Hey everyone,
I bought a Kris Holm handle bar for my unicycle and need some advice how to use it.
I noticed if i push down i need to accelerate and pull up i slow down. Is this right do you put pressure on it while riding?
Also do you use it while turning by putting pressure on there.
Any advice is appreciated!
Cheers
Personally, I just use them as a place to put my hands, so they donât always have to hold on to the seat or dangle my hands beside my body. I steer purely with my hips. Handle bars are not a steer. For sharp turns I just hold on to the seat. I reckon when holding the handlebars, my balance point moves forward a little compared to the seat, so in the middle of the seat and the handle bars.
And when I want to slow down to get off the back of the uni, I also hold on to the seat, because the handle bars are too much to the front.
To me they just add more comfort.
Oh so you donât use them to steer?
I thought there was some technique to use them when turning.
Cheers
As you become more comfortable with your skills you will learn to use them when needed.
Theyâre just another part of the unicycle that allows a deeper connection to being âone with the unicycleâ.
I use my handlebars in a muni sense. Iâm pushing, pulling, and resting on my bars all of the time.
The only absolutes would be pulling up when climbing and pushing forward when aerodynamics are desired. Another for me is to use my downhill hand when traversing hillsides and sharp downhill corners.
I do sometimes use the handle bar to steer and find it works well, especially at low speeds and rough ground. When comparing using half your bodyâs mass to turn your hips to using all your whole bodyâs mass to turn with a single hand/arm, handlebar steering is more effective.
How exactly do you use them when turning?
Are you pushing them in the direction you want to turn or away from the direction?
Yes, push handlebar in direction you want to or need to turn to maintain left/right balance. It is a little weird at first because it is exactly the opposite of the normal turning with the hips where you would move your arms in the opposite direction of the turn.
Thank you
I also noticed on tonightâs ride that when an unseen bump was hit, the unicycle fell forward, I pedalled harder and pulled back hard on the handlebars.
Without the handlebars, I donât think I would have had the leverage to save it with just the seat to grab.
I remember when I first started using the bar, I had trouble keeping my hands on the grips because I wasnât yet at a point where I could balance without the arms. After a while though I got used to it.
I donât really do much pulling or pushing of the bar when Iâm riding, I mostly just use it for upper body support. I do believe it helps with pedaling efficiency in some way I canât quite explain, but I feel like I would perform better with a bar than without.
For me riding without T-bar on a g36 feels like driving unbelted in the car.
I required quiet some kilometers to get used to the T-bar, so donât be disappointed when you donât have immediate results. The T-bar is a life saver, so it is definitely worth it to be learned especially on large or geared wheels! Like @Canoeheadted points out, I use it against UPDs for unseen bumps when riding the geared 36" especially in 2nd gear, because you have much more instant influence on a bump trigger by pulling the handlebar/ uni than by pedaling over the geared pedal.
At normal ride I rest my weight on the T-bar, what decreases seat problems. My T-bar is adjusted comparingly low so that my arms are completely straight. So my body forms a triangle which becomes one with the uni and doesnât let bumps pull the uni backwards. On the other hand my straight arms allow resting on the T-bar without effort. As a side effect, the arms are close together and in front of me for lower wind resistance than arms on the side if the body.
For me itâs initially always like âwait, is it dangerous to ride like this?â. It feels like riding no hands on a b!ke, which Iâm not very good at. Then, after a moment of reflection I realise that itâs the usual way to ride a unicycle (for me anyway) and that itâs ok - even on a 36er. But thatâs only for very casual riding. As soon as Iâm focused on riding I grab the T-bar. Usually with both hands, but when things get a bit sketchy I still feel more secure with just one hand.
