Some weeks ago, when I decided I wanted to learn how to ride a unicycle, I used
the instructions on
http://www.juggling.org/help/circus-arts/unicycling/starting.html, to get me
started. Now that I am able to stay on allmost for as long as I want and make
turns, I would like to contribute with some of my own experiences.
- Choice of unicycle: I chose a 100 dollar cycle with a 24" wheel to start.
The idea was, that a bigger wheel will have stronger dynamic forces, once it
gets going. That would make for slower movements and thus make it easier to
stay on. I think I was right. - Getting on it for the first time, I was surprised how hard the saddle is, as
all my body-weight was resting on that small saddle. Also the banana shape
of the saddle hit my soft front-parts somewhat maliciously, when I fell off
the first couple of times. Do not worry about this. As soon as you get a
feel for the cycle you stop hurting your soft parts. The first day I spent
just sitting on the cycle, holding on to a wall, trying to find my
equilibrium, while watching tv. - Choice of surface: I am an executive and cannot afford a broken limb. Also I
have allways been the careful type, so my biggest concern was falling off.
So I chose to start practising on the lawn, instead of on pavement. In my
experience it is not that much harder to ride on a lawn, allthough the rough
surface makes you fall off a lot. But then in the beginning, you fall
anyway, and the lawn is better to fall on. Once you can ride confidently on
the lawn, the pawement is a piece af cake. - Falling off: I started by holding the uni in front of me, the left pedal
horizontal pointing towards me. Holding on to the wall, putting the left
foot on the pedal thus pushing the cycle towards me. Then catching the
movement with my right leg on the other pedal. Thus I got on. Ten I stood up
lightly on the pedals, to arrange my soft parts. Holding onto the wall, I
then leaned forward a bit, and caught the movement by pushing the pedals.
This got me going. Doing this, I fell off a lot, but learned how to land on
my feet and grab the cycle. When I really fell, I usually fell forwards, and
rolled it off. Only twice did I fall backwards, which really hurt. I bought
arm and knee protectors, like skaters use, for 10 dollars. But that wasn’t
really necessary. - Then I started cycling forward a little, allways holding on to the wall.
After a while I could leave the wall and cycle straight onto the lawn for
a few feet. - I found that it helped to change the starting point, so I didn’t get used to
allways starting from the same place. - For the next few days, I started next to the wall, and then cycled straight
onto the lawn, getting further every day. Paddling my arms was vital to keep
the equilibrium. Usually I kept trying, until I had a fall that hurt. Then I
stopped, because the pain distracted me. - The next step: I kept cycling over the lawn, until I made it out to the
pawed road. I was still afraid of falling, so I stopped before I got onto
the pavement. Then, when I finally got onto the pavement, I found I could
suddenly keep going allmost infinitely, that is until somebody said
something, a bug hit me, or something else distracted my attention. Having
practised on the lawn, the little uneven parts in the pavement didn’t bother
me at all. - Looking straight ahead: Until now, I had been looking down, something like
10 feet ahead of me. Only now did I start looking straight ahead. - Turns: To turn, I force the unicycle around with my hips, and paddle harder
with the outside arm. It is very similar to steering a motorcycle, in that
you have to lean a little into the corner. Incidentally I still find it
easier to turn on grass than pavement, maybe because I am less scared of
falling off.
