I have to turn in an essay next monday for college. it is supposed to be about how my community or something has affected me. it is for the UC (university of california) system. i figure i might as well do it about unicycling, as it is uncommon and in a way you guys are my community.
one thing i will include is how my grades have improved since i started unicycling. whether its related or not, i will say they are related. does anybody have any good ideas? maybe one of you did a similar essay for a UC.
See, first you ask for help on your college app. Then you start asking for help on your homework. The next thing you know, you’re done with college but you never learned a thing!
Why don’t you write the essay in the spirit in which it was intended. With your own ideas. Shut off the computer, all you need is pen and paper.
i need no help on homework, i was just wondering if anyone wrote essays about unicycling and if so what aspects did they write about. i didnt tell anyone to write it for me.
Yeah I wrote an essay on uniycling for one of my essays on my UC app but I did it on this prompt.
“Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are?”
I used competing in flatland at EUC as my talent/ experience/ accomplishment and how it made me into a better person blah blah haha. It worked haha I made it into most of the UCs.
Once upon a time I designed a unicycling facility for an Industrial Design class. It was based on the “technology” of the day (1980). That is, the activities we did in those days. There was no MUni, Road riding, Trials, Street or Flat. Or Hockey, but we had a gym so that wouldn’t have been an issue. It consisted of a few buildings specifically set up for riding and training, and a track and outdoor riding areas. It included a gradually rising wall for easy giraffe mounting, plus a rising soft grassy area behind the wall for easy dismounts. Stuff like that.
here is what ive got so far. this is about as good as i can get it on my own.
Half the Bike, Twice the Man
Some people play soccer; others play rugby. Others read, write, and listen to music. I ride a unicycle. It all started last year during a school fundraiser at a friend’s house. He was letting some friends and me try to ride his dusty, long-since used unicycle for as long as they were willing–usually not very long. Some said it was impossible to learn, but I knew otherwise. My grandpa had two unicycles hanging in his garage, that he would pull out from time to time and ride around. I borrowed one and a few weeks later, after thousands of attempts, I managed to ride down the street. I have since mastered various other skills that span much beyond riding down the street. Learning to ride a unicycle has been one of my biggest accomplishments in the past year, not only because it tested my endurance, mental stamina, and balance, but also because it changed my perspective of the world.
Many articles on an online unicyclist community that I discovered incorporate new, more efficient designs for unicycle frames and components. The most creative of these new designs, a totally new style of frame, came from the mind of a mechanical engineer who didn’t fit the physical requirements to ride a thirty-six inch unicycle. His new “spline bar” frame, with fore and aft adjustability, allowed shorter unicyclists to ride the particularly large contraption. To allow more comfortable time in the saddle, it also incorporated a handlebar, altering the riding position to become more similar to that of a bicyclist. This revolutionary design strengthened my desire to become an engineer.
After learning how to ride a unicycle, my focus and drive increased in all aspects of life. To get in better shape, I began training for a triathlon. I crossed the finish line in a full sprint on July 11, 2010. Knowing that my grades needed improvement to get into the best engineering programs, I studied harder and longer and in the second semester of my junior year, I earned my first unweighted 4.0 grade point average since entering high school. This year I founded the first cycling club at my high school in which we will be training for a one-hundred-mile bike ride. Eventually I would like to join the ranks of the few unicyclists who have completed a race of such magnitude. There aren’t many “centurions” because unicycles in general only have one gear and one cannot coast at all; both of those factors equate to a lot of pedaling. Finally, thanks to my new interest in endurance sports, I am training for a full marathon that I will run before I enter college. A year ago I hadn’t considered running five miles, much less over twenty-six. It is clear that unicycling has vastly improved my drive in life.
Determination plays a key role in life; for me, giving up unicycling would be like giving up on life. My perseverance has allowed me to accomplish several physical and intellectual feats in the past year. I have completed a triathlon and I am currently training with clubs for both a marathon and a century. Something I learned while unicycling is that it is not enough just to learn something; if I had stopped after learning to ride forward, I wouldn’t be able to do so many interesting and alluring tricks that bring attention to this new sport. With a year of unicycling under my belt, I feel like twice the man on half of the bike.