoor championship as well, but a mistake while executing a risky maneuver on the barrels section cost him a 5 and all but eliminated him from the close competition. Ibsen finished the main with a one point lead over  Webb, leading into the two race sections. Because the loser of each race receives an extra one point penalty, the entire championship came down to the final race sections and Webb would need to win both  in order to prevail. The first race was almost a dead heat, with Webb edging to a victory by less than a bike length. In the all-or-nothing final race, Webb got his booming 4 stroke Sherco to hook up for a hole shot on the slippery concrete floor. Cody held on for a close win as both he and Ibsen rode at their limit on the more technical obstacle course used in the final race section. The Indoor Championship was held at the Camp Jordan Arena near Chattanooga, TN and capped off a week of motorcycle trials summer camp and Youth trials competition at the nearby Trials Training Center in Sequatchie.
Posted by Dan Brown on Wednesday, July 09, 2008 | PermaLink
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2008 Youth Nationals & Women's Open Results
2008 AMA Trials Youth Nationals and U.S. Women's Open
Beta mounted Karl Davis of Florida captured last weekend’s 9th Annual AMA/NATC Trials Youth Nationals at the Trials Training Center in Tennessee for America's best riders 15 years old & younger. Davis fended off strong challenges from Eric Storz (Sherco) of California and David Mizell (GasGas) from Texas. Each of the three prevailed once over the 3 days of competition, with Davis's 2-1-2 finishes besting the 4-2-1 of Mizell and the 1-4-3 of Storz. Other winners include Sherco rider Chase Harker of Kentucky in the 13yrs & under, GasGas mounted Zeke Mizell of Texas in the 11 & under, Beta rider Ty Cullins of California in the 9 & under and last (and also least) Joey Jackson of Tennessee on his Xispa in the 7 & under class. 15 year old Caroline Allen of Massachusetts rode her GasGas took top honors in the U.S. Women's Open, with Ariel Winters (AR), Sara Patton (TN), Tammy Cook (KS) and Olivia Leviton (GA) winning the Women's Expert, Advance, Intermediate, and Novice, respectively. Over 60 riders, some as young as 5 years old, competed over the challenging hills, rocks, and streams at the site of this years U.S. Round of the FIM/Spea Trials World Championships. The three-day event capped off a week of motorcycle trials riding, training and fun for motorcycle trials riding families from all over North America, held annually around the July 4 holiday. Full results of the competition and photos of the activities will be available soon.
 TTC's Catherine Bedley with the Youth E (7 & Under) Podium, Cole & Emily Cullins, Joey Jackson, Jacob Mizell
Posted by Dan Brown on Sunday, July 06, 2008 | PermaLink
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June/July schedule of instructional classes at the TTC
Here's what we have for the rest of June and into July: June 23/24
Trials Instructional (2 DAY CLASS)
Instructor: Andrew Blane
1 Space Available June 27/28
X-Training 101 (2 DAY CLASS)
Instructors: Andrew Blane
2 Spaces Available July 19
Instructional at Highland Park Resort Motorcross Park, Cedartown, GA
Unlimited 1/2 day classes available July 24/25
X-training 101 Trials Instructional
3 spaces available Any TRIALS 4 A DAY class can be taken on the first day of any 2-day class. Private instruction available upon request, $360.00 per day, plus bike rental costs (if needed). Please Contact Us to schedule your reservation for any of the classes listed. If we don't have your available date posted, we can schedule a class for you.
Posted by Dan Brown on Tuesday, June 17, 2008 | PermaLink
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USGP/Wagner Cup photos, videos, blog posts
Just a reminder: I'm blogging all the action from this week's event over at the TrialsUSGP site, not here. 
Posted by Griff Wigley on Sunday, April 27, 2008 | PermaLink
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New posts to the TrialsUSGP blog
I've got quite a few new posts on the TrialsUSGP blog. - Press release
- Last day to order tickets online
- Schedule/timetable of events
- World competition update
- Comments enabled; email alerts and RSS feed options available
- Directions and Contact Us pages added
- Video preview of Sections 6, 9, 11
- Video preview of Sections 3, 4, 5
- Video preview of Sections 1 and 2
- Photos: sections preview
- Section prep update
- Promo in American Motorcyclist magazine
- Wagner Cup flyer
- Site map
I'll be arriving at the TTC one week from today but 99% of all my blogging will occur on the TrialsUSGP blog, not here.
Posted by Griff Wigley on Thursday, April 17, 2008 | PermaLink
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Mototrial article, photos
Dan and I wrote and submitted this article on the Trials Training Days Mototrial to miscellaneous motorcycle pubs. If and when the article gets published, we'll link to it. The Trials Training Center (TTC) in Sequatchie, TN held its annual Trials Training Days weekend on March 29-30, and this year it featured a MotoTrial after the instructional sessions concluded on Saturday. A MotoTrial is an endurocross on steroids, a race over a course of trials obstacles. Unlike a trials competition, no points are deducted for dabbing one's feet for balance. TTC's Dan Brown and colleagues laid out the race course on the rocky creek and hillside adacent to the cabins, site of Section 15 from the 2006 World Round. Brown allowed the riders an hour of practice at noon, but afternoon rain prompted him to make some last-minute adjustments prior to the 5 pm start, as muddy rocks made parts of the course too difficult for a race. Two initial preliminary heats of one lap were held, four riders in each heat, with the winners, six-time national trials champion Ryan Young and current national #4 Will Ibsen, advancing to the final. A last-chance heat of the four remaining riders from the first round was held, with the top two riders, Ronnie Commo and Mike Helstrom, advancing to the two-lap final. Ibsen got out to an early lead in the first lap, with Young close behind. Helstrom got stuck midway up the rocky hillclimb and was still there by the time Ibsen and Young came around on the final lap. They both got hung up trying to go around him and after a 30-second stuggle, Ibsen peeled off to take a lower, longer line around the top of the hill, while Young pushed on over the top. Ibsen emerged in front of Young by a few yards on the steep downhill and had to make a choice of an inside or outside line through the hairpin turn at the bottom. He chose the faster outside line, knowing that if he didn't execute it perfectly, Young would likely pass him on the inside. He misjudged his speed into the turn, wiped out, and Young cruised by for an easy 100 yards to the finish line and the $500 winning purse. Ibsen took home $300 for second, and Commo $100 for third.    
1. Eventual winner Ryan Young, smiling his way to victory in his preliminary heat.
2. Mike Helstrom about to slam into Alex Bedley in their preliminary heat.
3. Alex Bedley and Andrew Blane looking for an alternate route around a downed Karl Davis in their preliminary heat.
4. Lap one of the final at the bottom of the hillclimb: Will Ibsen leads Ronnie Commo, Ryan Young, and Mike Helstrom.    
5. Mike Helstom, down for the duration on lap one of the final.
6. Ryan Young and Will Ibsen struggle past Mike Helstrom on lap two of the final.
7. Will Ibsen crashes on the downhill hairpin turn as Ryan Young cruises by.
8. 1st place finisher Ryan Young with TTC's Dan Brown, Mototrial organizer.
Posted by Griff Wigley on Friday, April 11, 2008 | PermaLink
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Photos and video: Little kids playing on the TTC playground
In order of appearance above: Karl Davis, Jr., Clark Myers, Ronnie Commo, Eric Storz. Click play to watch. 50 seconds.
Posted by Griff Wigley on Monday, March 31, 2008 | PermaLink
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Three generations of Browns
  
Left: TTC head honcho Dan Brown, grandson Joey, and Joey's uncle Dan Brown, Jr.
Center: Joey and Grandpa Dan in one of the upcoming World Round sections
Right: Dan Brown, yelling for Catherine. Click play to listen.
Posted by Griff Wigley on Monday, March 31, 2008 | PermaLink
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TTD: hand gestures are big
As I reviewed my photos from the Trials Training Days (TTD) weekend, I was struck by the number of photos I had of instructors using hand gestures to illustrate the finer points of trials riding. So I've placed 18 of them in one album/slideshow:
Posted by Griff Wigley on Monday, March 31, 2008 | PermaLink
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Balancing act: Andrew and Nathan
In between coaching sessions on Saturday, instructors Andrew Blane and Nathan Glinski demonstrated their balancing skills. Click play to watch. 34 seconds.
Posted by Griff Wigley on Monday, March 31, 2008 | PermaLink
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TTD session with Alex Bedley: camber turns, hills
TTC instructor Alex Bedley led sessions on camber turns and hills today, Day Two of Trials Training Days. See the album of photos or this slideshow:
Posted by Griff Wigley on Sunday, March 30, 2008 | PermaLink
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TTD session with Ryan Young: floater turns photos and video
Posted by Griff Wigley on Saturday, March 29, 2008 | PermaLink
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TTD session with Andrew Blane: hopping and nose wheelie photos and video
Posted by Griff Wigley on Saturday, March 29, 2008 | PermaLink
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Mototrial at TTD
Posted by Griff Wigley on Saturday, March 29, 2008 | PermaLink
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