Learning to ride on gravel

Riding Advice
186

I’ve been adjusting the tire pressure for road riding lately. I have it at 32 psi now. I don’t have enough experience yet to feel any difference between 30-35 psi. For my driveway and the gravel road I live on I put it at 22 psi.

Yesterday at 32 psi, I rode the full, although short, length of old paved section of Hwy nearby. At it’s far end it crosses a fairly busy paved road and continues on as a hard packed dirt road. I made it the full length of both pieces in one shot, 300 yards short of a mile. The return ride was pretty good too, although I ran out of gas and stopped on two of the hills. I did manage to ride up the longest but not steepest one to finish the ride. There are small or big gains for me each practice. Slowly but steadily I’m moving along. Thanks for all the tips and encouragement :slight_smile:

187

I went for a completely different type of ride today. 1.5 miles up and down hills I previously thought I would not be able to do. Wow, what a difference riding on a well maintained road instead of an old abandoned piece of Hwy, or a dirt or potholed gravel road. I was still tiring by the end but it was easier than my shorter usual runs of late. It is also a bit different balance and speed wise, not that I go very fast. Anyhow I’m stoked to get out there and get some experience and try to add some distance to my runs.

188

Congrats, you’re doing great progress lately!
Yes you’ll realize soon that riding on smooth(er) ground allows you to sit into the saddle more, and therefore not overworking the legs.

189

In my own experience, riding off-road on bumpy terrain helped me learn more about putting weight in the seat…than riding on smooth surfaces. When I started riding off-road, I was terrible at putting weight in the seat, but I improved. In addition to learning weight-in-the-seat, I learned how to stabilize myself by sitting on the back of the the saddle and holding onto the bar ends. With stability, I can hit obstacles (the trails around my neighborhood are washboard-bumpy) without having to remove weight from the saddle. These improvements to my riding would not have happened if I were simply riding on smooth surfaces.

190

Sorry didn’t mean to make it a universal truth. We all have different stories of how we did it.
In my case, having spend more than a year doing only offroad once I could ride more than 50ft, it took me a long time to adjust to riding on the road. I had become pretty good at being on and off the saddle all the time to absorb bumps and holes and therefore always pedaling with weight on the pedals. Doing so on the road was a nightmare, uni wouldn’t go straight, it would drift and make rubbing sounds as my ride was so squirelly - which wouldn’t be a problem on dusty tracks.

191

I guess all our learning styles depend a lot on the riding conditions as well. I don’t do too much road riding. If I did, I would probably understand more what you are describing. I apologize for the contradictory-sounding remarks.

192

15 psi? anyone

If you have a fat tire don’t be afraid to go down to 15-18 psi. There’s a local park that used to be a rock quarry, and there are many trails with good size pebbles/stones(1-2" size). I used to have trouble on my 20" trainer with skinny tire. However, now with my 24" nimbus and 3.5" tire I barely feel the ground, except for a nice steady “mushy” feel. At low pressure it’s also easy to learn to do bunny hops. However, if you are used to high or moderate pressure it takes a little getting used to this feel. It feels somewhat more sluggish and you have to be more on the pedal.

193

When the tire is pumped up higher, I do notice that I sit fully down in the seat when riding on smooth surfaces. I have to concentrate to remain seated when bumping along my driveway or dirt roads. When the tire is in the 18-23 psi range I seem to sit down without thinking about it. Way back when (a year seems so long ago) I first started, Canoeheadted said I could ride these two surfaces at 22 psi. This looks like where I will probably end up while riding in my local area. It took me quite a while to gain the experience to take this, and other advice offered to find the compromise, between remaining seated and acceptable rolling resistance.

I’m doing pretty well at holding on with either hand while riding. I only get a few seconds with both hands on the saddle before I have let go and flail one or both ams to regain my balance.

Also, going up hills I do better not holding the seat. Could this be the angle of the seat, I have the nose tilted fully up at this time. (Nimbus gel unicycle saddle). Yes, I know, more experimenting and practice, thanks. :grin:

194

I find it much easier with both hands on a handle and have traveled hundreds of very comfortable miles on paved roads as opposed to gravel or other non-paved surfaces. I can ride with both hands on a handle on gravel but not nearly as easy and sometimes go along like a drunken sailor.

The camber effect of the tire/riding surface seems to be directly related to how easy it is to ride with two hands on a handle (at least for me). The more camber effect, the easier it is to ride with two hands on a handle. I have two 36ers, one with a Nightrider tire and one with a Coker non-skid tire. The Coker is not effected by road camber at all and riding with two hands on a handle is much harder and not as stable as the Nightrider tire. The Nightrider tire is effected some by road camber but less when higher tire pressure is used.

195

mhm with camber I always have 1 hand on the t-bar and the other in the air, as I’m half twisted either left or right, depending on the camber. I have T-bars on the 32" and 36". Even when there is but a slight camber, which I don’t see then my body tells me the road isn’t flat. during my rides I alternate between both hands on the handle or hands down alongside by body or on the seat or crossed in front of my chest. Whatever feels comfy. Only with sharp turns both my hands are up in the air pointing to where I want to go for extra side balance.

196

Well here I am, out of action again. I was getting the winters firewood in and I crushed and broke my middle left finger. Without gloves on I would have lost the last joint. All stitched up, bone reset and splinted? Anyhow, I want to give it some time before I risk landing on my hands from a UPD. I very rarely injure myself and now I have twice this year. No, I was not operating my chainsaw while on the uni. Stay safe everyone and happy unicycling.:slight_smile:

197

Sorry to hear that :frowning:

Hopefully you’ll be able to ride before the snow gets there.

198

Thanks Garp, it will be snowing here in the next few weeks, so probably no riding before that. I did plan to ride in the snow throughout the winter though. I’m going to go for the longest rookie rider record lol.

199

Well after a pretty bad hand injury and a really long and snowy winter, I have been back riding for a week now. Most of the snow is gone now. The dirt road outside of my yard is soft and very rutted which makes for interesting riding. I was very pleasantly surprised that I was able to land my first free mount attempt after a six month layoff. I think I was back to my previous riding ability within two half hour sessions. I’m hoping to be able too attain my goal this year of being able to ride for several miles. Anyhow it’s great to be back at it. Stay healthy wishes to all.

200

Well after a pretty bad hand injury and a really long and snowy winter, I have been back riding for a week now. Most of the snow is gone now. The dirt road outside of my yard is soft and very rutted which makes for interesting riding. I was very pleasantly surprised that I was able to land my first free mount attempt after a six month layoff. I think I was back to my previous riding ability within two half hour sessions. I’m hoping to be able too attain my goal this year of being able to ride for several miles. Anyhow it’s great to be back at it. Stay healthy wishes to all.

201

Welcome back.

Try to sit hard and you’ll be riding miles before you know it!

202

Quax1974 Thanks, I’ve been doing well. I’ve made it up a hill twice in the past two days that I haven’t been able to previously do. My sitting has been pretty good I thought. The dirt road I’ve been riding is a pretty poor riding surface right now. I’ll move onto the nearby paved road and see how that goes with about 30 psi in the Duro wildlife leopard tire instead of the current 24 psi.

203

No hands riding?
(actually, for unicycle that means “not being able” to flop your hands to balance…cuz it’s holding on the seat or a handle)
There seemed to be a few mentions of wanting to ride handle bars…so I thought I’d throw that in here.

The key is really in your pedaling.
Precision. Precision. Precision.
Perfectly even pedaling by applying equal foot/leg force on both sides allows you “not to veer” to left or right.
In addition, equal force on all hand positions on the rotation clock.
Upper body balance has nothing to do with it, because you can still steer in the opposite direction of your lean.

You may notice we are have “imperfections” in our body.
One side might be stronger, or actually longer than the other.
In addition, your “foot placement” on the pedal must also be consistent.
If you are beginner you will probably not have both foot positioned exactly the same on each pedal.
So, learn to “wiggle” your feet at a certain clock position to be able to re-position that foot.

Okay, so now that you are aware that “you are not” symmetrical or have equal pushing power on each pedal let’s fix it.
Pay attention to your pedaling and your unicycle wobbling and steering tendencies.
If you are going to the right, then a few things are happening or all:
1.) You have “more power” on your right pedaling that your left. So add more left power, or “lighten” the right side.
2.) You’re “holding” the right pedaling longer than your left. So do the opposite.
3.) You’re right foot is more “away” from the hub than your left. So “very carefully” look down and “wiggle/reposition” your feet so it matches the other.
4.) Here’s something I should have mentioned earlier. Take a look at your seat, sometimes it’s “twisted” and not straight. If you fall a lot it may be the case.

Okay, so now that you are aware of your body and know how to “compensate” lets put it to the test.
No. Don’t just go to unicycle.com and order a pair of nimbus shadows right away. You will just end up “spearing” your chest free-mounting and doing a nose-dive UPD trying to ride.
Instead, start small:
1.) Place one hand on one thigh during riding. Can you keep a straight line? Now try the other side.
2.) Okay, now place both hands on each thigh during riding. Can you keep a straight line?
3.) Okay, now grab the seat one hand, only.
4.) Okay, now two hands on the seat.

Note: Are you compensating by “adding” more power to the opposite side?
Are you compensating by “lightning” the power on the power side?
You should be aware of doing one or both.
In fact, if you are able to compensate by both methods, then I would say you are ready for handle bars.

Also, keep in mind if you are a “seat balancer” or a “pedal balancer”.
If you are a seat balancer and you cannot go straight, then you need to “add more pedal weight”. It’s easier to balance 5 lbs per pedal vs. 1 lbs per pedal. So, get off your butt.
If you are a pedal balancer and cannot go straight, then you should try to “subtract pedal weight” on the “veering side”. This gives more power to the other side, and you will automatically compensate.

204

Thanks Slamdance, this is a great write-up.
On a personal level, I’ve been struggling (ok that might be a strong word, no-one has been hurt) with veering to the left. “Thanks” to lockdown I’ve essentially been riding a 20" in the underground car park lately, a change from being outdoor on a 29" or 32". It’s been a good time to go back to basics, and my pedaling got smoother for sure.
I found out about what you’re describing, but in a more intuitive way. Thanks for putting words on it. I am what you describe as a “pedal balancer” and my left foot tends to drag too much - it keeps weighted even when the pedal goes up - and therefore my right foot is constantly working harder than it should.
I’m going to print your exercices and concentrate on them before we’re allowed outside again and go back to larger wheels which tend to smoothen out the riding/pedaling.

205

Slam dance wow, now there are a lot of things to think about and observe during my next riding session. Concentrating on, correcting and practicing your tips will improve my riding skills and peddling efficiency substantially. I know by the snake like tire track I leave in the dirt that I am not peddling smoothly. The snake print is not really so large anymore but it’s there. I can ride with either hand holding the seat but not with both for very long. Foot placement and repositioning while riding is an issue and often causes a upd. So lots of room for improvement. I think that I will now be more aware of what I am doing while riding. Thanks for the info.