moving on

General
1

A giraffe is fun but not very practical. It is not a unicycle that will get
regular use. A giraffe is a good choice for a third or fourth unicycle, but not
your second. A 5 or 6 foot giraffe is not much harder to ride than a standard
uni, but it is much much more difficult to mount. When I got my giraffe I was
riding it around almost immediately after getting it. I wasn’t riding it well,
but I was riding it. But I’m still not able to freemount it so the giraffe gets
very little use. Before riding a giraffe it is a good idea to be good at idling
and you should be able to ride backwards at least 10 feet. These skills aren’t
necessary for riding a 5 or 6 foot giraffe, but those skills will help you out
and help you avoid some dismounts or clumsy falls. Falls from a 5 or 6 foot
giraffe are usually no big deal (as long as you don’t land on something that can
hurt you). You’ll land on your feet and it is no worse than jumping off a desk.

You’ll have much more fun riding to work if you get a 28 inch or 36 inch (the
Coker has a 36" wheel) unicycle. If you have traffic problems or bad
intersections I would go for the 28 inch. The Coker is more difficult to
maneuver around obstacles and at many intersections you will need to dismount.
So if your ride to work has any challenges that make a Coker difficult or
unsafe, the 28 inch would be a better choice.

My little unicycle acquisition ladder would be something like

  1. A 20 or 24 for learning to ride and for learning new skills
  2. A 26 for muni or a 28 for road riding or a Coker for cruising
  3. A 26 for muni or a 28 for road riding or a Coker for cruising
  4. A giraffe
  5. Anything else that strikes you

john_childs

From: “Jay” <procat@adelphia.net>
>well, ive had my 20" savage for about a month now…and id say ive progressed
>rather well. i can comftorably ride to work on it…i can freemount, and
>travel for quite a while now…
>
>i plan on moving on and getting a coker (or other larger wheel) and a
>giraffe… funds being limited, which should i go for first? is riding a
>giraffe harder then a standard uni… i figured a coker 30" or something might
>suit me…or a 5 footer giraffe…
>
>im also working on idling, does anyone have some input for mastering it? i saw
>a guy at BJC2k idling in the parade on a giraffe for quite a while before the
>parade actually started…
>
>
>any help is greatly appreciated…
>
>cheers,
>
>- J

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2

well, i got my 28 incher today…Damn is that thing big.! i heard the UPS guy’s
truck out our door this morning, and i think i made a new world record in
landspeed as i got to the door :slight_smile:

not to sound dumb, I know how big 28 inches would be…but ive never actually
seen a 28 inch uni! :slight_smile:

ive been riding for about a month or so now… ive found myself to have
progressed pretty well actually…i usually ride my 20" savage to work. then
comes along this beast of a wheel…do you ever get use to it? im 6ft, and i
had to cut down the seat post a few inches…i am not however able to
freemount, and i find that riding is pretty difficult (almost like im learning
all over again)

because of the larger wheel, it makes taking off not as smooth for me…

does anyone have some insite for me?

thanks to John D. (www.unicycle.com) for getting it hear ever so quickly…

thanks again everyone!

  • J
3

RE: moving on

I got my 28" about 2 months ago. I had no trouble mounting, riding, or even
idling on it - probably because I’ve done a lot of riding on a heavy Schwinn
24". In your case, going from a 20" to a 28" is a much bigger jump. I assume
that you have the same size cranks as I do, I think they are 140mm.

Give it about 5 rides and you’ll probably feel pretty comfortable on it.
Mounting will sort of feel like doing what you do now - only in slow motion.

I don’t know if you got the Semcycle XL or Deluxe. I got the XL. I noticed
that the wheel was not exactly centered in the fork and it was causing me to
drift to the left a bit. I removed the wheel and put a shim above the bearing
on that side and it corrected the problem. You might want to check out your
alignment too.

I’ve been really happy with my 28", I find that it is much smoother to ride than
the 24" and especially the 20". For a cool effect, ride the 28" exclusively for
a week and then try out the 20"…it will feel like a little toy!

-Rick

> then comes along this beast of a wheel…do you ever get use to it? im 6ft,
> and i had to cut down the seat post a few inches…i am not however able to
> freemount, and i find that riding is pretty difficult (almost like im learning
> all over again)