I’ve dug the old uni out of the attic. Joined the local club. Copied the 10 skill levels. I can just about do everything through level 3 except “Ride with the stomach on the seat for 10 meters.”
Can someone please run through the steps?
Most find it easiest to first mount with stomach on seat rather than transition to it. Put your stomach on the seat, mount up, and ride away. It’s pretty goofy looking.
If you can do that with ease (and it’s not particularly difficult) lower the seat an inch or two to try the transition. Ride along, stand up tall on the pedals, slide the seat out front but keep it in contact with a thigh or leg on the way out, slide down the seat along your frontside until you position your stomach on the seat and ride away. To transition back, stand up tall on the pedals and shove the seat back in.
Have someone photograph you from the backside when you do this and send the photo to Carol McClean. She’s starting a gallery of Stomach-on-Seat photos.
Mr. Humble,
Am I to infer from your post that one should initially learn this manouvre with the seat unusually high?
Bruce Edwards is the humble one. You could set the seat up, it might even be easier to mount directly to stomach-on-seat that way. I was not suggesting that, though.
-Greg (not ever so humble) Harper
Memphis Mud,
I also agree that level 3 is a little soon for this trick … then again I dont know what I’m talking about most of the time. I will probably never complete level 3 just because of this skill. I could probably do it, but I won’t. I’ll never get level 1 or 2 because of laziness, not stubborness. 
I’m not too lazy to look up unit conversions on the internet, however … though that isn’t saying much!
Lewis
It’s this that is keeping me off level 3, despite being able to do most of the stuff for 4. It’s just… why would I ever want to look like I’ve gone totally mad (instead of just slightly) by riding with my stomach on the seat?! The rest of the skills have proper uses, or at least will aid some other skill that has a use. But riding on the saddle?
Phil, just me
Beg yer pardon NotEverSo. I see that B. E. is Humble.
The only benefit that I can come up with for this trick is that it lowers your head closer to the ground. Wence, your UPD will focus more exactly on the toothal region, thus saving the wear-n-tear on your expensive helmet.
The proverbial “They” want us to do it for level 3, so I’ll work on it some. I’ll let you know how it goes.
Thanks for the advice.
Mud,
Get Tommy to help you with this, golf instructor style- it’s how I’v been teaching Lewis. All level 3’s complain about this- but how else are you ever going to tie your laces without dismounting?
(actualy, if you let Tommy know you’re studdying this, he will practice in secreat until he’s mastered it, then casualy remark when he sees you practicing, ‘Hey, let me try that…’)
-Christopher
You may view this skill one of two ways.
(1.) It is a way to introduce a relatively unskilled rider to “seat-out” skills. It is easy to do because it is relatively stable and most of the weight can be put on the seat. The transition to seat-out-front is obvious and this is a very useful trials and MUni skill.
(2.) It is similar to a fraternity initiation rite in which the only goal is to determine how much of your dignity you are willing to surrender in order to believe that it will put you in a position to date the frat president’s sister who you have never even seen let alone met.
Both of these seem to be reasonable motivation to me but I’m a real “go-getter.”. (note universal punctuation)
I view stomach on seat as a skill that prepares you for learning to ride seat out front.
For a level 2 or 3 rider trying to learn seat out front is hard. But learning stomach on seat is more reasonable. After being able to ride stomach on seat then learning seat out front is a reasonable progression.
Has anyone ever done something like a 50 meter stomach on seat race at a convention? The photos of such an event would be comical.
I dunno, I found seat out front easier than stomach on seat… I practiced hopping while holding the seat in front, and going forwards was simply (!) a matter of turning the pedals at the same time.
I would imagine hopping stomach on seat is a good way of losing your lunch!
Phil, just me
Harper, John, etc.,
I can see the value of learning the Stomach thing as a step to learning the seat out front ones, I suppose. I still think that it seems more like an exhibition skill for a crowd or arena, and so it seems like it should be higher on the list. All of the level 1-4 skills, except for riding on the stomach and seat out front, seem oriented towards being “just” a rider, with increasing control. All the level 5+ skills seem more the kind of moves that are “extraneous” except for the fun factor … i.e. exhibition skills. I personally would lump stomach riding and seat out front all in level 4.
Then again, it is already established, so there ya go. No point changing it now, especially for such a little reason (“my opinion”).
I wonder why “riding down stairs” isnt on the list? After all, that would be a valid transportation skill. I suppose that the variation in build, circumstance, and public/personal safety make this unwise to stick in a skill list.
Just me,
Lewis
Tried a few times last night…
Oh…My…Gawwwwwd!
Wear you helmet! (Football Helmet with Facemask)
Failed to get even one revolution.
It seems like riding down stairs would be right at home on the muni skill levels that were suggested and never proposed. I think there can’t be a very objective set of skill levels for muni. I think thats why there are trials competitions and things.
I am not a fan of the skill levels in general. I think it is easy to loose sight of what unicycling should be about when you discretize skill in order to compare yourself to others. Which is better: to be a level 5 rider who looks and feels out of control all the time, or to be level 3 or 4 with amazing smoothness and genuine comfort while riding. The levels give no clues to the completeness of learning as has been discussed in numerous threads. Their value to motivate is useful, but they can stunt your growth and enjoyment of the sport. use with caution!
(I’m not pointing any fingers, just mentioning.)
-gauss
I doubt that there is a level 5 rider that looks and feels out of control all the time. It takes too much practice to develop the skills involved in level 5. Moreover, one of the best things you can do for smoothness is to work on seat-in-front, backwards, one-footed, and idling, which are level 4 and 5 skills. As far as completeness of learning, there is no better way to completely learn a skill than to have to do it right the first time upon demand, which is what a level test requires. It takes many hours of practice to go from doing a skill the first time to being able to do it every time. There are more reasons to advance in “official” skill levels than just to compare oneself with others.
I, too, found seat-in-front easier than stomach-on-seat; the latter seemed to me to have an extra step involved. And I, too, found it easier to learn to mount directly into stomach-on-seat, then learn the transition later.
I like the skill levels for the fact that they provide me with a list of things to try. (In a fairly logical order). 30 yrs ago we didn’t know what to do. So, we rode forward, turned, jumped off curbs. This list provides a great set of ideas. I wish I’d found it back then.
I have to giggle at Level 9’s “drag seat in front for 10 meters”.
Seat-in-front, backwards, one-footed idling?
Cor! I’d better get practicing!
Phil, just me
Hee hee, well actually a level 9 skill is: "one footed with the seat out in front for 10 meters " which is quite close!
Cor. I couldn’t even begin to think how you might try to do that, let alone actually do it myself.
With one foot riding you have to put your weight on the seat… but you can’t if it’s floating around in front of you. Does this trick involve rocket pants?
Phil, just me
Re: Level 3 Stomach Ride!!??!!??
You bring up a good point. While my 4 year old daughter had no problem
passing off level 1 my six year old son had difficulty. My son is (IMHO) a
better rider in general and can control the unicycle better than his little
sister. I sometimes find myself pushing the skill levels on the kids. This
became apparent to me last Thursday when Sara passed off level one. James
was so eager to pass of the level but hadn’t had experience with the
necessary skills. He left that evening ready to call it quits. Not because
he doesn’t enjoy riding but because his little sister had beaten him to the
punch. We’ve spent some time practicing so he can also pass off level one
but I’ve been trying to make sure I emphasize that the reason we ride and
practice is because it is FUN. When it stops being fun then it becomes
pointless and we should find something that is either fun to do (or is at
least practical).
Which skill level is the one where you have to gap between 4’ wooden spools
placed 6’apart? Which skill level is the one where you must maintain a
speed of 15mph for 1 hour? For which skill level must you turn the wheel by
pedalling with your hands? Which skill level requires a running jump mount
to a 6’ giraffe? You get the point.
Have fun. That’s what it’s all about isn’t it?
-mg
“gauss” <gauss.cxrlq@timelimit.unicyclist.com> wrote in message
news:gauss.cxrlq@timelimit.unicyclist.com…
>
> It seems like riding down stairs would be right at home on the muni
> skill levels that were suggested and never proposed. I think there
> can’t be a very objective set of skill levels for muni. I think thats
> why there are trials competitions and things.
> I am not a fan of the skill levels in general. I think it is easy to
> loose sight of what unicycling should be about when you discretize skill
> in order to compare yourself to others. Which is better: to be a level
> 5 rider who looks and feels out of control all the time, or to be level
> 3 or 4 with amazing smoothness and genuine comfort while riding. The
> levels give no clues to the completeness of learning as has been
> discussed in numerous threads. Their value to motivate is useful, but
> they can stunt your growth and enjoyment of the sport. use with
> caution!
> (I’m not pointing any fingers, just mentioning.)
> -gauss
>
>
> –
> gauss - memory fault (coredump)
>
> You can sustain a conversation indefinately using only four words:
> Yes, no, dude, guess.
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