Drew & I went to an all day Unicycling clinic on Saturday
at North Bend Elementary School. It’s put on by the coach
(Alan Tepper) of the Panther Pride unicycle team.
There was maybe one other adult student… about half my age.
The rest of the students were age 6 to 15. The instructors were from
about 14 to 21, except the coach, who was slightly older than me.
He started unicycling as a program in his P.E. classes, and now they
have a team that competes nationally. They also do parades and shows.
I actually outlasted Drew that day - which surprised me. We bothe made it
the whole day, but he was more wiped out than I was. My right ankle was
really sore and just a tiny bit swollen from spending so much time trying to
learn free mounts (my ankle hits the crank a lot on starts). I’ll post a picture
so that you can all express sympathy. 
It was a good experience for both of us, and my daughter (Elizabeth) was
inspired by seeing so many girls riding (even though she didn’t try to ride at the clinic).
Elizabeth is starting to learn too now - I told her that girls tend to learn unicycling faster
for some reason. (More than half of the kids at the clinic were girls) and that is giving her
confidence. She is learning fast, which is good because determination is not her strong suit.
But she did say she wants to do the clinic next year!
Hey, Mark!
Sorry I couldn’t make it to the clinic Saturday, I was looking forward to meeting you. At least you would have one more “adult” rider. 
Actually, I became a grandfather over the weekend as well! I can’t wait to hear “Mom, Grandpa fell of his unicycle again!”. 
CONGRATULATIONS!
Sorry I missed getting to meet you.
One of these days we’ll probably get another chance.
Lori made me feel welcome. I think I inspired her just a little closer
to starting to ride - still not close, but I could see there was a
slight glimmer of inspiration.
The jousting tools were a big hit (spontaneous pun).
The kids really liked them. It would have been better if they could have
used them on the smooth wood floor, but that space is fully in use for
skills instruction, which is the main point for the clinic. Maybe someday
it will become a real UniSport.
Don’t tell Coach Tepper… I’m thinking about making several of them
and leaving the there with the kids if we do it again next year. 
Here’s a picture of my “Crank Ankle”
Its too bad I missed that, I really wanted to go. I just didnt have the time or the ride to get out there, I wish I knew you two were going I would have tried to snag a ride out there 
Its good to know that you were able to make it though. I hope it was a good time. And sorry about your crank ankle, I know how things like that go. I used to have big bruises on the insides of my legs all the time from when I started learning to hop, terrible.
Something I do that you might want to try, find some soccer shin pads with removable shin sections. In other words, the part that you put your foot through and covers your ankle is all you need. These usually have padding right where your ankle bone sticks out and gets whacked by the cranks. It’s saved me many times.
I found a pair at Ross for $2, yes two bucks! Haven’t seen them that inexpensive since but you never know.
I actually have a pair of those. They were in our gear bag in order to meet
the protective gear requirement to ride in the outdoor trials area.
I didn’t realize they had the little pad cups over the ankle bones (I checked
yesterday). I don’t know if the shin pad is removable, but I could cut them
down to a lower height, like a padded sock.
But I’m thinking Hi-Tops would be better because they won’t get pushed
or wander out of position.
While we were at the clinic, my wife & daughter went to the outlet mall.
I asked her to find Elizabeth a pair of Hi-Tops to protect her ankles because
she scraped her ankle on the pedal during a fall. They got a pair of Nike Air
Prestige II High Tops - they look perfect. They have some thickness in the
upper ankle area, but the soles are not thick, and don’t stick way out to
the side (Some of my wide sole shoes catch on the cranks).
I’m going to look for a pair of them for myself.
I finally got a successful freemount on video:
I finally got a successful freemount on video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5z6r1n3_o9w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cSODadWY6U
Nice Mount!
Nice tie!
The seat looks low to me. Have you tried it up half an inch?
Congratulations on the mount.
Scott
Everyone says the seat is too low no matter how high I put it!
It may be a little low, but I like to do small ramps & drop offs,
and want to learn to hop someday, so for now I will just leave it.
I might try one inch higher next time I try for a personal best on distance
(currently it’s 1/2 mile - on a smooth level rubberized running track)
The seat definitely looks low. Also, try to hold onto the handle while freemounting, it’ll help when you’re mounting on uneven surfaces.
I ride a lot of Muni and do some drops and rolling hops… I don’t think I could do that with my seat too low. Just a thought
Wow. I haven’t rode in almost a year - was looking for a used 24" Torker LX like mine for my son. He has grown, and likes mine much better than his 20". I’m just keeping my eyes open for now, and hoping I’ll find the same dark gray one like I have, and like his 20" one. Seeing this old thread and how much he has grown is quite amazing.
He has continued to ride, though not as much lately.
We are going to take them with us on summer vacation so that we can practice and refresh our skills again.
Unfortunately, we are so busy with other stuff that I won’t be able to keep in practice - but I want to refresh my skills - actually, more like regain some of the skills I have lost.
