Now that I’m riding longer distances I’m noticing that my upper body is always
twisted to the right when I ride; my R. arm out front and L. arm behind me. If I
straighten out it turns me to the right and i’ll drift off the R side of the
path. I tried the seat a little to compensate – in each direction – it felt
weird but didn’t seem to help. Any ideas what might cause this? Maybe my legs
aren’t the same length or something…
Re: Re: I keep twisting to the right
Ken Fuchs wrote:
|> This could also be caused by riding posture. Consciously try to ride with a
|> straight back, looking forward with most of one’s weight on the seat. Putting
|> less weight on the pedals and more weight on the seat really makes riding far
|> easier. It may take a few weeks to adjust to
Keeping almost all your weight on the seat is the single most important factor
to prevent twisiting and wobbling. Another is left-right alignment of the seat.
Be use to experiment on a flat surface, since that affects this problem too.
Stay in top, Jack Halpern
Re: Re: I keep twisting to the right
Ken Fuchs wrote:
|> This could also be caused by riding posture. Consciously try to ride with a
|> straight back, looking forward with most of one’s weight on the seat. Putting
|> less weight on the pedals and more weight on the seat really makes riding far
|> easier. It may take a few weeks to adjust to
Keeping almost all your weight on the seat is the single most important factor
to prevent twisiting and wobbling. Another is left-right alignment of the seat.
Be use to experiment on a flat surface, since that affects this problem too.
Stay in top, Jack Halpern
Re: Re: I keep twisting to the right
SORRY if anything is reaches you twice. Setting up a new connection…
Ken Fuchs wrote:
|> This could also be caused by riding posture. Consciously try to ride with a
|> straight back, looking forward with most of one’s weight on the seat. Putting
|> less weight on the pedals and more weight on the seat really makes riding far
|> easier. It may take a few weeks to adjust to
Keeping almost all your weight on the seat is the single most important factor
to prevent twisiting and wobbling. Another is left-right alignment of the seat.
Be use to experiment on a flat surface, since that affects this problem too.
Stay in top, Jack Halpern
Re: I keep twisting to the right
This seems to be a common problem, and a frequently asked question.
Perhaps Ken’s excellent summary of the likely causes could be added to the FAQ?
Julian.
Re: I keep twisting to the right
cbogart@quetzal.com (Chris Bogart) wrote:
>Now that I’m riding longer distances I’m noticing that my upper body is
always
>twisted to the right when I ride; my R. arm out front and L. arm behind me.
^^^^^
Oops, I mean twisted to the left…
Re: I keep twisting to the right
Chris Bogart <cbogart@quetzal.com> wrote:
>Now that I’m riding longer distances I’m noticing that my upper body is always
>twisted to the right when I ride; my R. arm out front and L. arm behind me. If
>I straighten out it turns me to the right and i’ll drift off the R side of the
>path. I tried the seat a little to compensate – in each direction – it felt
>weird but didn’t seem to help. Any ideas what might cause this? Maybe my legs
>aren’t the same length or something…
This could be caused by the left to right pitch or crown on most roads. Does the
problem persist when riding on level ground or a floor?
This could also be caused by riding posture. Consciously try to ride with a
straight back, looking forward with most of one’s weight on the seat. Putting
less weight on the pedals and more weight on the seat really makes riding far
easier. It may take a few weeks to adjust to this better method of riding, so
don’t worry if things don’t instantly get better.
The plane of the wheel may not intersect the seat exactly in half. In other
words the frame may be bend or misaligned to the right or the left. If this is
the case, try bending the frame in the other direction in a vise, protecting the
chrome or paint with blocks of wood. However, the chrome or paint may crack or
rinkle at the stress points of the bend.
Misaligned crankarms may also cause problems.
The seat might be cracked or flex more in one direction or the other.
The tire can be worn more on one side than the other. This occurs most commonly
when the unicycle is used for gliding with predominantly one foot or the other.
Not very likely unless the unicycle is used for gliding.
Worn bearings or other unicycle parts could even be a factor, but really not
likely to cause “twisting to the right” or left.
I’d guess that having one leg longer than the other would not be a factor, since
the ankles can easily accommodate an inch or two difference, assuming the
unicycle is ridden with the ball of the foot directly over the pedal shafts
(centers).
Hope this helps.
On One Wheel,
Ken Fuchs <kfuchs@winternet.com
Re: I keep twisting to the right
cbogart@quetzal.com (Chris Bogart) wrote:
>Now that I’m riding longer distances I’m noticing that my upper body is always
>twisted to the right when I ride; my R. arm out front and L. arm behind me. If
>I straighten out it turns me to the right and i’ll drift off the R side of the
>path. I tried the seat a little to compensate – in each direction – it felt
>weird but didn’t seem to help. Any ideas what might cause this? Maybe my legs
>aren’t the same length or something…
It’s definitely an alignment problem… look at your seat from all angles make
sure it’s straight from the front, back, top, and sides. it should be aligned
with the wheel/axle, and shouldn’t be twisted in any way.
I bought an old uni that had this problem, just had to get everything lined up
right. then it was fine.
Eric
Re: I keep twisting to the right
Chris :
I had exactly the same problem, and tried most of the solutions which already
recommeded to you without success. What made the difference was getting the
wheel balanced by a pro. Although there was nothing wrong with the wheel in the
first place, I had by then tried everythi (except bending the frame!) The pull
to the right was extremely frus was totally cured after the alignment.
good luck Mario