Hi all. I’m new to the site, and looking forward to participating here.
Here’s my story: I learned to ride when I was 12. My neighbor gave me a 20" uni that was collecting dust. I rode off and on for a few years, then gave it up. Fast forward 33 years and I find myself back on the wheel. I picked up a no-frills, no-name 24 at a garage sale just for kicks. It came back pretty easy. I’m still a bit shaky, but I’ve been riding a mile or two a few times each week. Can’t do much except go straight and make wide turns, but with every ride I gain more confidence… Overall it’s been great. I’ve dropped a few pounds and I love to watch the heads turn in my neighborhood…
So, I’m wondering about the pros and cons of moving up to a 29 or 36. I want to cover more ground, and have very little interest in tricks or muni. What should I expect from a larger wheel? Harder to handle? more work? less work? how much faster? anything else???
Thanks in advance…
36 is way fast! You’re movin at bicycle speeds on it, and your way up in the air while doing it. It’s a pretty amazing feeling. In wide open spaces it’s easy to ride, in tight places it can get sketchy until you really get a handle on it. I never felt comfortable riding mine in tight places or near traffic.
29 gives you the speed of a jogger or a bit more. very controllable. If I didn’t ride my 29er off road I would probably get pretty bored with it.
A 36 is great on the pavement. It feels very different than any of the smaller wheels because there is so much more inertia, but most people adjust pretty quickly. The hardest part is getting on the thing.
Where are you located? Maybe there’s someone nearby who can let you try theirs out.
I hoping that’s the case. I’m from central NJ (just updated my profile). I’ve been looking around for some uni groups in my area, but haven’t found any. There’s a club in NYC that meets twice/month that I may check out, but would like to find something a bit more local.
Your story sounds a bit similar to mine, except I learned later in life so I only had a 10 year lapse. When I came back I too found I wanted to use the unicycle for touring as opposed to doing tricks and such.
I had a similar debate over wheel size and was currently riding a 24. I eventually talked myself down from a 29 to a 26 and settled on a 26 muni. Even though there’s only a 2" difference in wheel size it ended up being a good 4 inch difference due to the beast of a tire. I took to it really fast so my concerns over larger wheel size being more difficult were unfounded with that small a leap, in fact I found the 26 to fit my height better, and considered the 24 far too small.
So of course I ended up getting a 29. It took a few rides, but I got used to its height and shorter cranks in no time. Now I use it as the distance/road/touring uni and the 26 for muni.
A 36 may be sometime in the future, but I’m doing ok for now. I got up with a few local riders and one of them brought a 36 uni along with them on one of our outings. I was able to mount and ride after a few bailed attempts so I’m sure that’s something I could get used to as well.
I guess I didn’t offer much help, but one thing to be careful of for someone that’s coming back to unicycling after some extended time off… watch out for muscle strains. My problem was that I had been idle for so long that all my leg muscles were jiggly. I took the uni out of the closet for the first time in forever and discovered that I haven’t forgotten how to ride, so I was off. The skill to ride was still there but the muscles weren’t. I think I may have tried to do too much too soon because I strained a quad muscle and a hamstring tendon.
I’m guessing that people just starting out for the first time have to take it slower because they are learning as they go. They don’t go on a 10 mile ride after one month because they are still in that 1 mile stage of learning. Maybe that’s just me, anyway, something to consider.
That sounds like a good idea. I think it’s worth some extra driving to meet other unicyclists. Even if you only go to the meetings every other month, it’s motivating to have friends who unicycle. I’m sure they’ll be happy to let you try all their gear so you have an idea of what you’re getting into.
Similar indeed. Thanks for the input/advice. I know what you mean about jiggly legs. Had that experience after my first 2-mile ride. I’d love to do a ten mile ride. Hopefully by this time next year I can cross it off my bucket list.
That’s the plan. I’m shooting for their late January meeting,
A personal best ride for me today. Not so much the distance, but I have definitley settled down in the seat. My head’s up, arms not flailing, and I’m more relaxed and able to enjoy the ride and look around. … Nice crisp morning here, felt great.
I’m averaging about 5.5 mph on a 24, mixed flat and small hills. Seem a bit slow???
Nah. I have a similar story, ridden a bunch this year after a 25-year hiatus. My DROID app clocked me at 9.5mph, my fastest, but my average is around 6.5 mph on my 24. The name of the game is have fun above all. Speed and endurance all come with time and effort.