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OK, you've bought or borrowed a bike, so all you need now is some riding gear.



When starting out there is no need to spend a fortune on all the very latest kit - helmets, boots, clothing etc, you can save money by buying older versions/second hand stuff (no one will know once its covered in mud!).

There is usually plenty of second hand stuff on sale on Ebay etc. 
(Probably best not buying second-hand helmets though, you never know what's happened to them previously!)

Trials clothing tends to be on the "close fitting" side, this is to prevent you snagging up on all the vegetation etc you ride past/through!  It may not be the most flattering or complimentary look, but once you are at the trial, you will only stand out if you AREN'T wearing it!
 

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GREAT, well all you need to do now is:
 

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' logo below and selecting the "Competition License Application & Renewal 200x for all Disciplines" option, (remember you still need it signing/stamping by a club official BEFORE you send it off).

ACU License Application Form HERE

 

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Come along with your bike and bring your completed membership form and the £5 club membership fee.  Once you are a club member we can get your ACU form signed and stamped ready for you to send off.

(Remember whilst our “Dead Easy” trials are designed to be just that,  you must be have basic bike skills and be capable of controlling of your machine.
The sections aren't dangerous but you could be!)
 

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(Please do not arrive TOO early though.  We tend to get a bit grumpy if we have a queue of people wanting to sign on 2 hours before the start when we are still finishing the route marking etc!!)

It also benefits YOU if you arrive early as you can assess which route you wish to ride during the trial.  By scouting out a couple of sections BEFORE you sign on you will have a better idea which route you should ride.  (Dead Easy trials usually have two routes, a VERY easy route, for absolute beginners and a slightly harder, more technical route). 

Also PLEASE try and bring the correct money with you, it helps prevent us running out of change, and a much quicker signing in process! 

We are always very grateful if you bring a friend or family member along who would be willing to observe, not only that, you get a reduced price entry! Don't worry if they have never even been to a trial before, we can show them the ropes and explain the rules!
 

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- Just prior to the start time, we will call all the riders over into a group (usually by a prolonged blast of a car/air horn) to brief them on the course/safety etc. 

Safety Information – whilst all our Dead Easy trials are designed exactly as that, we cannot legislate for hazards between the sections, such as deep “bomb holes”, large rocks etc.  We will, however, warn you about them! 

We route mark ALL our trials, and this is there to both help you find the sections, but ALSO to help you avoid any other hazards, wherever possible.  REMEMBER though it is YOUR responsibility to follow the route marking, AND to ride safely and within YOUR limits, don’t get carried away and try to exceed your skill levels, this tends to lead to broken bikes and bruised / broken body parts! 

Weather conditions can also massively affect the trial, we will always try to allow for adverse conditions, but, put quite simply, grass gets slippery when it’s wet, ground gets muddy when it rains and rocks with mud on are slippery!  If it has forecast rain later in the day, get going and get the trial finished!!

Course rules/information - this will include the location of the sections, the number of sections per lap, and the number of laps we expect you to complete.  Dead Easy trials are designed to be fun, if four laps of 10 sections is just TOO much on your first outing, complete the number of laps you wish, but PLEASE inform the observers that you are not doing any more laps, this helps prevent them sitting out (quite often in the cold and wet) waiting for you to come and finish your last laps!

Generally you would start a trial at section one and do the sections in sequence, however at our Dead Easy trials we may ask riders to “split up” and go to different section numbers, this saves 80+ riders all descending on section 1 and there being massive queues all day. Again we will inform you of this at the briefing.

Bike/Equipment Check – we like to start our trial off by inspecting bikes and ensuring the riders have adequate (i.e. safe) clothing/footwear on (see above).  This helps ensure all riding attire and bikes are within the rules but also gives us the opportunity to have a nosey at the latest bike “bling” out there!

(Amongst other things we check to ensure that all bikes have trials tyres, ball/round-ended levers, no loose bits or sharp edges and youths should have a working kill-switch)

Again, it is entirely YOUR responsibility to wear adequate protection and to ensure your bike is safe to ride.
 

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Observers – Please respect the observers; remember they are giving up their time just so you can ride. If you upset them they may not come back and if you really upset them, YOU wont be welcome back!

Wait until they give you “the nod” before starting the section, this ensures that they are ready and the section is clear of any other riders etc.

Sometimes we unfortunately don’t have enough observers to cover all the sections. When this is the case we will put the observer boards at the unmanned sections, and it is up to the riders to observe each other. 

Remember, NEVER write your own score down, however honest you may be it is still classed as cheating, always get someone else to mark your score for you.

If every rider has a turn of marking someone else through the trial tends to run smoothly.

REMEMBER – if you provide an observer at the start of the trial we will reward you with a reduced price entry!
 

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Manchester 17 use the TRS 22A rules which means it's just one mark if you stop, (not a five as per the rules some other clubs use).

Summary of - TRS22A - (Stop permitted)
0 = clean
1 = Footing once or stopping
2 = Footing twice
3 = Footing 3 or more times
5 = Failure or moving sideways whilst stopped
5 = rider asking for a 5 rather than attempting the section.
10= missing a section completely.

Footing is;-
When ANY part of a riders body touches the ground or
The rider benefits from any part of his body leaning on an obstacle (e.g. a tree) without stopping.

Failure is considered to have occurred if:-
-The rider dismounts (both of the rider’s feet on the ground on the same side of the bike).
-The bike does not stay within the intended limits of the section and within each flag.
-If either wheel crosses any boundary tape or flag whether on the ground or airborne        before the spindle passes the end flags.
-The bike or rider displaces a flag.
-Going forward against the direction of the section.
-The bike or rider gets outside assistance.
-A rider (or 'minder' dad etc) alters the severity of the section without the authority of an official
(SEE THE ACU HANDBOOK FOR FULL RULES)
 

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Section Routes – again this will have been confirmed in the briefing but we generally run two routes at a Dead Easy trial.  ALL sections start and finish at the same place (highlighted by the “Section Begins” and “Section Ends” cards, which also have the section number on it.   

Harder Route – this will be the blue and red flags/markers, just remember RED on your RIGHT,( BLUE on your left)

Easy Route -  this will be marked with YELLOW flags (although we may use whites)

Pictured: Part of a typical Dead Easy section, note the red and blue harder route, and the (wider) yellow markers for the easy route riders (allowing them to avoid the rocks!)

If you get to the section and get totally confused ask the observer, and always “walk” the section, this helps you understand where you are going, but also what obstacles you will encounter / need to avoid whilst actually riding it!

Remember stay within the flags at all times and whilst we try to mark sections to be as clear and unambiguous as possible, stay within the natural line of the markers, so on a turn that isn’t clearly marked, DON’T go taking the “wide line” that has you half way back to the van, keep within that (imaginary) natural line!

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Riding the sections/trials etiquette – whilst turning up at your very first section of your very first trial can be very daunting (yes I remember that feeling well!) if you remember a few simple points you will soon relax and start enjoying it: 

When arriving at the section:
park your bike up sensibly and safely in a position that doesn’t block access to the section for other riders, and where it is not likely to fall over causing a domino effect on all the other parked bikes (NOT a good way to introduce yourself!).

Walking the section:
Walk the section, keeping an eye out for riders entering it, and listening out for the observer’s instructions. If he/she asks you to “clear the section”, do so straight away! Again, if you are confused by anything ask another rider or the observer, they’re a friendly bunch, even if they all look very serious prior to their first clean!!        

Queuing:
When you are happy you know where you are going in the section, get in the queue, again this can be quite confusing with a jumble of bikes/riders, but try and get your position and keep it, if unsure ask the rider at the side/slightly in front of you who is in front.  However eager you are to get that section over with DON’T go pushing your way to the front of the queue!!

Conversely, don’t allow ALL the other riders in the queue to go before you, it may not be fun having other riders watch you wobble your way through those early sections, but you will never finish in time if you let everyone go before you!

Take time when queuing to have a friendly chat with other riders, the "older guys" will always have some good tips for you!

Your turn:
When you are at the front of the queue and it is you turn WAIT for the observer to wave you into the section (they use different methods, a nod of the head, a wave of the observer board sometimes they may even use a whistle).  This ensure they are ready to start to observe you, and that the section is clear.  They tend to get upset when there is more than one rider on the section, or you blast through it and they were in the middle of pouring themselves a brew!

Tip: try not to get to close to the section begins, give yourself a bit of room to set off and get steady on the bike BEFORE you enter the section!

Final Lap:
After you have completed three laps you will be getting the hang of things, remember, when completing each section for the final time, to thank the observer. 

Observing in the rain and the cold is NOT a glamorous job, but our sport would die out without them, so don't forget a "thank-you!"

 

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Time Limits – whilst there is no official time limit on completing the trial, observers and the rest of the organisers have got homes to go to, and a lot of work to do AFTER the trial (pulling the sections/route marking, washing bibs, doing results, reports, ACU paperwork and so on) so please DON’T hang around. 

Stop for a quick drink/refuel by all means, but don’t start firing the BBQ up half way through the trial!!  Newer riders are generally slower at finishing than more experienced riders, but if you keep going at a steady pace you shouldn’t be that far behind the rest!
 

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After the Event –

When you have finished, please:

Return your number bibs:
these are relatively expensive items to the club, but it also causes us great trouble at the next trial when numbers are missing!

Give us some feedback:
Please remember a LOT of work has gone into organising the trial, and we ALWAYS appreciate some feedback in terms of the organisation, section severity, route marking etc.  If you feel it was great tell us, if you feel it was not so good also tell us, and tell us why! 

Try not to be too critical about factors outside of our control, we are after all trying to ensure a lot of riders with a range of experience and skill levels ALL have a good, and most importantly SAFE day. 

Remember what was too easy for you, may not have been for another rider!

Note: in conjunction with Bill Brown from Macclesfield T.C., we have developed a Cheshire Trials forum to allow you to post your views/comments and other trials related gossip online! Click Here:  Cheshire Trials Forum

Tidy Up:  
We are on property that has been kindly loaned to us by local land owners; please repay their generosity by ensuring you take home ALL of your rubbish etc.  NEVER discard of any petrol/oil/chemicals etc on the land (there is quite often livestock on it).

Anyone found doing so, or wilfully damaging fences, gates or walls will be permanently excluded from ALL Manchester 17 events)
 

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FINALLY - (THE MOST IMPORTANT POINT) - ENJOY THE DAY AND STAY SAFE!!