Calling Mature Unicyclists (age 55+)

Off-topic
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Birthday Ride: 66 Furlongs

Yesterday was a fine warm November day perfect for a planned 66 furlong unicycle ride to mark my 66th birthday and the 64th of friend Bill (forum name Reinhart). We set out on 24 inch unis so that we could stay together. Out we went heading west about 4 pm into the setting sun. We rode 6.6 km, rested and then rode back for a total of 66 furlongs. There were a couple of UPDs along the way, but we won’t say how many. Traffic on the country road was light, but when oncoming cars met it always seemed to happen right beside us.

It was my longest ride on a 24 inch uni and I found it tough going on the way back. We both ran out of leg power by the end of the run. All my recent distance riding has been on a KH29 inch and there is no doubt that the larger wheel is easier to ride. I imagine a Coker would be even easier.

Stats: 13.28 km, 66.07 furlongs, 9.50 km/h, cadence 80 rpm.

birthday 08.jpg

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Happy Birthday Bobby

I’m not on here enough so not even sure where to continue this thread (so you may find the same post somewhere else).

The 66 furlong ride with olduniman was a bit of a chore but fun in the end, as always. I’d never have done it without the motivation of supporting my bud in his quest for eternal youth and the elusive anti-aging miracle. Guess I’m going to have to get out more than once a month on the 24 inch (its just that I ride it a bit then cause its so much work, I get on the 20 inch to have fun).

And side comment to PatMoore about his wife’s no-uni riding rule. Last summer my wife and I were heading to Denmark to support our grandsons in their European Championship (or whatever it was called) and do a bit of riding ourselves. My wife, just learning at the time was in the process of venturing out into the ‘unsupported’ world and, 5 days before our flight, was getting in her last practice. Well, she fell on gravel and broke her ankle very severely. Trip was off and I spent the summer catering to her and mom-in-law! Fun but we missed the Championships. Worse, she has not got back up on the uni since! :frowning: So, all in all, maybe not a bad rule, Pat! :slight_smile:

Bill

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a message to 55+ ON ONE WHEEL… what about a meeting at Moab Munifest next march?
I have the project to bring a posse of “old geezers” from Europe so we could show all those youngsters what an old man can do (after some drinks :smiley: )

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Sounds intriguing, but it seems to involve mountains. I am more of a flat lander myself. :o

45

you just have to use the paths that are going down ! :smiley:
(frankly: horizontal uniing is a bore …)

46

I usually ride distance along cycle paths on my 36er. In the summer I ride at least twice a week.

I also ride my 20" with my son (who has just learnt to ride) and I do a very limited number of ‘freestyle’ tricks. I’m also learning to juggle on the uni - at the moment I can ride and juggle and I’m learning to idle and juggle but I don’t get enough practice (once a week or so).

In the winter I ride MUni but it’s a struggle to ride once a week at the moment. (I’m working on reducing my working week to four days so that I have an extra day for uni’ing :slight_smile: )

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Amazing Coincidence: Stolen Uni Home Again

In June '07 my car was broken into at night when we B+B’d on Toronto Island. The car is a 2000 Toyota Echo and not at all attractive to thieves normally, but we were parked in an unfenced lot near the ferry dock. My unicycle was stolen along with a few other piddling things. I tried to find it in a few pawn shops and friends had a look in the warehouses where a huge collection of stolen bikes had been available for inspection this summer.

Yesterday I had an e-mail from Darren Bedford who asked me to phone him ASAP. It turned out that a young woman in the club had shown up to practice with a unicycle someone had given her on the street. Darren recognized it immediately because of the black powder coating and HookWorm tire. She had been on her way home from a meeting wheeling her uni when a guy stopped her and asked it she would like to buy a unicycle. She agreed to look expecting to see a cheap bikeshop model. It turned out to be a good Bedford unicycle so she was interested. In the end he gave it to her because she is a penniless student and he was tired of the thing. He claimed to have bought it for $50 on the street and couldn’t figure out how to ride. Whether or not his story is completely true, I don’t think he was the thief because he wasn’t concerned that she knows where he lives. A minor miracle, I never thought I’d see it again.

I am amazed at the coincidence of a kind uni rider and club member just happening to meet the one person with my unicycle on the street in such a large city. How often do you ever see unicyclists on the street? It is more common than sightings of Elvis, but not much.

Thank You Victoria!!

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It’s amazing how tuned we become to something as simple as a unicycle. We learn to recognize the slight variations people have in their unicycles. If I have trouble identifying a Memphis club rider in a photograph, I look at their unicycle and know right away who it is.

49

I am really glad to read of folks riding so many years into their prime. Previously when asked how long I’ll be riding for, I’d answer, “I expect to 60”, (and think to myself, “or until I really hurt myself”). Now I’m going to move that date out indefinitely.

I’ve been riding for ~4 years, having a great time, and mostly improving. But this last year my abilities had some lows. The first half of the year, had little endurance, and even some balance issues. I hope it wasn’t a pre-cursor of aging, that low period was really frustrating since I’m sorta counting on unicycling to keep me as youthful as possible. Fortunately, I ended the year back in reasonable condition and able to ride well.

Unicycling certainly has helped me get in shape, but I can tell riding a lot is not the end all. Although I like to ride 10-20 miles on a weekend, I can tell my body has become optimized for that specific workout. Those first few years getting back into unicycling, my entire body was pushed more to improve, and that was a great thing. But recently I have sorta peaked, with my riding more routine so I am recently also weaker with anything out of the ordinary.

I think overall, the most obvious impact of aging is in the recover time, where it now takes me 2-3 days to recover that weekend riding.

So in writing this I can see the solution is obvious, that I need to ride more. We’ll, more varied style of riding at least, and it wouldn’t hurt to start some upper body exercises either.

So you all ahead of me, keep up the pace, at age 54, I’m riding on your heels.

Hey Bob, That is amazing string of events leading back to you getting unicycle back. Such good news!

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Speaking of age, reminds me,

I was riding at a local High School where I rode laps around the building because they have a large hill in the back good for exercise. Was going down the side when a HS girl ran out, up behind me and excitedly exclaimed how great my unicycle riding was. When I turned back and she saw that under that bike helmet was an old man, not a high school boy, she stopped, turned back to her friends, with a clearly disappointed tone said “He’s an old man!”.

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Welcome Wheel Rider and Chrashing

Our thread is growing slowly. We are up to 21 contributors who have a signficant number of growth rings (some not quite 55+ but no matter)

Here is the list as of right now in order of appearance.

olduniman, MuniAddict, Panotaker, wobbling bear, IUni, florida, reinhart, rem48,
Bondo, Klaas Bil, harper, munimutant, gramp1wheel, uniwitold, ganfax,
patmoore, idiorythmic, BurnerDave, cathwood, Wheel Rider, Chrashing

Aren’t there any 55+ women out there? I met one woman at NAUCC 07 in that category, but don’t know her name.

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I have to agree with your comments above. Unicycling is great for leg strength and cardiovascular exercise but it is somewhat limited. I used to walk and backpack a lot which I have gotten away from in favor of unicycling. I need to get back to walking/hiking plus maintain my unicycling.

I joined the YMCA back in the spring with the idea of exercising to improve my upper body strength. I did well for about 5 months and learned what “pumping iron” feels like but I have sort of run out of steam on that. Plus, I got tired of my arms and shoulders being sore all the time.

Gotta stay active and keep pushing on …

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53+ woman here. I’ll be 55 soon enough! I ride my 24" Nimbus Muni on the dirt roads around my off-the-grid neighborhood.

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I never get that reaction, in fact, young girls seem quite attracted to me.

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Mature Unicyclists

Well I guess I’m qualified. I never rode until I was 57 years of age. I can free mount most times. am working on idling etc. My longest distance is onley two miles. I am afraid that I am a bit sporadic as I have too many other things I do besides unicycliing. As soon as the winter weather breaks I intend to pick up the pace as I have been fanticising about making the trip to where-ever or Erehwon as the case may be in the spring of 2010.
Other hobbies include avid reading in both English and Spanish. Rifles, primarily antique military and muzzle loaders. I hunt deer on occasion an shot an Alaskan brown bear 7 years ago the measured 9’5". I am interested in cookig and usually make one brown bear hunt a year as the camp cook. I am not mad at bears any more and have no desire to shoot another. I am an enthusiastic fisherman, mostly for catfish in the Mississippi River which is about 5 miles from my home. I am also an amature machinist and do some woodwork. I have been studying the literature on home foundry but have, as yet, not built a cupula or crucible furnace to try my hand at it though the fanticies run rampant.

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Hey! I thought I posted that I decided I didn’t want to be 55+ anymore!

edit: Oh, sorry. It’s in a different thread.

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I’m willing to believe you are 30+, OK now?

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Hey, I’m There!

Mark.jpg
Mark.jpg554×800 57.1 KB

59

I’m Here.

What frame is that?

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Hey Bil,
Check the suspension thread, Its a homemade frame.

                                                 LOBBYBOPSTER