Happy birthday Alucard!
Vertigo and Pierrox: I ran a Hookworm for a while on my 26" muni with a wide Kris Holm rim and while it was great for learning muni it wasn’t so fun on pavement for me either. It tried to tell me where we were going to go unless I pumped it up really hard, and then it seemed to want to bounce more than roll.
OTOH, I have a CST Cyclops–Cheng Shin Tire’s other brand–on my 24" Sun with the stock rim that’s maybe 32 mm wide and it’s a different story. (Pierrox, that’s the one you rode last summer.) I never worry about air pressure and it always rides and handles great. I know it’s not a perfect comparison, but it’s gotten me thinking along the same lines as Vertigo, that maybe the tire needs a more rounded profile on pavement, especially one with smooth tread that grips really well. And maybe also with a larger diameter, which also flattens out the contact patch.
Meanwhile my 700c with the 26 mm wide rim keeps rolling along. If there’s any that I feel “at one with” that would be it.
And yes, a 20" unicycle is just the thing for a chilly winter evening. I had both of mine out last night in fact. I got the farthest I’ve gotten hopping up my hilly driveway on the Impact and also practiced idling on it, and I did some hill repeats out in the street on my Avenir with the 89 mm cranks, which was crazy and challenging but fun. (As much as people say about rolling inertia, the lack of inertia with a small wheel and light tire seemed to make it harder. It’s nearly the same gear ratio as my 700c with the 127s, but it really wanted to stall out in mid-stroke while the pedal is coming over the top.)
I also played around a little bit with doing rolling free mounts onto the 700c. I’m starting to think a little bit about getting a 36" when my two year moratorium ends next month, and free mounting onto one of those is what everyone talks about. It didn’t take too many tries to work out a rolling mount with a three-step approach. I’m sure it’s a whole different story on a the bigger wheel. But I’m at least optimistic that a couple of years practice, and my very frequent UPDs and re-mounts while riding muni, might help a little.
OK, out into the sleet and freezing rain now for my first #31milemarch ride!