Question on NUC races

General
1

I was comparing the write-up of NUC-95 from the group in Jan and the write-up in
OOW. It is almost word for word … however …

there is a note in the e-mail version that says: The same wheel size must be
used for all racing events, including the board races and obstacle course.

This note is NOT in OOW. Is this requirement implied by uni racing rules or is
it no longer a requirement?

I’m planning to go to my first NUC this summer and would like to know. Not that
it matters a great deal, but I would like to enter all the events (for fun) and
would like to know which uni to practice on.

I noticed that the “Official Competition Rulebook” is no longer on the USE order
form. Has it been dropped or is it out of date? Being from an area that does not
have a club or hardly any unics makes it hard to learn the rules of competition.

Maybe some one can explain the standard skill rules. We don’t need a list of the
skills (I think that went out once before). Maybe how the judging sheet works,
what the floor marking mean, tips on putting together a routine, etc.

–
– Dirk Iwema Cincinnati, Ohio USA Internet: Dirk.Iwema@ae.ge.com

2

Re: Question on NUC races

I will try to answerDirk’s questions as far as standard skill is concerned.

The competitor decides his routine and fills his judging sheet. He makes up his
own routine (with some limitations), But once he turns it in, he must do the
skills on the exact order that he wrote down in the judging sheet, Each skill
has a value according to the difficulty. the sum of this values + 200 is his
potentially highest score. There are two ways that he might lose points.
1)Did not do the trick, did not complete it, or did it when he was not
supposed to do it.
2)Made mistakes. Minor mistakes (0.5 deduction) include waving of arms,
incorrect hand position, etc. A bad fall will be a 3.0 deduction.

The floor marks the distances. They are circles. The outside lines are 8 meters
in diameter which is the distance you must do the riding skills when you choose
the on a line option. When you choose to do the skill on a circle you must keep
outside the middle circle which has a 4 meters diameter and inside the 8 meters
circle. When doing figure 8 and when doing the lines you must go thru the small
circle in the center.

You must choose up to 18 skills that you must perform in 3 minutes. Only up to 6
of those skills can be mounts and/or transitions.

There are many tips on putting together a routine. Make sure it flows, practice
it often, memorize it. Check your stamina level. If you are not sure if you will
have time to finish it, make sure the skills that will be left out are not a
high proportion of your total value.

Freestyle is a show. But the judging is totally subjective. Other sports like
boxing, figure skating, gymnastics, etc., which has many more resources than
we do, have not been able to solve it. Standard skill has a more just &
objective scoring. I like both. I see freestyle like art, which is not meant
to be judged by people other than the artist. Standard is more like a
competitive sport. You really take away from his creativity, but structure it
so that you can measure it.

Hope that I was able to help you. You really ought to buy the booklet. Do try
to put up a standard skill routine for the NUC. You might have some
difficulties, but you will be able to put together a much better routine the
second time around.

Alberto Ruiz Ruizb@aol.com Member IUF Rules Committee

3

Re: Question on NUC races

The rule about same size wheel in all events was never a part of the official
USA rulebook. It is unclear the powers-that-be in Bowling Green will attempt to
enforce such a silly rule, so you should check with Steve Cernkovich
<scernko@bgnet.bgsu.edu> for the details.

The part that worries me is the part that repeatedly says “NO larger wheel may
be used (than 24”) for any race."

I believe Ken Fuchs has the Standard Skill rules on disk, and might be able to
email or otherwise send them to you. Contact <kfuchs@winternet.com> The Standard
Skill rules are the same for both USA and IUF.

Good luck! John Foss, Chairman IUF Rules Committee unicycle@aol.com

4

Re: Question on NUC races

>I was comparing the write-up of NUC-95 from the group in Jan and the write-up
>in OOW. It is almost word for word … however …
>
>there is a note in the e-mail version that says: The same wheel size must be
>used for all racing events, including the board races and obstacle course.
>
>This note is NOT in OOW. Is this requirement implied by uni racing rules or is
>it no longer a requirement?

    That is still a requirement in general, but it is also possible that
    this year's Meet Director may have decided to not include that rule in
    this year's meet. If he really intends to keep the rule, and it was
    omitted from OOW by accident, well, such is the stuff of which judging
    disputes are made. :-\ I'm sure we'll get a definitive message from
    someone directly involved in the meet. :-)

…
>I noticed that the “Official Competition Rulebook” is no longer on the USE
>order form. Has it been dropped or is it out of date? Being from an area that
>does not have a club or hardly any unics makes it hard to learn the rules of
>competition.

    It is out of print, pending completion of a project accepted by John
    Foss, to merge in the most recent changes that were agreed to by the USA
    Executive Committee. John was also asked to make extensive changes to
    the format, punctuation, and style of the document. I anticipate that he
    will forward his completed result to the USA Executive Committee for
    final review and approval before the NUC, so a revised printing will be
    available for distribution at the event.

>Maybe some one can explain the standard skill rules. We don’t need a list of
>the skills (I think that went out once before). Maybe how the judging sheet
>works, what the floor marking mean, tips on putting together a routine, etc.

    Hmmm... I see an area for some Web work here (although I'm not
    volunteering to do it!). Thanks for the ideas. :-)

                                    Craig Milo Rogers
5

Re: Question on NUC races

>>This note is NOT in OOW. Is this requirement implied by uni racing rules or is
>>it no longer a requirement?
>
> That is still a requirement in general, but it is also possible that
> this year’s Meet Director may have decided to not include that rule in
> this year’s meet. If he really intends to keep the rule, and it was
> omitted from OOW by accident, well, such is the stuff of which judging
> disputes are made. :-\ I’m sure we’ll get a definitive message from
> someone directly involved in the meet. :slight_smile:

    I received a prompt message from Steve Cernkovich, the Meet Director.
    This very topic was discussed in the net a few months ago; the USA rules
    do not require a rider use a single wheel size. I apologize for muddying
    the waters. I've gotta either make a keyword index of my email, or get a
    USA rulebook online and close at hand...

:slight_smile:

                                    Craig Milo Rogers