It was a nice day in NYC and I had a chance to go for a ride, so I headed over to the East River bike path and then rode north to the Wards Island Bridge. As you can see from the photo, there are three ramps leading up to the span.
When I’m in good shape I can make it up all three, then rest for a little while before crossing the span. Today, after riding a bit and doing some maneuvering, I got up some speed and cruised to the top of the first ramp. I rested (while still on my unicycle, leaning against the barrier) for a short while and then continued up the second ramp. I made it to the top of the second ramp and my plan was to ride to the other side of the flat section (crossing FDR Drive) and then do a 180 degree turn, gain some speed (as I had leading into the first ramp) and use that momentum to get me a decent way up the ramp. Things didn’t go as planned. My legs were tired and I had a UPD as I was making the 180 degree turn. Ok, not a big deal I thought to myself as I rested for a minute. Since hopping on my 36er is like second nature, I didn’t worry about the fact that I was a bit worn out and I attempted to do my normal short rolling mount, but this time I went right over the top and face planted onto the concrete! I managed to get my hands out in front of me, so my knee, wrist and elbow took the brunt of the impact. Looking back I think I probably wasn’t even really paying attention to what I was doing. I have now made a mental note to myself, which is: “At all times (and especially when I’m tired or worn out or distracted), make sure to pay close attention when I mount my unicycle and be diligent to mount my 36er carefully and properly every single time. Do not take for granted that I’ve done it with no issues dozens and dozens of times because all it takes is one quick lapse in concentration and I could easily repeat what happened to me today.”
At 56 years old, I’m lucky that I didn’t get badly injured from my recent EUC crash followed by a Superman on to the street or from today’s failed mount and subsequent immediate over-the-top face plant on to the concrete.
After an additional 5 minutes of rest, I rode up the third ramp and then rested again before attempting to cross the span. I then proceeded across the span to Randalls and Wards Island and then turned north and rode on a nice path along the river to a small foot bridge where I took a couple of photos (see attached).
On my way back, I stopped at a water fountain and chatted with a nice couple who were visiting NYC from Chicago (and were riding fixed-gear bikes) and with some other visitors to the park. After a rest by the water fountain, I decided to attempt to make it all the way across the span back to Manhattan without a UPD. The incline on the way back seems steeper than the incline on the way to the park, but I’m not certain if that is the case. For a lot of members of this forum, riding across this span is probably a piece of cake, but for me it’s not so easy, so I was very happy that I made it all the way across without a dismount.
On the way home, I noticed a bunch of kayaks in the East River with boats escorting them, so I stopped for a few minutes to check out the boaters. It turns out that the kayakers were escorting swimmers and the power boats looked like they were escorting the kayakers, but I’m sure they were there to help any of the swimmers if they got injured, exhausted, or couldn’t continue for some reason. Anyway, it was kind of cool to see.
Putting the face plant aside, it was a nice ride!
).
. Also, when I‘m tired I swallow my pride and use whatever I can find to help mount the uni, particularly with a 36er. No need to freemount each and every time.
