granny knot
Many people have warned of the perils of shoelaces getting caught. As a new rider, I thank you for the warning! Falling with an ankle bound to the crank sounds like it would cause nightmares as well as pain (no? then imagine if it happened to both feet at the same time… yikes!). And you wouldn’t call that a UPD – I don’t think that it’s technically a dismount if you are still attached to the unicycle.
Anyway, I recently discovered why my shoelaces sometimes become untied. I was unknowingly tying a granny knot (go ahead, laugh). Basically, a shoelace is tied like a square knot – you know, right over left, left over right (or the opposite). The second part, of course, is done with loops. Any other this-over-that combination is unstable and will come loose.
So, please make sure you are tying a proper knot (then double knot and tuck in). I can’t be the only one doing it wrong. And the moral of the story is that it’s never too late to learn new things. At age 37, I’ve finally learned how to tie my shoelaces AND I’ve almost learned to ride a unicycle.
uni57 (Dave)