Has anyone ever thought about, (or actually done) putting aerobars on a
coker? I am considering this, but am not sure what the ideal height and
distance relative to the seat should be.
I presume riding would be reasonable, but my experience is limited to my
very short handle, which is not reasonable to lean far forward on for very
long, due to its proximity to the seat.
Jeff Lutkus
Free e-Mail and Webspace - http://Unicyclist.com
According to the EUT website, Scot Cooper has aerobars on his Coker. http://www.outtech.com/Unicycle/EUT/days/day10/day10.htm
Many of the people on that ride have special handle bars on their Cokers for them to put a lot of their weight on to try to lessen the saddle soreness.
Details at http://www.outtech.com/Unicycle/Coker/
it seems awful dangerous. wouldnt your legs get caught on them causing a face plant at high speed? that is, if you dont see that bump in the road and fall off.
> a coker. Any time I make an unplanned dismount, either I’m going fast
> enough that my body can’t keep going without the unicycle, and the
> unicycle goes on ahead of me, so the aerobars wouldn’t be a problem.
I think that’s different from most people. If something causes a
dismount in a “cruising” situation, which is what I would expect with
aerobars, you are most likely to be going off the front of the unicycle.
Hopefully onto your feet. But I think the idea of aerobars is that they
are narrow, so your legs will go around them. Anything else would be way
too risky for me.
But I think the days of unicycle handlebars are definitely coming. Anybody
who rides long distances holds the seat. Seats weren’t made for holding.
For a road machine like an upgraded Coker, a handlebar with some kind of
narrow design only seems logical. As has been shown by the riders crossing
Europe, not only does this make a better ergonomic solution for supporting
your body weight, you can also use it as a bumper to protect your seat,
and as a platform to mount all sorts of things. Computer, toolkit, water
bottles, lights, etc.
If a Coker ever comes out with a wider axle, then there will be room
inside the wheel for an “axle bag,” for clothing or smaller items.
> I figure, in the worst case, adding aerobars would bring the coker to a
> danger level near that of a bicycle (people always seem to laugh when I
> explain how I consdier unicycles safer than bicycles in most
> circumstances)
Unicycles are definitely safer at lower speeds. I think what brings the
danger level up closer to that of the bicycle is when the speed goes up.
Once you get beyond the speed of being able to run out of a dismount, the
ouch potential definitely gets closer to the whole road rash thing. So
shave your legs and wear a helmet!
Stay on top, John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone Who entered his first Coker race
at NUC and had a great ride on a borrowed one! Now I “get” the whole
Cokerhead thing.
— John Foss <john_foss@asinet.com>
> wrote:
>But I think the days of unicycle handlebars are definitely coming.
>Anybody
I think the hardest part is going to be figuring out the ideal location
for handlebars. Too close to the seat, and the rider must crunch
uncomfortably, too far forward, and you begin altering your balance quite
a bit. I am enclined to wonder what the ideal riding position on a coker
would be. I suppose I won’t know until I get to some welding.
>If a Coker ever comes out with a wider axle, then there will be room
>inside the wheel for an “axle bag,” for clothing or smaller items.
I remember Andy Cotter had two of those standard bike “seat packs” (or
whatever they’re called) inside of his wheel. That was one of the greatest
ideas I’d seen – I just would never have tought to use the wheel for
storage. Truly an excellent idea
>Unicycles are definitely safer at lower speeds. I think what brings the
>danger level up closer to that of the bicycle is when the speed goes up.
>Once you get beyond the speed of being able to run out of a dismount, the
>ouch potential definitely gets closer to the whole road rash thing. So
>shave your legs and wear a helmet!
There is also a stability issue with speed. I can ride 10mph very
comfortably, and the coker remains very stable, and not very likley to
fall. At 20mph, my feet are revolving about the wheel 186 times per
minute, forcing me to move the rest of my body oddly to compensate.
The unicycle is wobbling so much that any small problem suddenly is a
lot more difficult for me to recover from. This (not to mention the
energy required) is why I have never stayed near 20mph for more than a
few seconds.
>Stay on top, John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone Who entered his first Coker race
>at NUC and had a great ride on a borrowed one! Now I “get” the whole
>Cokerhead thing.
Jeff Lutkus, who would love to try out one of those 42", or other even
larger unicycles. (Though, a larger wheeled unicycle could maintain a
higher speed with greater stability, the chance of falling is always
present – and I know from experience that not many people can run at
20mph… though, they can probably skid a few feet at that speed.)
Free e-Mail and Webspace - http://Unicyclist.com
> I think the hardest part is going to be figuring out the ideal location
> for handlebars. Too close to the seat, and the rider must crunch
> uncomfortably,
This “hunched” position is a good way to describe what many of us have
been doing all these years, when we hold the front of the seat. It takes
some weight off the crotch, but is neither ergo nor aero.
> too far forward, and you begin altering your balance quite a bit. I am
> enclined to wonder what the ideal riding position on a coker would be.
Probably something in between. When you use aero bars on a regular bike
you also put your body into a position that’s harder to balance from. But
the purpose of being aero is generally for long, straight rides, so it
should be acceptable, as long as there is an alternate position that
allows the rider to be more upright (similar to holding the tops of the
bars, or brake hoods on a road bike). Maybe a close handle and a far
handle would work.
Michael Kirsch had a nice handlebar unit on a 3:1 ratio short giraffe at
UNICON VIII in England. I wonder if I have a picture of that? It allowed
for both hands to hold comfortably, close together, with room for a cycle
computer in the middle and room to dismount around it.
Then if someone wanted to manufacture such handles, the angle or length
should be adjustable to allow for different rider size and preference.
> I remember Andy Cotter had two of those standard bike “seat packs” (or
> whatever they’re called) inside of his wheel. That was one of the
> greatest ideas I’d seen – I just would never have tought to use the
> wheel for storage.
Except for the obligatory tennis ball. I’d forgotten Andy had those on
there, but that’s probably what made me think of it. A wider axle would
have a lot more room inside as well. Here’s a picture of Andy’s road
machine, which he rode from the CN Tower in downtown Toronto back to the
convention site: http://www.ofoto.com/PhotoView.jsp?UV=225164213379_58748-
619103&US=0&Upost_si gnin=BrowsePhotos.jsp%3FshowSlide%3Dtrue%26m%3D27103-
588103%26n%3D2009179652&
Un=2009179652&Um=27103588103&collid=31722188103&photoid=38503188103
Sorry about the nasty URL. If you can’t get that to work, go here and
scroll down the NUC Toronto page a little past halfway:
http://www.unicycling.com/ofoto/uniconvention.htm
Stay on top, John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone jfoss@unicycling.com
www.unicycling.com
“We’re fat…and old…and bald!” – Ken Krakat, on seeing me for the
first time in over 10 years, along with other former Redford unicyclist
Hans Mills
though I can’t speak from experience, I don’t believe aerobars would add
any significant amount of danger to riding a coker. Any time I make an
unplanned dismount, either I’m going fast enough that my body can’t keep
going without the unicycle, and the unicycle goes on ahead of me, so the
aerobars wouldn’t be a problem. At slow speeds, I should have a greater
chance of controlling the dismount.
I figure, in the worst case, adding aerobars would bring the coker to a
danger level near that of a bicycle (people always seem to laugh when I
explain how I consdier unicycles safer than bicycles in most
circumstances)
Jeff Lutkus
— ticklemevaughn <forum.member@unicyclist.com>
> wrote: it seems awful dangerous. wouldnt your legs get caught on them
> causing a face plant at high speed? that is, if you dont see that bump
> in the road and fall off.
>
>
>
>
>–
>Posted via the Unicyclist Community - http://unicyclist.com/forums
Free e-Mail and Webspace - http://Unicyclist.com
When I come off my Coker I almost always come off the front running or
rolling and leave the unicycle behind. I think the fact that I never get
“tangled up” with my Coker is what saves me. On a bicycle you don’t
generally have the option of jumping off. I think anything that got in my
way from falling forward (away from the uni) would be bad news. Also, are
we talking about changing to a different body position while riding or
just a hand/arm rest or what? -Mark
I think the speed you are traveling makes a difference in how you fall as
well. I’ve fallen off around 20mph – the unicycle kept going, I did not.
(You have no idea how happy I was to be wearing biking gloves (now with a
large hole in the palm) and knee pads. Thanks to these, injuries were
minor, and none involved blood). In the case of the coker, it is generally
a case of inertia and friction – both I and the unicycle have plenty of
inertia, but my feet present a lot more friction with the road than a
rolling wheel - the wheel keeps going, I do not.
I’ve seen the unicycle behave similarly when I was going down a very steep
hill (I was also new to my short crank arms) and I just could not keep the
wheel moving as slowly as I desired, so it went along ahead of me, while I
stood watching, hoping it wouldn’t hit anybody).
I’ve made very few unplanned dismounts at slow speeds on flat or up-hill
terrain, so I can’t know where I’d tend to land. I do, however, always
(planned) dismount the coker with the wheel and seat in front of me.
(whereas on my smaller unis, I tend to dismount in front of the cycle). I
suspect this habbit makes me more likley to do the same when I don’t have
the time to think about where to go.
Getting tangled up in a frame is quite annoying, though. The worst cycling
injury I’ve suffered was from a ride on two wheels. I hit a patch of snow,
and lost control of my bike. I’d developed the reflexes that I could have
easily planned my way to a perfect landing on a unicycle, but there’s this
frame between my legs – I only managed to get one foot unclipped from the
pedal before I managed to tip over on the other side. Ouch – the snow was
red after that.
Jeff Lutkus
— “Mark Stephens” <cokerhead@gilby.com>
> wrote: When I come off my Coker I almost always come off the front
> running or rolling and leave the unicycle behind. I think the fact that
> I never get “tangled up” with my Coker is what saves me. On a bicycle
> you don’t generally have the option of jumping off. I think anything
> that got in my way from falling forward (away from the uni) would be bad
> news. Also, are we talking about changing to a different body position
> while riding or just a hand/arm rest or what? -Mark
Free e-Mail and Webspace - http://Unicyclist.com
Very good point… there are plenty of roads that I think nothing of
riding my coker on, but would never try with my trek road bike (similar
style thin tires). I can certainly deal with a coker and a 300mm seat
post… but it’d be cool to try something larger with a pneumatic tire.
(even if it’s only to discover it’s too fast or has too much inertia for
its own good)
Jeff Lutkus
— “Mark Stephens” <cokerhead@gilby.com>
> wrote: I have really long legs, so I thought a bigger big wheel would be
> perfect for me to take on long rides. The narrow solid rubber tire on my
> 43" Semcycle doesn’t grip the road very well at all. You have to “work”
> so much more at your balance. I ended up going slower than on a Coker
> because the Coker is so much easier to ride fast…even on perfect
> roads without any wind. If you took an “old” big wheel on a rough road
> or out on a windy day, you’d have your hands full, I think. I love my
> 43" Semcycle, but for distance/speed, the Coker is much easier. -Mark
Free e-Mail and Webspace - http://Unicyclist.com
This guy has funny handlebars that come from behind him, which would be
much nicer for the way I almost always fall off, running forwards, but a
bugger in the rare cases when you fall off backwards.
http://www.unicycling.org/unicycling/tales/kcash.html
> for me to take on long rides. The narrow solid rubber tire on my 43"
> Semcycle doesn’t grip the road very well at all. You have to “work” so
> much more at your balance. I ended up going slower than on a Coker
> because the Coker is so much easier to ride fast…even on perfect
> roads without any wind. If you took an “old” big wheel on a rough road
> or out on a windy day, you’d have your hands full, I think. I love my
> 43" Semcycle, but for distance/speed, the Coker is much easier.
I have lots of solid tire big wheel experience, and limited Coker
experience. But my Coker ride at NUC (5k race) left a good impression.
Here’s what I think the main differences are:
Coker tire is fatter. Fatter tire rolls over things easier. I never
understood this well until I got a MUni with 2.6" tire. Huge difference.
So the Coker “plows” straight ahead more easily than the skinny tire
that can be affected by small rocks & every bump.
Coker wheel is narrower. When you ride a unicycle, it tends to go left,
right, left, right as you pedal. Wally Watts, the guy that unicycled
around the world in the 1970s (43"), got the nickname “Wobbling Wally
Watts” due to the unicycle’s movement as he rode. Being narrower at the
axle (about 1/3 the width of most other big wheels) keeps your feet
closer together, which I think minimizes the wobbling motion. So all
other things being equal, the Coker goes straighter. Still, some riders
naturally ride much straighter than others. But I remember in the race
that my Coker (with 125mm cranks) was tracking straighter than my own
45" wheel usually does.
Coker wheel is heavier? It depends what you compare it to. I think the
Semcycle big wheels are pretty light. The Coker wheel probably has a
higher percentage of its weight out at the rim & tire area, giving it
more rolling momentum. However my old Tom Miller big wheel has a steel
Schwinn tubular rim, and heavy wheelchair rubber. This probably weighs
about the same out at the rim & tire area.
If you went from a Coker to a skinny tire big wheel, I can definitely
understand how you need to pay more attention to the ride on that skinny
tire. I don’t really notice it, but I rode my skinny one for many years
before the Cokers came along.
I think it also helps to ride faster on the Coker because it’s not so big.
The smaller size makes it a little easier to handle, and you’re a little
closer to the ground.
In the wind, the bigger the wheel the more it will be affected. Especially
the lighter Semcycle wheel. Mostly wind doesn’t bother me, but I remember
an instance at Jones Beach on Long Island. It was very windy, and Ken
Fuchs and I were crossing one of the huge parking lots with wind hitting
us at about a 45 degree angle from the front. We literally had to “tack”
back and forth to get to where we were going!
Stay on top, John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone jfoss@unicycling.com
www.unicycling.com
“We’re fat…and old…and bald!” – Ken Krakat, on seeing me for the
first time in over 10 years, along with other former Redford unicyclist
Hans Mills
Just a thought!
Has anyone tried a T-shaped seat post?
My idea is to put the saddle further back and have a set of narrow handle
bars in front. This would allow (require) you to put your weight on both
seat and handle while keeping your center of gravity directly over the
wheel. You would sit much the same way as you would on a bike, with the
seat a little behind the hub. I think the coker would perhaps be harder
to control, and you wouldn’t be able to sit straight on the unicycle
(unless you put another saddle in the middle of the T or found some more
elegant solution)
Would this make the coker: More comfortable? Too hard to ride?
Ugly? Unsafe?
Any opinions?
Morten Borges
> Just a thought!
>
> Has anyone tried a T-shaped seat post?
>
> My idea is to put the saddle further back and have a set of narrow
> handle bars in front. This would allow (require) you to put your weight
> on both seat and handle while keeping your center of gravity directly
> over the wheel.
Hmm… I don’t know if I like the require part of that.
Honestly, I’ve thought about such a setup, but my opinion is that no
matter how you modify a unicycle, you should still be able to ride it with
no hands. Moving the seat back would make that a challenge (I can’t decide
if a reasonable, or unreasonable one).
It’d be interesting to try, though.
Jeff Lutkus
:
That is truly cool. Of course, when i am not trying to ride a uni, I ride a recumbent and this type of underseat steering is common.
Derek 
> and have a set of narrow handle bars in front. This would allow
> (require) you to put your weight on both seat and handle while keeping
> your center of gravity directly over the wheel.
No, you could still sit up and let go. The seat would just be angled
forward from the position it’s in when you hold the bars. No big deal.
> Would this make the coker: More comfortable?
Yes
> Too hard to ride?
No
> Ugly?
Depends on the design. One can say that a road bike is ugly, and puts the
rider into a very uncomfortable looking position. But cyclists would not
agree with you.
> Unsafe?
No more than it already was, as long as you can dismount instantly.
> Any opinions?
Please build it and take pictures!
John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone jfoss@unicycling.com www.unicycling.com
“Our time is a most precious commodity, but it’s how we spend it that
makes us rich.” - John Foss
On 14 Aug 2001 09:39:29 -0700, john_foss@asinet.com (John Foss) wrote:
>If a Coker ever comes out with a wider axle, then there will be room
>inside the wheel for an “axle bag,” for clothing or smaller items.
Axle bag? Would one get to it by wriggling one’s fingers between
the spokes?
“To trigger/fool/saturate/overload Echelon, the following has been picked
automagically from a database:” “marijuana, USS Harry S. Truman, Pretty
Good Privacy”
I had a dream once that I got a coker, and it came with handle bars. I was especialy confused because it had two brakes.
Ben Plotkin-Swing
> >If a Coker ever comes out with a wider axle, then there will
> be room inside
> >the wheel for an “axle bag,” for clothing or smaller items.
> Axle bag? Would one get to it by wriggling one’s fingers between
> the spokes?
Exactly. With a wider axle, there may also be a little more room between
the spokes. So objects carried in the bag would be limited to what can fit
through there…
John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone jfoss@unicycling.com www.unicycling.com
“The difference between a winner and a loser is character.”
>it seems awful dangerous. wouldnt your legs get caught on them causing a
>face plant at high speed? that is, if you dont see that bump in the road
>and fall off.
I’m really late in replying to this thread but here is my take on this. On
the European Unicycle Tour, Scot Cooper added an areobar to his extension.
When I first saw this, I was wondering how it was going to all play out.
But, it worked. He did over half the trip (over 500 miles) with the
areobar. When I do my next long distance trip, I may entertain the idea of
an aerobar.
I just checked our website and there currently isn’t a good picture of
Scot’s unibaggo (as we called it cause it had everything). When we get
more picts developed I’ll post a pict on the website.
-Andy
Andy Cotter - Andy.Cotter@OutTech.com Unicycle Video “One Wheel - No
Limit” - http://www.tcuc.org/nolimit/ Twin Cities Unicycle Club -
http://www.tcuc.org European Unicycle Tour -
http://www.outtech.com/Unicycle/EUT/ International Unicycling Federation