We have a new uni club and we’re lining up some indoor space for Winter
practice.
Of course, we are promising that we won’t scuff up the floors.
I’m wondering how other clubs handle this issue. I know from experience
that even “non-marking” tires can leave scuff marks on a floor, like if
they have been previously ridden on new or freshly-coated asphalt.
How do I even recognize a non-marking tire? My Miyata tires are supposed
to be non-marking, but they don’t say “non-marking” on them. Everyone in
the club has a different brand of tire. The unis are Miyatas, Torkers,
Semcycles, Schwinns, Jugglebugs, etc.
Even shoes leave scuff marks, but when a scuff-mark is in a single line,
the administrators will know exactly who to blame.
Do other clubs have specific written policies about this stuff? Should
we require everyone to use white tires? I don’t think you can even find
white tires in the 24" size.
I have the use of a hall once a week for half an hour or so, and am lucky in that the timber floor is in a pretty poor state so marking doesn’t matter. However, I have never noticed any marking from either the standard black tyre on my Nimbus 2 or the red tyre on my old Pashley UMX.
Something to watch out for: street tyres (as opposed to off road tyres) tend to have grooves cut in them for tread (off road tyres have knobbles stuck on them - it’s a difference of emphasis) and those grooves can pick up and hold small sharp pieces of grit which would damage a timber floor. Check tyres before riding indoors.
When will tyres leave marks? Not when they’re simply rolling, but when they’re skidding or scuffing - maybe on very sharp turns. Metal pedals may also scratch the floor on tight turns or UPDs. Depends what sort of riding you’re doing. Hockey would probably mark the floor; idling and juggling probably wouldn’t.
Two things you can consider:
(1) Protecting the floor by using carpet tiles, rugs or thin crash mats. Of course this would make riding harder and there may be a safety problem.
(2) Cleaning up afterwards. Assuming there’s no grit in your tyres to cause scratching, then the only marks wil be rubber, which should be easy enough to remove with some sort of all purpose cleaner and a cloth.
Plastic pedals. Nothing metal on your unicycle should be able to touch the floor. Lay your unicycle on the floor and wobble it around the pedal and seat with the pedal in several different positions. No metal part of the seat, frame, cranks, pedals, etc. should EVER be able to touch the floor.
For indoor riding, you should require plastic pedals and no exposed metal elsewhere that can hurt the floor. This basically boils down to plastic seat bumpers, or “intact” seat covers on other seat types, such as Semcycle.
White tires are preferred if you can get them, but yes, in 24" they’re rare. I think Tom Miller (the Unicycle Factory) has a huge stack of aging 24" white tires, which he had special made many years ago. They are reaching (or possibly beyond) the end of their shelf life, and he was unwilling to sell some the last time my friend called him up. It’s my preferred 24" tire. Give him a call and see if he’ll sell you some for $10 apiece or so. (765) 452 - 2692.
Our gym has a linoleum floor, which is very sensitive to scuff marks. But they have a very simple tool to rub them off. It’s a broom handle with an old tennis ball on the end! Take a tennis ball, make two little cuts in it like the lid on a soda cup (where the straw goes in), and jam the stick in there. you have a “floor eraser” that you don’t have to bend down to use. You have to replace the ball from time to time, but it’s a real simple solution!
We will watch for grit in the tire grooves, and make sure no metal can
strike the floor.
The floor eraser sounds cute. I assume you use it dry. Probably I should
find a tennis ball that my dog hasn’t been chewing on.
Will check with Tom Miller for white tires. I just made an order with him,
so will call him when the order arrives.
Probably the janitor can offer suggestions for getting stubborn scuffs off.
Thanks again,
–Mark
johnfoss wrote:
> For indoor riding, you should require plastic pedals and no exposed
> metal elsewhere that can hurt the floor. This basically boils down to
> plastic seat bumpers, or “intact” seat covers on other seat types, such
> as Semcycle.
>
> White tires are preferred if you can get them, but yes, in 24" they’re
> rare. I think Tom Miller (the Unicycle Factory) has a huge stack of
> aging 24" white tires, which he had special made many years ago. They
> are reaching (or possibly beyond) the end of their shelf life, and he
> was unwilling to sell some the last time my friend called him up. It’s
> my preferred 24" tire. Give him a call and see if he’ll sell you some
> for $10 apiece or so. (765) 452 - 2692.
>
> Our gym has a linoleum floor, which is very sensitive to scuff marks.
> But they have a very simple tool to rub them off. It’s a broom handle
> with an old tennis ball on the end! Take a tennis ball, make two little
> cuts in it like the lid on a soda cup (where the straw goes in), and jam
> the stick in there. you have a “floor eraser” that you don’t have to
> bend down to use. You have to replace the ball from time to time, but
> it’s a real simple solution!
>
> Stay on top,
> John Foss
>
> –
> johnfoss
>
> John Foss
> the Uni-Cyclone
> jfoss@unicycling.com
> www.unicycling.com
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> johnfoss’s Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/832
> View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/20559
Colored tires like the red or blue Primo The Wall tires are also nonmarking. I think clubs like the TCUC have standardized on white tires because it makes the group routines look a lot better when everyone is on a unicycle with the same color tire.
Finding a good 24" tire that won’t leave marks on the floor is more difficult. There are lots of choices for the 20" size that won’t leave marks on the floor, but not many choices for the 24" size. Semcycle sells a grey 24" tire that won’t mark up the floor. Contact Semcycle <www.semcycle.com> to find out about ordering the tire, or see if unicycle.com can get that grey 24" tire.
One way to test a tire is to find someone who can do tight turns and pirouettes, have them take a spin on the unicycle and see if that tire leaves marks on the floor.
>White tires are preferred if you can get them, but yes, in 24" they’re
>rare.
Semcycle, at least their Netherlands branch, has an option for a white
(actually light grey) 24 x 1.75 tyre, which they also sell as a
replacement tyre.