A sample text widget

Etiam pulvinar consectetur dolor sed malesuada. Ut convallis euismod dolor nec pretium. Nunc ut tristique massa.

Nam sodales mi vitae dolor ullamcorper et vulputate enim accumsan. Morbi orci magna, tincidunt vitae molestie nec, molestie at mi. Nulla nulla lorem, suscipit in posuere in, interdum non magna.

First World Round Work Weekend Scheduled!

Hey everybody, come on out and help us clear some trail for the 2013 Wagner Cup – FIM Trial World Championship! We have scheduled our first work day in preparation of the World Round.  We will all meet up January 26th here at the TTC at 9am Central time.   If you can’t make it at 9am, come on out when you can.  We will leave a note on the door to let you know where we will be working.

Then stay over for Sunday January 27th and ride one of our local trials club events.  The Chattanooga Trials Club will be hosting Round 3 of their Winter Series.  The cost is only $20 per person, and we have classes from Champ on down to Novice, and even an Off Road class!  The event will get started at 10am central time, and what a fun day it will be.

So come on out and join us for a weekend of work and play.  Hope to see you all there!

Video from 2006 Trial World Championship Hosted by the TTC.

Thanks to Doug Farrar for sending us this video from the 2006 Wagner Cup – FIM Trial World Championship.

Check it out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcnWUNs8eqc

FIM Trials World Championship coming to North America!

For the first time, since 2008…..

 after five long years….

The FIM TRIAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RETURNS TO NORTH AMERICA with the

2013 WAGNER CUP

On May 25, 26, 2013 (Memorial Day weekend), the FIM TRIAL WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP returns to the center of mototrials and extreme off-road motorcycle competition in North America,

the Trials Training Center in Sequatchie, TN.

This will be a fist pumping, minder yelling, tire spinning, bike flying, action packed, World Championship event, featuring America’s best challenging the top Trials Riders from Europe, Japan and around the world!

This spectacle will feature riding skills that must be seen to be believed, with the World’s best, including:

 2012 World Champ and Indoor Champ Toni Bou,

Former World Champ Adam Raga,

 Japan’s Fearless Takahisa Fujinami (a crowd favorite!),

 Five-Time U.S. Champ Patrick Smage,

 2010 U.S. Champ and Endurocross star Cody Webb,

As well as up and coming future stars in the Junior and Youth Competitions!

Keep watching trialstrainingcenter.com, and trialsusgp.com

also check us out on Facebook!  www.facebook.com/TrialsUSGP

As information is coming in, we will be frequently updating the websites information.

DON’T MISS OUT! SEE YOU 2013 MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND!

Proper SEO

Proper SEO helps organize your website and makes it easier for your visitors to navigate and transact. Google’s Search Console is one of the best resources you can use to evaluate your website.

SEO Marketing - Josmellon

I recommend the Search Console once a month to keep an eye on your website’s performance but I also suggest working a long with a seo consultant to monitor your website (read this).

Social Media and Lead-Generation

Although these weren’t even listed on my list of business rules, I felt that sharing them was important.

A highly visible social media presence is important for any entrepreneur. It not only attracts visitors, but they are attracted to your company and your goods. So don’t shy away from sharing anything that matters to you, from your team to your prices.

Promoting your business on social media is not only important for improving conversions, it is also effective for educating and attracting new leads. I share social media posts with the potential customers that I know. I also go into detail on how to use social media effectively.

Free Newsletter Join 200,000+ subscribers and receive a free weekly update via email. Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

Ways to Build Your List

The last part of my business rule list was to collect as much information as I could about my potential customers, and this is one area that’s taken a bit longer than I expected.

The first thing I do when I start to build a list of potential customers is to look for groups that fit into my target audience. For me, this usually means a consumer, or person who relies on the Internet for getting information, or someone who cares about the “bottom line.”

I find this information on sites such as search engine optimization tools or online referral sources, and I take the information and repackage it in an easier-to-read format that’s easy to share on social media.

I write down details of what I’m selling, what my processes are, and how to order on-line. Then, I build my list of prospects by using a method called Unsplash, which is a free photo hosting platform.

You can see it in action on my Instagram feed, which has more than 550,000 followers, including many of my customers.

Look for groups that meet your niche, or that the people in them are interested in, and then approach them. Some of my social media postings have turned out to be hits!

Another tool I use to collect potential customers is the spreadsheet Optimize. It is a free tool that allows you to quickly customize your website’s page layout and search engine rankings.

More spectator photos

Dan Seacat from Southport, Indiana sent these photos. Click to enlarge.

best-trials-2008-21 best-trials-2008-10 best-trials-2008-14 best-trials-2008-18 best-trials-2008-20

Also:

 

Spectator photos, videos

Let me know if you have or find good photos or video that I can link to. Here’s what the Google Alerts service has found for me so far:

Media coverage: Honda World News

honda-news-sshot

Bou and Fujinami take a win and second place apiece in the USA.

Bou and Fujinami in Section 9, Loop 1 on Sunday: You make the call!

Section captain (left photo) from Indiana, Bill ??,  had a couple of tough calls to make on World Champions Toni Bou and Takahisa Fujinami on Sunday at “House Rock.” (Bou and Fuji were the only riders to even attempt this section the first loop.)

Bill from IndianaBou markerfuji-rock-sshot

  • Bou had taken one point till he was given a five for his rear wheel going outside the marker near the exit (center screenshot). Watch the video carefully at the 1:20 mark.
  • Fujinami ran out of time. Did he five it anyway before time ran out? Watch the video carefully at the 2:25 mark. And watch how Fuji gets over the large, angled pointy rock (right screenshot) prior to the final obstacle at the 2:15 mark.

Attach a comment with your opinion.

Click play to watch.  3 minutes.

More video clips coming

I head back to Minnesota in the morning (to the winter that never quits). I’ll have access to a faster internet connection and should have a few more video clips loaded by Wednesday.

Here’s a screenshot of one that I’m really eager to post. I bet you can guess what it’s about:

mystery-sshot.png

Web site traffic to-date: 7,283 visits from 46 countries/territories

traffic-geo-sshot I looked at our web traffic report tonight (I installed Google Analytics on the site a month ago) and I’m thrilled to see how many visitors were from so many different countries.

The screenshot shows the top 25. Click to enlarge.

Coach takes a licking and keeps on ticking

IMG_3529Carl “Coach” Swanson seemed happy to be injured.

I wonder if he remembered who to call for medical help?

Guy talk

Charlie Robert and Jim 'Bubba' Blount Charlie Robert and Jim ‘Bubba’ Blount sharing a laugh on Sunday. The sharing was not entirely inclusive, however.

Duet services

IMG_3717During the down-times while waiting for riders, USGP chief organizer Dan Brown and Wendy Clark performed duets for the crowd on Saturday.

The man thought of everything!

Premier observers: Trials, Inc.

Trials Inc observersTrials Inc banner Paul Thistle and  Jim Zuroske

Trials, Inc., “the premier trials club of the central USA,” fielded observers for 4 sections each day. They even had their own club banner strung up at each section. Right photo: Trials Inc. Section captain Jim Zuroske (right) with Paul Thistle (Blue Ridge Yamaha & Polaris) who ran the shuttle service.

Bridge builders Tim Cash and John Haywood

John Haywood I blogged earlier about the signs and banners guys, Tim Cash and John Haywood. It turns out, those guys are bridge builders, too.

John was doing the 4-wheeler shuttle service on Saturday and dropped me off near one of the footbridges that he and Tim built just for the event.

The FIM guys: on task!

Jean-Marc Crumière, Charly Demathieu, Jim BlackburnWhen the event began each day, these gentlemen from the FIM (International Motorcycling Federation) were serious and focused.

L to R: Jean-Marc Crumière, Charly Demathieu, Jim Blackburn.

A minder’s worst nightmare

Cody Webb and Neal Storz
U.S. 2007 National #2 rider Cody Webb reflects on the comments of a startled minder, Neal Storz. (Click to enlarge.)

Friendly competitors

In motorcycle trials, one often sees fierce competitors hamming it up with each other in the middle of an event.

Cody Webb and Will Ibsen Andew Oldar and Eric Storz

Left: U.S. Pro competitors Cody Webb (Nat’l #2) and Will Ibsen (Nat’l #4) in Section 11, Lampkin Falls.
Right: Youth Class competitors Andew Oldar and Eric Storz in Section 9, House Rock.

The Wild Bill Smage fan club

Pat Smage Bill Smage

I saw Bill Smage taking a photo of a group of kids standing around Pat Smage after Pat’s 3rd place finish yesterday — at exactly the same time that I was taking the same shot. So I took a photo of Bill with his ever-present camera.

Bill takes more motorcycle trials photos than I do, and that’s not easy. Keep it up, Bill!

The Medical team

Not only did the Rhode Island Trials Club do the tech inspection (see blog post), but a subgroup of them were the backbone of the emergency medical services for the event.

injured riderHub Brennan Jeff Salois, Carl "Coach" Swanson, and Hub Brennan

Left: I witnessed a bad crash by a Youth Class rider on Section 9 on Sunday. Had he landed on his back or tailbone, it would’ve been very serious and the medical team would’ve sprung into action. Luckily, the rider’s thigh hit the rock and he was able to walk in a few minutes.
Center: Dr. Herbert J. “Hub” Brennan, double checking the EMS radios on Saturday.
Right: Jeff Salois, Carl “Coach” Swanson, and Hub Brennan as the prepared to depart the TTC lodge this morning.