How many unicyclists?

General
1

I was wondering if there is a figure available out there on just how many
unicyclists there are in the whole world? Or how about just in the USA or
England or Europe? What are their ages? How old and how young have ridden? I’ve
heard the youngest was 18 months, and John Drummond sold one to a man, I think,
81 years old. He didn’t know if the guy ever rode it.

I hear that there are several manufacturers of unicycles but I notice that there
is just a few online dealers that I have heard of.

I live in what would be called the greater St. Louis, Mo. area although I live
about 80 miles from downtown St. Louis. When I got interested in buying one I
started calling around the closest populated area to me, St. Charles, Mo. and
could not find a bike dealer that carried unicycles. None of them seemed
interested in getting into it either. But 3 of them did have one listed in a
catalog that they could order from. Two of them wanted $119.95 for it and the
other one wanted $99 for it. All were from the same catalog and were the same
unicycle, a Cycle Design. I ordered from him. It has a poor seat, like on the
Savage, but it has the main bearing cap type of bearing holders and overall it
seems like a fairly good design. I wish I’d have known about Unicycle Source
before then.

After falling from mine 2 weeks ago and landing on my tail pretty hard I haven’t
been on it much, just waiting for it to heal. And now I find that I am nervous
about it. I’m gradually getting back into it though. I’m not giving up yet. I
just hope that my sense of balance hasn’t deserted me, it seems I just can’t get
on to the sidewise balancing, but I guess it will come eventually. If I had a
sliding tether attached to a taunt cable above to keep me from hitting the
ground I’d have confidence and try more. It’s the fear of falling that keeps me
back. Old people don’t heal very quick.

     Lowell yoda@socket.net
2

RE: How many unicyclists?

> I was wondering if there is a figure available out there on just how many
> unicyclists there are in the whole world?

I’d say about a million. Go ahead and argue, I’m taking a stab. Of course to
answer this question, first you have to define “unicyclist”. This would include
a definition of at what point you can officially “ride”.

> 18 months, and John Drummond sold one to a man, I think, 81 years old. He
> didn’t know if the guy ever rode it.

The low end is 18 mo., and I think the high end was a guy in his low 90’s that
Bill Jenack corresponded with in the 1970’s.

> After falling from mine 2 weeks ago and landing on my tail pretty hard I
> haven’t been on it much, just waiting for it to heal. And now I find that I am
> nervous about it.

Stick with your support until you’re more confident. Though a human spotter
is best, if you have a fence or wall to ride along, keep it with you and stop
frequently to re-center yourself. The time to ride into the open (for us
older folk) is after you are bored enough with your support that you can’t
take it any more.

At that point, as another writer said, stay on flat and level ground (floor or
pavement), and be conservative. Practice lots of dismounts so you can get off to
your feet when you want, not when the cycle decides it.

> I just hope that my sense of balance hasn’t deserted me, it seems I just can’t
> get on to the sidewise balancing, but I guess it will come eventually.

Just as you never forget how to ride a bike, your sideways balance will be the
same. And it’s more or less the same as riding that bike with no hands. You
already know how to balance left & right on a bike, you just have to translate
that into the slower speed and hip action of the unicycle. In your case it might
help some to get on a bike and ride as slow as you can. This will help you work
on sensing your side to side balance.

> If I had a sliding tether attached to a taunt cable above to keep me from
> hitting the ground I’d have confidence and try more.

I think you would spend so much time trying to get the system to work that you’d
never spend any time thinking about your balance. Too much spotting, and you’re
Steve McPeak on his 100 footer (being held up by a crane while he pedaled it).

Stay on top, John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone http://www.unicycling.com

“In the walk of life sometimes you are a dog, and sometimes you are a hydrant.”

  • Anonymous
3

RE: How many unicyclists?

— John Foss <john_foss@asinet.com>
> wrote:
>> I was wondering if there is a figure available out there on just how many
>> unicyclists there are in the whole world?
>
>I’d say about a million. Go ahead and argue, I’m taking a stab. Of course to
>answer this question, first you have to define “unicyclist”. This would include
>a definition of at what point you can officially “ride”.

Out of this million how many are “active”? I don’t know how to define this word
either! -Mark

Free e-Mail and Webspace - http://Unicyclist.com

4

Re: How many unicyclists?

Hi Lowell,

Glad to hear you’re on the mend and still going for it. Do you wear wrist
guards? If you’re concerned about coming off again I’d suggest wearing some of
these as they give more to your sense of confidence than you might imagine - if
you come off you know you’ve got your hands to save yourself with and they ain’t
going to get hurt.

Also, I believe there are some shorts out there with a padded tail bone section.
I don’t know who makes or sells them though. Anyone else know?

Cheers, Neil

“yoda” <yoda@socket.net> wrote in message
news:000501c02c0b$4ee70800$cc2f6ad8@k4cybertech.mocty.com…
>
> I was wondering if there is a figure available out there on just how many
> unicyclists there are in the whole world? Or how about just in the USA or
> England or Europe? What are their ages? How old and how young have ridden?
> I’ve heard the youngest was 18 months, and John Drummond sold one to a man, I
> think, 81 years old. He didn’t know if the guy ever rode it.
>
> I hear that there are several manufacturers of unicycles but I notice that
> there is just a few online dealers that I have heard of.
>
> I live in what would be called the greater St. Louis, Mo. area although I live
> about 80 miles from downtown St. Louis. When I got interested in buying one I
> started calling around the closest populated area to me, St. Charles, Mo. and
> could not find a bike dealer that carried unicycles. None of them seemed
> interested in getting into it either. But 3 of them did have one listed in a
> catalog that they could order from. Two of them wanted $119.95 for it and the
> other one wanted $99 for it. All were from the same catalog and were the same
> unicycle, a Cycle Design. I ordered from him. It has a poor seat, like on the
> Savage, but it has the main bearing cap type of bearing holders and overall it
> seems like a fairly good design. I wish I’d have known about Unicycle Source
> before then.
>
> After falling from mine 2 weeks ago and landing on my tail pretty hard I
> haven’t been on it much, just waiting for it to heal. And now I find that I am
> nervous about it. I’m gradually getting back into it though. I’m not giving up
> yet. I just hope that my sense of balance hasn’t deserted me, it seems I just
> can’t get on to the sidewise balancing, but I guess it will come eventually.
> If I had a sliding tether attached to a taunt cable above to keep me from
> hitting the ground I’d have confidence and try more. It’s the fear of falling
> that keeps me back. Old people don’t heal very quick.
>
> Lowell yoda@socket.net

5

Re: How many unicyclists?

On Sun, 01 Oct 2000, yoda wrote:

>I live in what would be called the greater St. Louis, Mo. area although I live
>about 80 miles from downtown St. Louis.

We don’t live too far apart, I’m in Wichita, Kansas. There’s at least one other
online unicyclist, Mark Stephens, who lives in Tulsa, OK. Mark and I had talked
last spring about taking a ride together, but my whacked out schedule has
prevented it thus far. [Hope you don’t think I’m just flaking out on ya, Mark! I
have been a bit intimidated by your clearly superior ability though…<g>]

>When I got interested in buying one I started calling around the closest
>populated area to me, St. Charles, Mo. and could not find a bike dealer that
>carried unicycles.

I lucked out when I went looking. The first and only bike shop I stopped at had
unicycles, less then half a mile from my house. AND the guy at the shop also
rides!! I’ve subsequently seen them at Schwinn dealers as well, but generally
much more expensive. I bought an inexpensive unicycle when I started because I
wasn’t sure I’d stick with it. I’ve bought two since then, and I love it. I want
at least one more at this point. My 40th birthday is coming up later this month
and I’m kinda hoping for it then (but I’m probably dreaming, since the one I
want is pretty expensive…)

>I wish I’d have known about Unicycle Source before then.

Yeah, me too! John and Amy have been wonderful to deal with. And I would have
ended up with a unicycle I’d have wanted to keep instead of the one I got.
BUT, I might still have made the same decision, since I wasn’t sure I’d want
to keep doing it after an initial interest, so I didn’t want to invest much
before I was sure.

>After falling from mine 2 weeks ago and landing on my tail pretty hard I
>haven’t been on it much, just waiting for it to heal. And now I find that I am
>nervous about it. I’m gradually getting back into it though. I’m not giving up
>yet. I just hope that my sense of balance hasn’t deserted me, it seems I just
>can’t get on to the sidewise balancing, but I guess it will come eventually. If
>I had a sliding tether attached to a taunt cable above to keep me from hitting
>the ground I’d have confidence and try more. It’s the fear of falling that
>keeps me back. Old people don’t heal very quick.

I fell off mine after about a week and sprained my ankle pretty good. Even
though the injury healed quickly, the fear kept me from learning very fast after
that and my progress took longer after that particular fall.

One bit of advice I can offer you, Lowell, is to practice on a smooth, level,
surface. The photos on your web page show you riding on grass, which I’ve found
MUCH more difficult then riding on regular pavement, especially while learning.
Go with the easy approach at first. Once you find that balance point, then get
into the rougher terrain. That will probably speed your progress.

Blessings, Greg

6

Re: How many unicyclists?

“Mark Stephens” <Cokerhead@unicyclist.com> wrote in message
news:20001002181129.2A0C780DC@sitemail.everyone.net…
>
>
> — John Foss <john_foss@asinet.com>
> > wrote:
> >> I was wondering if there is a figure available out there on just how many
> >> unicyclists there are in the whole world?
> >
> >I’d say about a million. Go ahead and argue, I’m taking a stab. Of course
to
> >answer this question, first you have to define “unicyclist”. This would
> >include a definition of at what point you can officially “ride”.
>
> Out of this million how many are “active”? I don’t know how to define this
word either!

As a newbie unicyclist I seem to be a lot more “active” than my son Dan. He just
zips along beside me effortlessly while I find myself dripping with sweat in
about 15 minutes. But that’s probably not the way you meant active! The most
active riders I’ve seen were those at the front edge of the cone of balance,
going downhill.

Blessings!

Arthur Doerksen

7

RE: How many unicyclists?

>
> > I was wondering if there is a figure available out there on just how many
> > unicyclists there are in the whole world?
>
> I’d say about a million. Go ahead and argue, I’m taking a stab. Of course to
> answer this question, first you have to define “unicyclist”. This would
> include a definition of at what point you can officially “ride”.

Ya think there is that many? But I’ll take your word for it, I don’t have a
clue. On how to define a “unicyclist”, I don’t know. Maybe include wanna be’s,
maybe include only ones that can ride some distance without falling off.

> > 18 months, and John Drummond sold one to a man, I think, 81 years old. He
> > didn’t know if the guy ever rode it.
>
> The low end is 18 mo., and I think the high end was a guy in his low 90’s that
> Bill Jenack corresponded with in the 1970’s.

Right, I remember you saying that before. I just quoted John Drummond about what
his experience was.

> > After falling from mine 2 weeks ago and landing on my tail pretty hard I
> > haven’t been on it much, just waiting for it to heal. And now I find that I
> > am nervous about it.
>
> Stick with your support until you’re more confident. Though a human spotter is
> best, if you have a fence or wall to ride along, keep it with you and stop
> frequently to re-center yourself. The time to ride into the open (for us older
> folk) is after you are bored enough with your support that you can’t take it
> any more.

I have been using our hallway, still only one hole from a pedal in it so far.
I’ll stick with that for a while.

> At that point, as another writer said, stay on flat and level ground (floor or
> pavement), and be conservative. Practice lots of dismounts so you can get off
> to your feet when you want, not when the cycle decides it.

Yes, I have got to the end of the hall and had to decide how to get off. I have
started looking ahead and stopping with one foot on the down pedal and using the
other foot to land on while grabbing the seat with one hand.

> > I just hope that my sense of balance hasn’t deserted me, it seems I just
> > can’t get on to the sidewise balancing, but I guess it will come eventually.
>
> Just as you never forget how to ride a bike, your sideways balance will be the
> same. And it’s more or less the same as riding that bike with no hands. You
> already know how to balance left & right on a bike, you just have to translate
> that into the slower speed and hip action of the unicycle. In your case it
> might help some to get on a bike and ride as slow as you can. This will help
> you work on sensing your side to side balance.

Good idea. It’s been a long time. Back during the second world war as a kid I’d
ride down the road with no hands on the handle bars while reading a book, with
an occasional look up to see where I was going. Of course back then there was
gas rationing and a car would come along about every half hour or so.

> > If I had a sliding tether attached to a taunt cable above to keep me from
> > hitting the ground I’d have confidence and try more.
>
> I think you would spend so much time trying to get the system to work that
> you’d never spend any time thinking about your balance. Too much spotting, and
> you’re Steve McPeak on his 100 footer (being held up by a crane while he
> pedaled it).

Probably so, it was just a thought. No place or way to install something like
that anyway.

> Stay on top, John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone http://www.unicycling.com
>
> "In the walk of life sometimes you are a dog, and sometimes you are a
> hydrant." - Anonymous

     Lowell yoda@socket.net
8

Re: How many unicyclists?

Arthur Doerksen wrote:

> As a newbie unicyclist I seem to be a lot more “active” than my son Dan.
He
> just zips along beside me effortlessly while I find myself dripping with sweat
> in about 15 minutes. But that’s probably not the way you meant active! The
> most active riders I’ve seen were those at the front edge of the cone of
> balance, going downhill.

To help reduce the effort you are doing try relaxing and take your weight on the
seat and not the pedals. Your legs are probably doing some of the holding of you
up while you are pedalling. I would also bet that when you compare your riding
with that of your son’s you tend to wiggle more, this is caused by the same
problem, it also adds to the wearing of you out! you have to correct the wobble
with your body. One exercise I use with “newbie unicyclists” is to tell to think
that their feet are going around in circles and not just “up and down”, this
sometimes helps.

Good luck

Roger

The UK's Unicycle Source <a href="http://www.unicycle.uk.com/">http://www.unicycle.uk.com/</a>
9

RE: How many unicyclists?

>
> On Sun, 01 Oct 2000, yoda wrote:
>
> >I live in what would be called the greater St. Louis, Mo. area although I
> >live about 80 miles from downtown St. Louis.
>
> We don’t live too far apart, I’m in Wichita, Kansas. There’s at least one
> other online unicyclist, Mark Stephens, who lives in Tulsa, OK. Mark and I had
> talked last spring about taking a ride together, but my whacked out schedule
> has prevented it thus far. [Hope you don’t think I’m just flaking out on ya,
> Mark! I have been a bit intimidated by your clearly superior ability
> though…<g>]

Maybe about 200 miles or more. Mark wrote me also.

> >When I got interested in buying one I started calling around the closest
> >populated area to me, St. Charles, Mo. and could not find a bike dealer that
> >carried unicycles.
>
> I lucked out when I went looking. The first and only bike shop I stopped at
> had unicycles, less then half a mile from my house. AND the guy at the shop
> also rides!! I’ve subsequently seen them at Schwinn dealers as well, but
> generally much more expensive. I bought an inexpensive unicycle when I started
> because I wasn’t sure I’d stick with it. I’ve bought two since then, and I
> love it. I want at least one more at this point. My 40th birthday is coming up
> later this month and I’m kinda hoping for it then (but I’m probably dreaming,
> since the one I want is pretty expensive…)

You did luck out on finding a shop. I hope you get what you want for your
birthday. Maybe if you are a good boy till then. :slight_smile:

> >I wish I’d have known about Unicycle Source before then.
>
> Yeah, me too! John and Amy have been wonderful to deal with. And I would have
> ended up with a unicycle I’d have wanted to keep instead of the one I got.
> BUT, I might still have made the same decision, since I wasn’t sure I’d want
> to keep doing it after an initial interest, so I didn’t want to invest much
> before I was sure.

I probably would have too, but I think I’d have gotten a better uni for less. I
did order a tape from them, the One Wheel No Limits. I had called them and got
the answering machine, later John called back and we talked for a while. He is
really nice.

> >After falling from mine 2 weeks ago and landing on my tail pretty hard I
> >haven’t been on it much, just waiting for it to heal. And now I find that I
> >am nervous about it. I’m gradually getting back into it though. I’m not
> >giving up yet. I just hope that my sense of balance hasn’t deserted me, it
> >seems I just can’t get on to the sidewise balancing, but I guess it will come
> >eventually. If I had a sliding tether attached to a taunt cable above to keep
> >me from hitting the ground I’d have confidence and try more. It’s the fear of
> >falling that keeps me back. Old people don’t heal very quick.
>
> I fell off mine after about a week and sprained my ankle pretty good. Even
> though the injury healed quickly, the fear kept me from learning very fast
> after that and my progress took longer after that particular fall.

I’ve been pretty good about landing on my feet, but this time it was so quick I
didn’t even know I was going down. One second I was up and the next second I was
down. I was going to have her get a pic of me up on the uni, but she was a
little too slow on the trigger.

> One bit of advice I can offer you, Lowell, is to practice on a smooth, level,
> surface. The photos on your web page show you riding on grass, which I’ve
> found MUCH more difficult then riding on regular pavement, especially while
> learning. Go with the easy approach at first. Once you find that balance
> point, then get into the rougher terrain. That will probably speed your
> progress.

I have to agree about the smooth surface, I thought the grass might be softer,
but at this time of year it’s getting rather thin and the ground is pretty hard.
Might as well have stayed on the concrete.

> Blessings, Greg
Take care.

     Lowell yoda@socket.net
10

RE: How many unicyclists?

On Mon, 02 Oct 2000, yoda wrote:

>I probably would have too, but I think I’d have gotten a better uni for less. I
>did order a tape from them, the One Wheel No Limits. I had called them and got
>the answering machine, later John called back and we talked for a while. He is
>really nice.

I totally agree. And I think you’ll enjoy the One Wheel No Limits tape too. I
recently got that one myself and it’s been very inspiring!

>I have to agree about the smooth surface, I thought the grass might be softer,
>but at this time of year it’s getting rather thin and the ground is pretty
>hard. Might as well have stayed on the concrete.

I’d much rather land on my feet on a smooth surface then on my butt in the
grass. The problem with grass is that you can’t really see what’s under it. It
might be relatively smooth, or it migh have pretty large bumps hiding under the
folage. Even a little bump can unseat you as an inexperienced rider, so you’re
much better off on something you know is smooth.

Greg

11

RE: How many unicyclists?

>
> On Mon, 02 Oct 2000, yoda wrote:
>
> >I probably would have too, but I think I’d have gotten a better uni for less.
> >I did order a tape from them, the One Wheel No Limits. I had called them and
> >got the answering machine, later John called back and we talked for a while.
> >He is really nice.
>
> I totally agree. And I think you’ll enjoy the One Wheel No Limits tape too. I
> recently got that one myself and it’s been very inspiring!

I have already viewed it several times, maybe 5 or 6 times. I learn something
new each time I see it.

> >I have to agree about the smooth surface, I thought the grass might be
> >softer, but at this time of year it’s getting rather thin and the ground is
> >pretty hard. Might as well have stayed on the concrete.
>
> I’d much rather land on my feet on a smooth surface then on my butt in the
> grass. The problem with grass is that you can’t really see what’s under it. It
> might be relatively smooth, or it migh have pretty large bumps hiding under
> the folage. Even a little bump can unseat you as an inexperienced rider, so
> you’re much better off on something you know is smooth.

That little bump is what done me in. I will say I’ve never had a bad fall on the
floor inside. Outside we have a small patio and a slanting driveway, so it’s got
to be inside for a while. We have paved street, just the service road at the end
of our gravel driveway. I don’t trust all the speeding cars there.

> Greg

     Lowell yoda@socket.net