Anyone scared for their life when riding their unicycle? I have had many cars almost hit me because they don’t stop at stop signs. Idk if it’s a Wisconsin thing where they suck at driving or if it’s something others have experienced. I always yell back at them that I can’t stop! This has happened multiplie times to the point where I stopped cross country this summer, I’ve barely rode anymore because I am scared I’m gonna get hit by a car and get paralyzed. I started running to replace unicycling. I’ve had people flip me off and scream at me and give me the finger too. Again idk if this is just a Wisconsin thing where drivers are just straight up rude or if this is other people’s experience while riding
Unicycling itself comes with many risks, and it is natural to be scared. Maybe the drivers are extra cranky in Wisconsin, but what you are describing sounds like it could be fixed. First, do you have reflectors and lights on your uni? Are you wearing bright colored clothing? Do you have a brake? Do you have a good crank length where you have more control? Are there bike paths? Could you ride in places where cars aren’t so busy? All these factors play into your safety and visibility.
I hope this was helpful.
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She wrote “Riding habits: Cross country, Muni road, trails. I ride up to 30-40 miles a day.” So that is really a lot and 1 problem every 35 miles means 1 nearby accident a day, so I understand the concern.
Even with being on a bike path of a priority road with brake, all reflectors and reflective vest on a bright sunny day a truck didn’t see me. Fortunately we wear full protection on long distances and being hit wasn’t a problem for me.
I’m in Minnesota and thankfully I haven’t had any bad interactions with drivers outside of some close encounters at light-controlled crosswalks. Though that’s because the traffic control signals are set up really stupid IMO.
I also find that traffic behaves differently while I’m riding a unicycle compared to me riding a bicycle. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for worse. Drivers typically give me a generous amount of space while I’m riding on the shoulder of the road, which is nice. And then I get to a 4-way stop sign controlled intersection and it gets pretty awkward to cross because people are rubbernecking and forgetting who’s going when 
Then there’s just being in a place where drivers aren’t used to dealing with pedestrian traffic. Most of my less-than-favorable interactions stem from light controlled crosswalks in busier parts of town. Turning right on a red light is permitted here so I have to be careful even when I’ve got the traffic signal to walk 
Not to mention the green signal is given to drivers at the same time so often I get cut off(?) by drivers turning right on green. Or even if they’re turning left on green depending on which side I’m walking on.
EDIT: Plus when I ride my unicycle I try to ride extra carefully and courteously. That’s not to say I haven’t had my fair share of moments where I was the stupid one, but I recognize that all eyes are probably on me so I try to ride as responsibly (and predictably!) as I can
Lately I’ve gotten more confident about riding on roads with motorized vehicles. Safety gear goes a long way. My helmet mounted mirror gives me a significant measure of reassurance. I also use two bike lights (blinky white on front, red blinky on back), spoke reflector stickers and a jersey with reflective bits. Knee pads and gloves are well advised.
Along with that, good uni handling skills are a must. Learn to get up to high speeds then pulling the brake hard without being thrown off the front. I find that leaning back as far as possible the instant before squeezing the lever helps. In addition, practice swerving around obstacles at high speeds. Imagine them as cars pulling out unexpectedly or doors opening. Lastly, practice hopping and idling, even on a 36er. If your legs are tired, look for something to hold onto as you approach and intersection.
This can certainly be the most awkward aspect of dealing with traffic. Recently when I approach a regular 4-way stop, I just take a right turn, then once traffic has cleared I make a U-turn (checking my mirror first and giving a shoulder check), then take a right again to continue on my intended path.
As always, use good judgement, ride smart, expect the unexpected and be courteous.
Where I live in New South Wales Australia, unicyclists are classified as “pedestrians operating a wheeled recreational device”. As such we are allowed to ride on the footpath (AKA sidewalk), shared paths, cycle paths and roads not having marked lanes and with speed limits not higher than 50 kph. We must always give way to pedestrians when not riding on the road. Cyclist must give way to us other than on designated cycle ways where we must give way to them.
My routes cross very few streets and I am very cautions. However the vast majority of motorists are interested in watching me, and generally allow me to cross even when they don’t have to. There have been very few exceptions to this in the more than ten years I have been riding.
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Are there no alternative routes without cars? Whenever possible, I take routes without car traffic, and if so, only absolute back roads with hardly any traffic. I’ve noticed that drivers’ brains are getting weaker every year. They’re becoming more and more inconsiderate. Even when I do drive my car for once, I notice this again and again. Where anticipatory driving was once a matter of course on narrow roads, now everyone is speeding along like egotists in their SUVs, with the motto: The other car should get out of the way. I strongly suspect that smartphones have contributed to this dumbing down of the population. And yes, these damn smartphones, sat navs, and other electronic gadgets do tend to distract drivers while they’re driving. So, avoid busy roads wherever possible. Otherwise, make yourself clearly visible. For example, I have a small orange backpack with reflective strips.
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Though I generally ride where only cyclists are allowed, the other day where I rode 22km I did have to ride on narrow roads with the occasional car. Generally when I know they are behind me waiting for a place to pass safely, I just hop off and let them pass. Mounting is t a problem and always a good practise as well. With intersections, I always get off the uni to cross. It is just the safest that way
Fortunately where I live there are really nice bike paths all around me infact I can get on one and go 150 miles round trip. On the other hand when I go back to my home town, there is only one path that is 3 miles round trip. I did a lot of road riding back home on beautiful rural back roads but faced similar problems. While enjoying beautiful views while riding I have to be on guard constantly and looking for my line if I need to hit the rough berm.
Public enemy #1 is Phone distraction while driving, it is a problem everywhere.
“If my phone is smart, why should I be?”
I, on the other hand, have a dumb phone and I’m hoping to appear smarter, in comparison 
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That sounds dangerous. On the other side, so since you have figured out that stop signs aren’t necessarily respected on those streets, so might just keep that in mind and adapt your riding accordingly. That might suck but probably less than paralysis.
Riding on the roads is a bit like mountain unicycling: instead of figuring out how the stones, rock, dirt and gravel behave, you gotta figure out how the other road participants behave, what the risks on those roads are, what you can or can’t rely on, and ride accordingly. That’s different in every part of the world, as is the local geology and rock composition.
Being able to stop is an essential ability to safely participate in traffic. So if you can’t stop quickly in general, you shouldn’t participate in traffic.
In the case of people taking your right of way and endangering others, I’d probably chose to yell something more closely related to their dangerous behaviour.
Not particularly where I live. I enjoy it. I’m most concerned by being hit by either an inattentive lorry driver, a too old person, or during high traffic when everyone’s getting off work, tired, hungry and annoyed with heavy traffic - risks I mitigate by riding and choosing the route accordingly, as far as that’s possible and feasible.
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Yelling is always good, it is the horn of the unicycle: D
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@Mylonelyonewheelworld For this reason, I unicycle on roads as little as possible and just stick to Muni and trail riding. I am afraid bad driving and ideots are everywhere. I have a whole country full. One wheel, two wheels no one gives a s—–t. So personnally I dont risk it. Off road if I fall off or hit something then thats usually my fault and I can live with that.
Stay safe but dont give up unicycling, plenty fun to be had away from the nutters.
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I mostly ride on a college campus, but still get some crazy drivers(although probably 60% are considerate). I will be trying to time my getting to a cross walk and they will either speed right by after I enter the cross walk, or slow down to rubber neck and then not stop, or speed right up to the line of the crosswalk and stop abruptly. In most instances I have already had to dismount because I can’t be sure what they are going to do. People arent going to suddenly start being more considerate, so my plan for myself, and advice to others, is to learn to idle so you can stop and wait for it to be safe. I also ride on the sidewalk as much as possible, its also not without it’s challenges (and may be against regulations in your area, its all in the wording)
Many drivers view unicyclists as nothing more than pedestrians who are expected to stop on corners and push the crosswalk button. In addition, due to our slower speed than bicycles, many tend to ID us out of their periphery vision as pedestrians as well. I’ve been riding since the early 1960’s and this perception has never changed. We really need to just stay vigilant at all times.
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