I learnt very early on that as soon as I fell the unicycle would clatter on the ground and I would land on my feet. Due to that I never had any fear of learning and saw no need for a helmet or any protective gear. During the whole learning process the only injury I ever got was pedal bite which I learnt very quickly to avoid. It was only after I started challenging myself on grass that I started getting injured and very minor injuries at that and infrequently I would come off trip and scrape my knee. If Iām learning new skills like hoping, idling or alternate foot mounting Iād always learn them on concrete. Giraffe free mounting is the only skill I learnt exclusively on grass due to the increased risk of falls at height and possible damage to the frame.
I found a smooth surface: concrete, carpet, asphalt much easier to learn on for riding.
But i much prefer grass for learning to freemount (something I have not yet mastered) due to being more forgiving/less intimidating. Unlike riding which most UPDās are merely stepping off, i found myself in much more awkward/dangerous dismount positions trying to freemount. Also the grass helps the wheel stay put easier, although much harder to get going too, so I plan to use it only enough to build more confidence to try on concrete/pavement.
Most grass around here is either way too bumpy or soft/soggy for ideal learning. Some golf course quality grass (or perhaps artificial turf) could be a game changer though.
There is a nice place to learn I wish I would have discovered earlierā¦ a nearby elementary school with a paved walkway around the perimeter thats adjacent to chainlink fenceāabout 1/4 mile long with most of it offering a chinlink handhold to use to get on and try to ride away from.
Not often. I usually cruise at around 16 kph and I am fairly reliable at staying on at that speed. But it only takes once coming off at speed you canāt run to have the need to be able to manage a fall. (I wear a lot of protection too).
The point is one does not start learning to fall on a 36. Best get used to it early on a smaller wheel by pushing your limits.
Also note as I said in my other post, start on grass and move to a hard surface once you can reliably step off and run out of a fall and manage a couple of turns of the cranks.
I first learned to ride on smooth asphalt. I had a couple bad falls practicing free mounts then started practicing mounts on the grass. The time I spent as a beginner riding on grass and other resistant/uneven surfaces helped me acquire more advanced skills. The fact that the OP learned on grass means it should work for others. Just because some riders on this forum have avoided bad falls on the streetā¦doesnāt mean it doesnāt happen to other riders.
The problem with grass is: It slows down the reaction of the unicycle to the forces of gravity and pedal pressure. On a smooth, hard surface with high tire pressure, the unicycle is twitchy, responsive. It gives instant feedback to the rider. On resistant surfaces, this feedback is dampened. For some things, slowing the response of the unicycle is helpful. In other situations, we want instant feedback. Learning to mount on a resistant surface is easier. Riding away from the mount is harder, though.
Ideally, beginners should experiment with a variety of riding surfaces.
Oh, weāre talking literally how to hit the ground safely if things go wrong? I feel like thatās a skill that most people donāt learn from unicyclingā¦ isnāt it pretty common to have picked that up one way or another? 
No its is about instinctively stepping off at the right point. Not everyone has already learnt to fall well either.
Hi,
I am one of the new Covid unicyclists which there will be many this year no doubt. Both my son and I learned early this year on concrete/tarmac of the local rugby clubs car park as it had handy lamposts to start from and really smooth area. The other bonus is we could watch and calculate each others progress easily by counting how many parking bays you unicylced over.
I initially tried it on grass in the garden trying to ride away from the trampoline we have that i was using to steady myself initially with. It wasnāt too successful I must admit. Found it difficult getting going. Could be more to do with my gardening and lawn levelling skills rather than the grass itself.
After a couple of hours at the car park my son was impressive where I was struggling and it showed on my calves and shins where the pedals rattled of them so many times.
Glad to say now I can freemount 50% of the time(need more practice) I try and we have had a few 6 mile rides over the summer. A good few through the local woods to which is interesting/frustrating but fun too.
Now we have four unicycles with learning on the 20" wheel I have a 26" and my son is on a 24"ā¦ Time to re-learn how to unicycle on those now.
Officially addicted to a unicycle now ,
So for both my son and I the smooth car park worked better than the grass but each to their own I say, enjoy it which ever way you learn.
Cheers
Col.
Hi Col,
Thanks for chiming in! I have to say, more than anyone who teaches on concrete for such-and-such reasons, the experience of recent learners like you who found concrete better overall is most convincing for the surface chosen.
Andrew,
After posting my experience and re-reading all the posts a good compromise would be an astro turf style five a-side football(soccer for the US ;-)) pitch that anyone could access as they normally have a fence to start of from or unicycle alongside it.
Neither my son or I had any major falls that the concrete/tarmac would have harmed us. It was always the pedals catching my lower legs that did the damage and cause the pain of learning. Never stopped me though, even at 50 years old Iām eager to get out and learn more when I can.
Cheers
Col.
Quote from an outdoor show I did once, from the guy introducing me: āJohn Foss will now unicycle, on grass. That is, he will ride on a grassy surface.ā 
Grass sucks to perform on. But like any other type of riding activity, it very much depends on the quality of the grass you can find. Typical grassy areas, in my experience, range from somewhat challenging to ride on, to quite a bit of work. This depends on how smooth the underlying surface is, thickness of the lawn, wetness, and other factors but the biggest two are how bumpy it is, and how thick; friction. Itās definitely harder to ride on than pavement, but itās definitely more friendly to fall on.
For learning, the average patch of grass in my world (United States), is not very good. If you have manicured or very well-maintained grass, thatās short and has smooth ground beneath, this could be pretty useful. The hard part is finding some of that where the groundskeepers let you ride a unicycle on it. 
Artificial turf: The plastic stuff, like old-school astro turf, I would not recommend for learning. Maybe for the earliest steps, but not for riding out in the open. Like deep pile carpet, plastic grass tends to make the wheel always drift to the side, which is not a good effect for learning to ride and steer. āSteerā clear of that stuff. Actually, in my years as a performer, wet astro turf was the #1 worst surface I ever had to do a show on. (it had been raining all day, but the turf covered the ugly asphalt/tarmac surface and looked nicer; I was the only unicyclist in a circus-themed tent of rotating performers; they werenāt going to remove it).
Today there are artifical grass products that look a lot more like real grass. I havenāt tried it, but my guess is that it rides better than the older-type plastic grasses.
Probably the ultimate surface to learn to ride on is a rubberized gym floor. If you can get onto one of those, be very happy! Beyond that, any sort of gym floor, dance floor or other flat, level hard flooring is great. The downside: People who learn to ride in a gym or otherwise indoors, arenāt prepared for even the little bumps they will encounter once they start riding outdoors.
Age/fear level are also a factor in choosing a riding surface. I learned as a teenager. I started in the basement, holding onto things, but had to go outside once I could go a few revolutions. Cement driveway. But Iām a teenager. Falling down is not thought about much. Had I learned at an older age I may have looked for a more friendly surface. If youāre not afraid of falling down, just look for a hard, flat, smooth surface. A slight downhill slope will help also in the beginning, especially if youāre riding on grass.
I recently rode on a concrete surface that led to a rubberised floor surface. (Think kids playground). Surprisingly, I found that rubberised floor really hard to ride on relative to the concrete, the pedalling effort was significantly harder, with enough unexpected difference it could have caused a UPD. I had no idea it would be that difficult.
The first time I rode on any of these surfaces it was really odd at first and I did UPD till I understood how to handle them. When I first rode on a gym I had already been riding a 20" for over 6 months on concrete, gravel, dirt and grass. I couldnāt get around how smooth a gym floor was and those rubberized surfaces just need stronger pedal presses but the first time takes you by surprise.
Those kids playground are usually way softer than you think, until you step on them. As I mentioned earlier, close to my place is a running track with rubberized floor, but itās much harder. When you ride from the concrete part into it, you fee the marginal difference. But yesterday it had rained and this thing was slippery as an ice rink! So concrete felt much saferā¦
Yes, thereās a wide range of ārubberizedā surfaces out there. Artificial payground surfaces tend to be pretty soft; to protect the little ones from injury. A tartan athletics track (one of the names of material used to pave them) is designed to be easy on your feet & legs, though not especially great to fall down on. The rubberized gym floor I remember from Minnesota, I think it may have been at the University of Minnesota for Unicon VII, was also designed to reduce wear & tear on joints & things but not to be especially soft to fall on. But what it did have was an amazing grippy quality. They set up the Obstacle Course in there (now called the IUF Slalom) and I was able to record my best time ever, at around 18.4 seconds. This wasnāt my official competition time though, and didnāt get officially recorded for posterity. 
And thatās where I do think that learning on grass is not great. And thatās from personal experience. I did this, and then I did a lot of off-road unicycling. Probably a year or so before I bought a 29" with a road tire. And I struggled. A lot. It took me a while to understand that I had bad habits that very very engrained deeply: riding with more weight on the pedals than necessary, doing half rotations of the cranks, balancing with my upper body. But I had brought this way of riding to a pretty good level because it works off road! To this day I still struggle because my base learning was wrong.
Thanks @slamdance for this. Your tips are extremely nice and well presented. Maybe we should have a section of the forum where all the best tips are gathered -a sort of wiki- for beginners landing on this forum.
This is a bit of a tough topic to handle because I feel like the way we all learned is a bit more like convergent evolution rather than a clear cut program.
Want a cake? Follow this recipe
Want to unicycle? Listen to these anecdotes about one dude who happened to have child size ski poles or this person who lived in an airport and had access to the flight tarmac. Like birds, bats, and bugs all being capable of flight through different avenues, so too has the unicycler learned through some method someone else would never have expected.
Part of me thinks there can be a lot of over thinking the process. Itās tough now to think about what I do that works and also seems like itād be tough to tell someone to ālean forward, find a center of mass, and send itā and have them try and repeat this mantra in their head before attempting to pedal.
That being said, I can review what I did to learn and hope it helps. As a disclaimer though, Iām not sure I can really say whatās easier in general for grass or concrete, just what I found easier as a beginner. So I guess this is really a āfor what itās worthā response.
Parked cars for me helped create two railings at the desired height. Park them in parallel with enough space between them and start on one end and try to ride to the other. It can also help you mount assisted. You do risk the unicycle getting away from you and hitting the car however.
As one poster said, parking lots are really helpful. I went to my Middle School and practiced there with wide space to avoid crashes, street lights and walls to mount and practice, and wheelchair ramps with railings. There was also a grass field though I never used it. I can imagine a soccer goal can have the same use as a streetlight. Also the area in front of a soccer goal typically is more beat down and trodden from constant, focused use by the players and keeper. Worth an inspection.
Depending on your location, Iād also look to meet at a crushed stone bike path. I feel like Iāve never rode on this surface and experienced a noticeable difficulty than the asphalt. Stones arenāt too big to knock you off and itās generally maintained enough, at least Iām most spots, to not be plagued by potholes. These typically have trail signs, fences, a wooden bridge with railings, which can be nice places to mount an try riding. I believe the surface to be softer for a fall, or at least disperse ls your weight better. Pad up if needed.
Astroturf, also as mentioned before, is oddly difficult to ride on. Its like a mix of sand and snow, I feel like I get stuck and the more I work to get out of it the more I slide around.
So, what does this all mean. Well, to put it into video game terms, I truly feel like unicycling is like a Roguelite game. You learn in phases.
Doubt that itās possible
Fear of Death
Fall at the first obstacle (trying any sort of rev, mounting)
Fall at the first obstacle 100 more times
Figure out the pattern of that obstacle (this could be figuring out the best way for you to assisted mount)
Falling instantly at the very next stage
Learning from the first stage and incorporating it into the next one, build upon your knowledge and understanding
Fall 100 more times because youāre convinced you figured it out
Proceed to the third obstacle.
Build on what you know and apply it to the next step
And thatās honestly how I think I learned. Learn the best way to get on, learn how YOUR body moves with the cycle under you, learn how the cycle moves when you do certain movements and try to see why, incorporate that information into a half rev. Where are you now? Are you over the wheel or behind the wheel? What will make me return to center and is that where I feel the most balanced? Regroup and reprocess, half rev maybe full rev. Are you still balanced with assistance? Donāt be afraid to lean accordingly, donāt let the wheel go ahead without you. Move with it, feel how you move and it moves and use the wall of you need to.
I think, even if you learned strictly by muscling it out, we all learned this way. Itās like an instant addiction as you walk to get back on, you repeat to yourself āI fell but I understand why, letās work on this or that or I think I know what to do here.ā And then you go back and apply that knowledge. You fall off repeatedly, just like a Roguelite, and probably get mad but you canāt stop attempting and using your learned muscle memory and how you interact with it.
I hope this helps.
I absolutely agree.
My program was simple; practice every day on a parking lot.
The unicycle pivots more easily, I think, on this surface. I am guessing this is a good thing. As a beginner, I could ride forward, but I was not good at steering. By removing some of the resistance to pivoting, crushed stone paths may help beginners learn to steer.
Iāve been watching this thread with interest because Iāve been learning to unicycle. Iām just to the point where I can static free mount and ride 100 meters off and on, so you might say I can just barely unicycle.
Today I went back and did a riding survey of the grass, artificial turf, and pavement surfaces Iāve been practicing on to compare them back to back to back.
Ideal Grass:
Pros: A grass field with a fairly hard dirt surface under short grass is my favorite for learning. It is not abrasive and even hard dirt is soft compared to pavement so Iām less likely to get injured. Importantly, grass feels less threatening, so I worry less about hurting myself and am more inclined to go for it.
Cons:
Grass surface hardness and flatness are extremely variable. Its difficult to find an ideal hard, smooth, grass area. Grass fields are often tufty making the surface irregular and more difficult to ride on. They can also be too soft or wet.
Artificial Turf:
Pros: The surface is very smooth and regular and it doesnāt get muddy when wet. The surface is soft and unlikely to cause injury so I feel like I can āgo for itā. I havenāt noticed much difference between dry and wet riding on the turf field Iāve used.
Cons: The artificial turf field rides soft and slow (Iām on a Nimbus II 24" with a stock Kenda 2.1" tire inflated to about 60 psi). I have to pedal more powerfully/emphatically to get going and stay moving. It feels like Iām riding in shallow sand atop a hard surface (but never having actually ridden in sand I may be off base). I think turf fields have a soft layer beneath the surface that feels just a little soft and has a slight rebound when walking or running, but feels sluggish for a unicycle.
I often felt twisted when riding on the turf and the small adjustments that correct this on pavement have not been enough correct this on turf. Perhaps thereās more friction between the tire and the relatively soft turf field than there is with either ideal grass or pavement and Iām just not correcting emphatically enough?
Pavement:
Pros: Relatively smooth and where there are irregularities, they are easy to see. Pavement has low rolling resistance and immediate feedback to power adjustments, balance adjustments and corrections.
Cons: Itās an abrasive and unforgiving surface.
Recommendations:
I believe thereās merit to practicing on multiple surfaces early in the learning process.
In retrospect, I think I spent too long learning on artificial turf. One day I had to move from turf to pavement and, after a little time to adjust to it, I set multiple new personal best distances (e.g., 30ās, 40ās, and 50ās strokes). Revisiting the artificial turf surface today, I still found it difficult and limiting, making me think the surface was holding me back.
If youāre just starting to learn, Iād suggest checking to see if you have access to good grass and artificial turf fields. Start learning to ride and to free mount on grass and turf. Then, after a few hours, start doing some learning on pavement. Perhaps practice some riding on pavement and practice free mounts on grass or turf until youāre a little more confident with them.
Free Mounts:
I took lessons and got advice from someone with more experience who strongly recommended learning free mounts as soon as I was able to pedal 5 strokes from a fixed object. I think itās a great idea to start learning free mounts right away. Sometimes learning two complementary things is a great strategy. It has worked well for me.
Good luck!
Artificial Turf:
Non-ideal grass with some modest tufts. The surface is more irregular than it looks from the image.
