I’m new to this board and unicycling. I’m 14 and have never unicycled in my life- yet I would really like to. Could anyone tell me what would be a good company to buy from and the price range it entails? That would be a good help. Also whats the best place to learn how to? Thats all for now!
Peace!
-ParadoX
P.S There is a bike shop near where I live that has a uni selling for $70, it seems decent and I trust and know the people that work there. Would this be a good buy? I’m not sure what the maker of the UNI is but it seems to be made well.
“ParadoX” <ParadoX@NoEmail.Message.Poster.at.Unicyclist.com> wrote in
message news:ParadoX.1d9tw2@NoEmail.Message.Poster.at.Unicyclist.com…
>
> Hey,
>
> I’m new to this board and unicycling. I’m 14 and have never unicycled in
> my life- yet I would really like to. Could anyone tell me what would be
> a good company to buy from and the price range it entails? That would be
> a good help. Also whats the best place to learn how to? Thats all for
> now!
>
> Peace!
>
> -ParadoX
>
> P.S There is a bike shop near where I live that has a uni selling for
> $70, it seems decent and I trust and know the people that work there.
> Would this be a good buy? I’m not sure what the maker of the UNI is but
> it seems to be made well.
>
>
> –
> ParadoX
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ParadoX’s Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/8015
> View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/35307
>
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Hey alright. Thanks alot. But there still remains the question on where the best place for learning. From what I have read the tennis court is the best place. If this is true-What convience, we have 6 of them near our house. Also how do you manage to turn on a UNI? Theres like no way of doing it with your pedals, do you lean or what? Hard to belive people have perfected the way of balancing on 1 wheel!
Lean to turn and also use your hips. Anywhere to learn works, I learned in front my house using 2 chairs to start up then just went 1/2 a pedal then fell. Repeated that for 8 hours slowly getting more pedal turns and it worked fine for me. Taught me how to jump off the uni also My jumping still needs practice, I’ve hurt my back, hands, knees, ass, and elbows from falling already.
Crap, Gobd beat me to it, oh well:
I turn either by leaning or pivoting. When you are learning, its usually easier to lean. You will probably discover fast that in the beginning its easy to turn, but unintentionally and not in the direction you want to go. For me, by the time I could ride straight pretty confidently, I was able to turn without much effort. Just out of curiosity, what part of California do you live in?
Try to get a unicycle with main cap bearings, not lollipop bearings. If you’re short, get one with a 20" wheel to learn. If you’re tall, get one with a 24" wheel which is faster and more versatile.
Avoid the Savage brand which is a name that applies quite well to the saddle…it is savage. Unicycle.com was trying to unload Savage saddles for $5 each in lots of three at one time. Savage unicycles also have lollipop bearings which are not replaceable.
Torker is an excellent introductory brand. The old Torker saddle is designed for children and is quite small. The newer ones may have more reasonable saddles. Torker makes a line of unicycles some of which have very good saddles but the one you’re talking about, $70 at your LBS, probably doesn’t have the good saddle.
Learning to unicycle is about determination, not balance. The average learning time is in the 10 to 20 hour range. That is the point at which most people can ride 100 meters on flat, smooth pavement with relative consistency.
Keep your weight on the seat. Repeat that to yourself constantly as you learn. Look ahead, not at the wheel. Try to maintain good posture. Try to make round, smooth pedal strokes. Try to ride until you fall rather than chicken out and step off. Set your saddle to the same height you would for a bicycle but perhaps 1/2 inch to an inch lower. Did I say keep your weight on the seat? Did I say it again? Seriously, repeat it to yourself constantly as you learn.
Any flat, smooth area is a good place to learn. Gymnasia, tennis courts, indoor or outdoor parking lots, or a sidewalk or driveway to start. Good luck. You will be a rider in a few hours.
ParadoX - Check out mine and Andrew Carters website - www.unicycle.2ya.com its completley based on unicycling tips & tutorials and you may find it very helpful, it has written and video tips for all levels, so will help you while your learning, and as you get into tricks etc. anyway take a look and it may help you.
cheers
Peter
If you’re trying to just get by with an inexpensive “trainer” unicycle, you might want to check into the Gravity brand that uni_farmer was looking into buying;
munimanpete,
that is one good and well put together website. I am a webmaster after all. Accually I’m more of the computer hacker than anything else. Like this PERL program.
#!/usr/bin/perl
$in= <STDIN>;
print “The first program I ever wrote in perl!”;
print “Do you think so? $in”;
chomp {$in};
Well thanks for the link, I am sure to be riding soon!
You will figure out turning as you learn to ride straight. Most people tend to drift to one side or the other at first.
Remember, airplanes turn, with nothing to push against except air. Cats flip over on their way to the ground, and almost always land on their feet. Don’t worry about turning–yet.
Before buying at your local shop, you might want to check out what’s available at Unicycle.com where you can see many unicycle types in one place. Having a choice gives you more power in knowing what you want.
Beyond that, my main advice if you look in the stores is to avoid these two things:
Seats with metal bars front and back. The bars aren’t so bad, but the seats they are on are just bad seats. Could be Savage or other brands.
Lolipop bearings. This is a bearing holder that’s attached to the unicycle by two bolts that screw into the side of the fork tubing. You don’t tighten bolts against non-flat surfaces. That’s why this type of bearing attachment is a future problem waiting to happen. Torker and other inexpensive brands should have two vertical bolts, clamping the bearing to the end of the fork.
The tennis court is good. Anyplace you can grab a fence or wall with pavement next to it.
i got a torker from unicycle.com, and its held up with a lot of abuse that ive put it thru. however, i havn’t taken any big drops with it, cuz torker axels suck.
My jumping still needs practice, I’ve hurt my back, hands, knees, ass, and elbows from falling already.