I’m going to take this as positive curiosity here. As I know we’re all good natured in the mono-cycle world.
Logically speaking however no post from me, probably means no news or progress, right?
And yes: that’s the case.
There are definitely two camps in the forum / unicyclist world. Those that ride and those that collect / build, and the former carries a firm sense of pride and justifiably so, while the latter is almost like a second class hobby. At least that’s how I feel.
So yes. I feel shame faced and downcast to be called back in to confess it’s effectively like I’ve quit riding as I’ve had such a long break and not yet tested my gem of a P-frame unicycle.
Yes - that’s basically why I didn’t post as I’ve just not got out of the gap of riding that tends to happen in winter or have I found my way to get back into the swing of things. I can make a ton of “justifiable” excuses but no one wishes to read those, do they?
So I’ll accept my current status as more collector than rider and just live with it -
I’ll get riding again and that will be at my own cadence and choice of how and when. While I’ve enjoyed this forum there are times I wonder if I should just delete myself from it and call it quits - not quits from unicycling, but is there any real need or value to broadcast the items I build or when I’ve ridden or not?…
Soooo… there’s the answer:
A void into which anyone with empathy can easily discern that the absence of news or an update is likely due to some challenge or disconnection with the sport.
But no tattoo removal is booked so in my guts I’m still into unicycling and Schlumpfs; I’ll de-void the void in the fullness of time
I‘d say it was an expression of sincere curiosity, mixed with a …hm …you know, when, when someone bumps you lightly with his elbow and says „soooooo?…“ (indeed, I forget the question mark).
Thus the bump with the elbow
I‘m in a similar situation with one of my hobbies - mostly because I dedicate more time to unicycling, reading and writing about unicycling. Thinking on unicycles and unicycling in general. So, while for me it‘s the other way around, I can absolutely relate to that.
Not sure if I got this right. If you feel downcast because of my „soooooo“, I can assure you that it wasn‘t meant in an offensive way. If you feel downcast because you were not as engaged in a hobby that you deemed to be very important to you, I think this is a normal thing that can happen to anyone. No need to feel ashamed.
As far as winter is concerned, I can wholeheartedly recommend studded tires. Seriously. Had one on the fatty and one on the 29er street uni, and what can I say? It changed the way I perceive wintertime: Winter was finally fun again. For the first time since I was a child it was more than the season of waiting for spring (I‘m not into other winter sports, but unicycling in the winter is quite neat in my experience; it‘s the one season when you‘re not getting too hot while unicycling )
Call it what you want - personally I find it interesting, inspiring, or sometimes just plainly funny (where are you, micro machinists?) to see what other people ride and to read about their experiences. And you have no doubt an exquisite taste that leads you to create beautiful unicycles.
Good to read that the tattoos are there to stay.
Go at your own pace. I‘m pretty positive that one nice day you‘ll just grab one of those stunning unis, hop on it and have a ride - be it a P-frame, a V-frame or just an ordinary I-frame.
I think many of us go through lulls and find it hard to hop on after a break, what you are experiencing is very normal. What has worked for me in the past is that I go back to my 24 and work on my mounts, riding, stalling and idling then move upto my 26er and do the same then onto my 29er then 32. I then repeat until I feel comfortable and confident.
I really loved your build but felt there is no way I could mount or ride it myself. I would really like to encourage you to hop on a unicycle you are comfortable riding and get back at it, go back to the basics and remind yourself of why you learned to ride to begin with Best of luck.
I, for one, love reading your posts detailing the thought and intention behind your unicycle builds. They serve as great inspiration to me with my own builds (or, more often than not, daydream builds ). I too am curious how the G29 P-Frame rides.
I don’t think we have to ride all the time to justify the gizmos we lovingly build. Nor do I think we’d all be here on this forum if we didn’t love to tinker and nerd out about our gear. And health certainly factors into our enjoyment of the sport. The fittest among us couldn’t have gotten to the level they are now without trial and error building unicycles that fit their exact needs. And that trial and error serves the community well when shared publicly.
Anyway, all that to say we’ve got your back. Interest in hobbies ebb and flow. You’ll get back into the groove of riding at your own pace and time.
That would be a sad day and a loss for this forum as most of us cannot ride as much or in the nice places we would love to ride and thanks to both categories you describe, we can keep the uni joy in our life through experience sharing.
So yes, a tiny part of me is jealous of you that you have more Schlumpf than you can sit on but I wouldn’t give up all the adventures into builds that I could not afford either (same root cause as Schlumpf absence). Thank you @mindbalance (and all the others) for sharing your piece of uni life in this forum (as it also takes time and could be given up easily).
Nooooo. Please stay. Love reading about your builds and stuff. It’s very inspiring.
Also this place is just as much for building and sharing ideas than it is about riding. Personally I also spent much more time thinking about the next build than the time I spend riding my unicycles
Thanks everyone - I’ve really been blown away by the friendly encouragement and understanding shown here. I should have expected it knowing the nice bunch of people you all are - but I didn’t write my posting thinking much would come of it.
I was probably in a bit of a blue funk when it came to my lack of riding - as I never want to be solely a builder / collector, however fun it is as a part of the hobby. So it all probably struck a raw nerve - as in I’ve been feeling like I can pretend to be a Schlumpfer all I want, but am I really given how little I ride or the fact I’ve not yet probably tested the P-frame??!!
I get that - thank you!… I probably didn’t really want to be asked to explain the currently uninspiring state of play, as I had long pictured I’d be back with some stunning soft focused action shots of me riding the local paths atop the magnificent set up created in detail in this thread.
Putting my own personal weak spots aside - you, and everyone else here have probably given me a healthy kick to stop dithering and JUST GET THE HELL OUT THERE ON IT!! (So thanks)
Downcast is mainly the way I feel when I’ve neglected riding for a while - as I know the oomph to get back into it and find the confidence is a good 5-6 rides away.
You’re right. I’m going to make that happen soon I think!
I’m similar with yet another hobby of mine. Great fun, if everything works like it should. But that’s seldom the case, and then I have a hard time to motivate myself to do the necessary maintenance and repairs. Fortunately I have a buddy who shares the same hobby and who shouts a friendly sooooooooo… from time to time. That helps me to get back on track again.
)
). I too am curious how the G29 P-Frame rides.