Hello, I’d like to introduce myself. I’m 57 years old and I live in Austria, south of Vienna.
I used to cycle regularly with my wife, but I never really broke a sweat.
By chance, in the summer of 2025, I discovered unicycling and bought a 24-inch Nimbus II.
I want to be able to go on excursions with my wife (me on the unicycle and her on her bicycle, both with the same speed ) by the summer of 2026.
I can now ride my 24-inch unicycle for about 1 km on forest roads without dismounting. So I hope that my goal is quite realistic
Since September 2025, I’ve been reading along in the forum and have picked up a lot of valuable tips. My thanks go to all the active forum members for their great contributions. In the meantime, I’ve developed a real passion for unicycling and regularly follow the forum posts.
Getting to 1k without dismounting is a nice big step towards being able to go on longer rides. Both speed and endurance will come and I hope you can make your goal.
Hi @Deepdiver, nice to meet another person who started in their fifties with a Nimbus II 24" unicycle - after 7 years it’s still the uni I feel most ‘at home’ on. Some thoughts about training up to cycle with someone on a bicycle when you’re riding a 24" uni…
if they’re a gentle/slower cyclist your speed should probably be ok on the flat (and more so uphill), but you’ll be pedalling a whole lot faster
you should be able to increase your speed somewhat with shorter cranks as the distance moved by your spinning feet will be less. On my 24" I started with 150s, then moved to 125s, 112s and recently 100s. I have some 87s but they made hills and control too difficult for me at my skill level
downhill will always be an issue as your bicycling companion can just freewheel and you can’t!
you will need to get quick at remounting if you want to match speeds - a bicyclist can easily put a foot down at a junction or stop, then start straight up again. You will need to freemount each time, which initially (or always?) may take multiple attempts. I find a walking speed rolling mount works best for me and keeps up the forward movement, although you’ll have to relearn the foot positioning of your pedal landing each time you alter the crank length
good practice for older muscles, skin and bones is to wear protective gear, but this does lengthen the time it takes to set off on a ride in comparison with just popping a helmet on (or not even that) before riding. I have found that zipped knee guards work better than ones you need to pull over your feet
Have fun - it’s a great and addictive enterprise, and you’ll probably find it leads to lots of grinning - not just from you!
When you are interested in fellow unicyclists the OneWheelDragons may be rather close where you are living.
Also in Vienna the community seems to be currently quite active: Einradtreffen in Wien
Bigger wheels and shorter cranks, as already supposed, can make it more relaxed to catch up with your wife. Take your time to adapt to unicycle modifications.
Good luck for your ventures and greetings from Linz!
Welcome and sounds like you’re on the right track.
I agree with the above comments. There is an active uni group in Vienna, and I know a couple of the riders, all very nice, so hope you can meet up with them.
As to riding with cyclists: it’s very difficult to ride with someone of similar fitness on a bike, as bikes have gears and freewheels. That being said, if the cyclist wants a relaxed ride then it can be good. For example, although I’m no road rider, my wife complains that I’m too slow when I ride my 36er with 125mm cranks when she’s on the bike as I’m “only” riding 20-22km/h (but I do it often anyway). On a 29 or 36 with not too long cranks you can ride with a recreational cyclist who is willing to wait a bit on you. With a 24 it will be a lot of waiting but could still work out if relaxed is the goal.
) by the summer of 2026.