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Doug Peters Special user I have a life, so I only have 591 Posts |
Hi folks,
Spring has sprung (perhaps a little later in Montreal than in most places), and that means that the neighbours get to laugh at my attempts to unicycle... Any experts haunting the Café who might be willing to give me a few pointers on free-mounting? I can't lower my post (it is already almost touching the tire), and I am using a 26" wheel... thanks, Doug
"if you have any answers, it's time to ask harder questions!"
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Jordini Inner circle 2765 Posts |
Funnyfrank.com
This man is a genius on wheel |
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Chris Berry Special user 831 Posts |
I owned a Unicycle once. My neighbor had it for sale for $10.
I tried for a couple months to learn to ride that thing. The furthest I got was about 60 feet....then I hit a fence 8-/ Chris |
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Rob Johnston Inner circle Utah 2060 Posts |
I love Unicycling, but I still cannot free mount. Something to work on I guess.
"Genius is another word for magic, and the whole point of magic is that it is inexplicable." - Margot Fonteyn
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DonB! Regular user Minnesota 170 Posts |
Try finding a fence that is about waist/shoulder height. Mount it a lot while holding onto the fence. After 50 or 60 tries, you will learn to feel the center of balance while jumping onto it.
My son, 8 years old, learned how to free mount before he knew how to ride. I, on the other hand, took three weeks of riding before I ever attempted free mounting. Keep practicing. The pay-off is well worth it. Don Bursell P.S.- I've been riding unicycle for a living now for almost 29 years. I still love it! |
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rden New user Sugar Land, Texas 75 Posts |
Free-mounting is something that I am aspiring to as well...but it may be a while. My first goal is to stay on the thing for more than a few seconds! I'm hoping to get Charlie Dancey's book soon for some inspiration and help in turning my garage ornament into the vehicle it was meant to be.
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rsummer27 Loyal user South Carolina 225 Posts |
I think this just applys to guys and not girls, but I'm not sure.
Anyway, the kind of underwear that you wear makes a really big difference. I normally wear boxers, but I wear briefs when I know that I'm going to be riding. You want something that going to hold everything in it's place, or you'll end up sitting on delicate parts of you body. I've tried wearing a cup, but when it hits the seat during a free mount it pushes into you. That hurts after a couple of attempts. Here's another tip, never try to jump a ramp on a unicycle. The unicycle hits the ground first, then you hit the unicyle. It hurts. Once you learn to ride the unicycle, it will be a wonderful prop for walk arounds. If you ever have to work a fair or outdoor festival you can buzz around from one place to the other, add a lot of atmoshere and make sure that everyone gets to see you. Ralph
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Giggles the Clown buys all of his supplies at www.madhattermagicshop.com Super Low Prices on Videos and DVDs! |
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Rob Johnston Inner circle Utah 2060 Posts |
The Unicycle is a great attention grabber and people stop to see you ride...great for drawing crowds.
"Genius is another word for magic, and the whole point of magic is that it is inexplicable." - Margot Fonteyn
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Doug Peters Special user I have a life, so I only have 591 Posts |
Whoop! I can free-mount now! I can free-mount now!
Sorry...er...I'm just a bit excited... Thanks for the encouragement, folks.
"if you have any answers, it's time to ask harder questions!"
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Budihaha Veteran user Bandung - Indonesia 328 Posts |
Is it true that an expensive unicycle is easier to ride than the cheaper one? What brand do you suggest for a unicyclist wannabe? How about Torker unicycles?
I appreciate your help! Regards, Budi Ha Ha |
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Doug Peters Special user I have a life, so I only have 591 Posts |
If I were to buy another unicycle, my #1 criterion would be a reverse-threaded left-pedal mount.
"if you have any answers, it's time to ask harder questions!"
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nike New user ri 50 Posts |
Grats, looks like it only took you 11 days to do it.
Not too bad. |
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Rob Johnston Inner circle Utah 2060 Posts |
What is the best one for a guy who weighs over 200 pounds?
"Genius is another word for magic, and the whole point of magic is that it is inexplicable." - Margot Fonteyn
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Daniel J. Ferrara Jr. Regular user Long Island, New York 182 Posts |
I haven't touched my unicycle in about 2 years. After reading this, I have decided to get back on. I can ride, but am still working on the free mount.
When you ride your unicycle, do you sit with all your weight (like a bycicle), or do you carry some of your weight in your legs? I find that I carry a lot of weight in my legs and I get tired very fast. Also, do you think the size of the wheel makes a big difference? |
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Doug Peters Special user I have a life, so I only have 591 Posts |
Hi Daniel,
I also carry far too much weight on my legs, but that is improving over time. Weather has kept me away from the uni for the last number of days, but I can still feel the "burn" (Mine is a Sem-cycle, and I weight about 185 -- it would easily manage someone of Astinus' size). The free-mount I am being (relatively) successful with is a bit odd. The dominant foot is on the "7-o'clock" lower pedal. By the time the lagging foot makes it to the other pedal, the pedals are vertical. So the lagging foot has to "pull back" on the upper pedal (to "2-o'clock"-ish), which gives me just enough leverage with the lower foot (now at "4-o'clock") to get me going. The fun part is then to put all my weight on my legs just long enough to re-arrange the seating.
"if you have any answers, it's time to ask harder questions!"
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Rob Johnston Inner circle Utah 2060 Posts |
I remember learning the unicycle for the first time and the sweat that dripped off me from doing so (I was in Southern AZ at the time).
It was worth it, I had a blast, and the sense of accomplishment when I could finally ride it, was amazing.
"Genius is another word for magic, and the whole point of magic is that it is inexplicable." - Margot Fonteyn
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stu-di-doo Regular user Cumbria, UK 160 Posts |
I'm considering learning to ride the unicycle, can anyone help with the age old question, does size matter?
Before you ask, I'm talking about the wheel size here, what's easiest to learn on? 16 inch, 20 inch, 26 inch or any other factors that would help a learner! Stu Di Doo |
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rden New user Sugar Land, Texas 75 Posts |
Stu-di-doo, here's one opinion on unicycle wheel size:
http://www.unicycling.org/unicycling/faq.html#What size wheel should I get [The spaces in the anchor seem to be confusing the link, so you'll need to cut and paste the whole URL to go directly to the section that deals with your "size issue"] |
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Doug Peters Special user I have a life, so I only have 591 Posts |
The relevant part of the unicycling FAQ is:
"In general the smaller the wheel, the easier it is to learn to ride and learn new skills. Larger wheels are better for transportation and speed. 12" and 16" wheels are good for children. 20" wheels are good unicycles for adults who want to acquire new skills. 24" wheels still work for a lot of tricks and give you decent speed. This is the best general-purpose size. Bigger wheels are better for higher speed riding." Hey -- maybe that's why it took so long to learn to free-mount: my uni is a 26" model
"if you have any answers, it's time to ask harder questions!"
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stu-di-doo Regular user Cumbria, UK 160 Posts |
Wow!
Thanks for that lots of info on there! Think I will look for a 20 inch model to start with. Any tips on good instruction books for technique. etc? Stu Di Doo |
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