i am riding in a parade tomorrow, and i can not do a free mount. any ideas?
Re: [parades]
“GARY RILEY” <DMRILEY84@email.msn.com> wrote: i am riding in a parade tomorrow,
and i can not do a free mount. any ideas?
Take a person with you as a portable post. Use them when you need to mount. They
can also provide someone to lean on if you get stuck in a crowd.
There are a couple of important issues to consider when riding in parades.
*How much space will you have around you when riding? Remember that an
uncontrolled dismount can send you AND the unicycle flying. This is an even more
important consideration on a giraffe where you can take out a 6m swathe of
pedestrians.
*What speed will the parade be traveling at? Riding at walking pace is a lot
harder than chugging along at the normal cruising speed of a unicyclist. Some
parades meander along at an even slower pace. If you haven’t go enough space to
go around in circles it is is important that you can idle or at least ride half
a revolution backwards to slow your self down.
*How long is the parade route? You may end up riding a lot longer than used to.
Parades can really drain your energy. Don’t push yourself too hard. It may even
be worth walking some of the quieter parts of the route.
*What kind of terrain will the parade take you over? Organisers don’t usually
consider unicyclists when designing routes. You could be in for some fun with a
road full of bumps, a few steep hills, icy roads etc.
*What’s the weather going to be like? If its hot you’ll want some water with you
(A good idea any way). You may want a jacket for the cold or an umbrella for the
wet (goes down great with the crowds). Don’t forget wet pedals can be slippery.
If a parade is going to be really crowded I recommend being at least a level 3
rider before taking part. Its just not worth the risk of wiping out some poor
pedestrian with an uncontrolled dismount.
If on the other hand you’ll have enough space to ride around, grab that helper
and go for it!
Parades can be a lot of fun and are a good way to give unicycling a better
profile. Enjoy yourself,
Peter
o o Peter Bier o O o Juggler, unicyclist and mathematician.
o/|\o peter_bier@usa.net
Get free email and a permanent address at http://www.netaddress.com/?N=1
Re: parades
Unless you really have good control and the parade won’t be crowded, I’d
recommend waiting until you can successfully remount. Besides the safety issues,
it’s just much nicer if you can remount yourself if/when you come off. In my
pre-free mount days, I would not do a parade.
Good luck,
Nathan
“GARY RILEY” <DMRILEY84@email.msn.com> wrote in message
news:uBMuofT5$GA.280@cpmsnbbsa09…
> i am riding in a parade tomorrow, and i can not do a free mount. any
ideas?
Re: parades
I am bringing my wife along on a parade tomorrow, and she cannot always
freemount. I shall have to dismount and help her on. I agree with all the
cautions presented in the other letters, but this parade has plenty of space.
Good luck. Idaho Joe