Don’t get mad at me for starting a new post–I did a search for “gliding” in the forums and didn’t find anything, plus I don’t want to get chewed out for bringing an old thread back from the grave…so I’m starting this new one.
Are there any techniques to make learning gliding any easier? I’ve been able to 1FWW for over 8 months now with no problem on flat land, but when I attempt to glide (on slight slopes & some hills)…I can’t seem to get the hang of it. My foot, no matter how light I go, seems to stop my bald 20" Maxxis tire. I think I might have to inflate to maximum pressure and raise my seatpost height…that’s probably my problem. But yeah, I can’t get the hang of gliding down. I can sometimes go for about 10 to 15 feet, but then I’ll either lose speed or stop down on the tire and mess up. It’s quite frustrating. I am using an older Nimbus round fork frame, but I have no problems propping my resting foot on it.
Also, I can’t for the life of me, learn how to go back from WW to pedals.
My ultimate goal is to get good at downhill gliding. I’m an avid BC wheel rider and I can go long distance on nice grades.
I’ve heard of someone who started out 1 foot idling on a slop then going into the glide but I assume you want more help with the actual GLIDING?
The first thing I would do if you haven’t already is to check out Marcus’s Gliding Tutorial on youtube, I’m pretty sure his username is “sp4rky m4rky”.
Tips from me, I don’t really have many except make sure the hill your gliding is steep enough so the wheel has no problem rolling. With the foot pressure I guess all I can say is practice and just adjust the pressure to balance yourself.
I just learned to glide yesterday:p just 1 footed wheelwalk on a hill. Eventually you’ll start gliding. Just do less and less pushes every time until you get going with one good push. It’s fun:)
Do it downhill for better results. Not steep, just a little down. Higher pressure and a higher seat will help, especially when learning. Once you’ve got it you can do it at your regular height and pressure. If you’d said you were using a knobby tire, I’d recommend something smoother as those can make it quite a bit harder to get the finesse for good control.
Just stick with it and it will continuously improve. For for flatter slopes to work on finer control.
WW to pedals:
Stop with feet on the tire.
To return to rear pedal, make sure wheel is a little ahead of you.
To return to front pedal, make sure wheel is a little behind you.
The above pedal/wheel positions will allow you to go straight into an idle if you want. With more practice you can just continue riding at most any pedal position.
Best way to improve on these skills is to watch other riders do it, if available. Go to conventions. NAUCC is coming up, only a day or so away by car?
I am not sure of the difference between coasting and gliding but I did my first today by accident. While trying to reposition my feet they came off and I found myself going down hill with both feet spread eagle in front of me. I went 20 or 30 feet before I was able to dismount safely. It felt REALLY cool and scared me at the same time. That is something I want to lean someday. What skills should I work on first to get there?
Gliding is with your foot on the tire, coasting without.
For gliding, learning one foot wheelwalk and then taking it down a hill is the way to go if you are alone. It’s actually not that hard. Most freestyle unicyclist learn gliding by having someone pull them, which makes it very easy if the person pulling is skilled.
For coasting, I personally ride one footed, then take the second one of the pedal and coast. I find coasting hard, although I can now get >7 meters semi-consistently. Thinking about keeping balance by pushing the unicycle forward and backward below you instead of moving your upper body helps a lot I’ve found.
What John Foss says here about returning to the pedals is the best advice I’ve seen on that subject. Too bad I didn’t see it before, when I was struggling with this! For me, returning to the pedals ended up just being a question of learning to lean back a tiny bit more than I wanted to at the moment of transition.
You can actually step down pretty firmly on that front pedal, though you certainly don’t have to. Either way, the important thing is to be leaning back enough so that the wheel passes under you when the rear pedal smacks -or kisses- the sole of your other foot.
Oh well, now it’s time for me to learn to return to the pedals when they are in different positions, and it’s also time to learn one-footed wheel walking and gliding, so it’s good to see this thread resurrected.
So what I have gathered from searching the forum and from this thread is that where my skills currently are the next skill I should be working on tward the goal of coasting is one footed riding.
I am looking forward to the skills clinics at the NAUCC in Seattle. They are my favorite part of the convention. With no club available close by it is the only time each year I can watch so many talented riders, get advice and ride with others.
If coasting is really what you want to learn, you should probably try to repeat the cool accident you had today and coast a bit more, but yes, one-footed riding should help you get comfortable with putting your feet up -one of them, anyway! I think that will help for coasting. It should also help if you decide to go the more incremental route and learn to wheel walk and glide first, although I have heard of people who learned to wheel walk before they learned any other skills. Everyone learns differently. Keep us posted.
Yup, that and wheel walk. There’s lots of textual advice for that here on the Forums.
Yes! Support the “Convention” side of NAUCC (or any uni convention)! It always takes third billing to competition events, but it’s equally as important for riders. I should put on a Sumo workshop, if it’s not already scheduled…
And don’t pin all your expectations on one or two workshops, just go up to people and ask. I think they have open gym time in the schedule for the convention, which is often the best place to find people who can explain what you need and watch you try. I’ll be there, at least up to the 20th, possibly morning of the 21st.
Woah, the “Unintentional Coasting” method is decidedly not the best approach! Especially for us “grown ups” who aren’t under the age of 30. Gliding is a big help toward learning to control coasting, though you can always try some straight coasting. But without one or both feet on the fork crown, you won’t get very far. That foot does two things; it keeps the uni from just folding out from under you, and it also lets you give it some input, to help keep the wheel underneath you.
For me it is 1st billing and by far my favorite thing at the convention. I learn so much on what I call “Clinic day” My second favorite events are my impromptu “Solo Pub Crawls”. I haven’t been kicked out of a bar yet for riding in during convention week. See if Seattle is ready for me and lets me keep my perfect record. LOL
This my be may last year for competing. Don’t do that good anyway. I just want to have fun! I AM ON VACATION!!!
Not a problem I am not shy or afraid to ask. Evenings “Larking” around in the Hotel parking lot with others can be educational and lot of fun as well. I get in the 14th, Staying at the Hilton garden Inn and leave the 21st. I am sure our paths will cross.
Evenings “Larking” around in the Hotel parking lot with others can be educational and lot of fun as well. I get in the 14th, Staying at the Hilton garden Inn and leave the 21st. I am sure our paths will cross.