To offset some of the bad cop experiences here I will post a good one.
I was hanging out in Memorial Park with some friends with various unicycles. A friend was trying my 36 for the first time and was cruising down the trail and crashed in full view of a bike cop. The cop asked if he was OK and said something about having a helmet. When they got to where the rest of the group was they were having a casual conversation and someone suggested that there should be cops on unicycles. So I offered to let the cop try one of my smaller unicycles.
He accepted the offer and gave the trials a try. starting at a tree he got almost a full rev on his 4th try then gave it back saying that he should probably get back to work.
Latter I looked up the rules for that particular trail and found that that a unicycle would have been considered a bike and bikes needed full reflectors and a bell or horn.
This cop was conversational, actually tried a unicycle and didn’t even mention that we were doing something that he could technically give us tickets for.
It seems ridiculous that you could get a dangerous driving charge for unicycling.
I think the light one beats it but I got stopped on my way to school by an officer. He told me to put a helmet on or else he would write me up for a 50 buck ticked. I kinda giggled and he said that it was a law in my town. I asked him if the law actually covered unicycles and his response was “well, i’m impressed” and then he drove off. I pulled up the law he was talking about and it comes down to the definition of bicycle like in most cases. Maybe one day I can get a ticket so I can take a picture and get a laugh out of it before I go and get it dropped.
Seriously i wouldnt say i want to be stopped by a cop but if it did arise i couldnt wait…i mean how much fun could you have…It’s a bike son…OR IS IT…i cant wait…when i first moved to Australia i went to the cop shop and they didnt want to talk to me when i was asking dead serious questions about unicycling…I CANT WAIT…
anyone come close to destroying a police car?
cause i know i have
he was pulling me over for jaywalking while i was freebording (which i definately was jaywalking)
stops in front of me and throws the door open which i had to swerve around to avoid taking it off the hinges.
slid to a stop so he could write me up
first day of school too:D
or for that matter anyone get nailed by people throwing open car doors without looking? cause i have come close on a unicycle… and other devices too
To add a few more details, the cop said I had no light, reflectors, or a bell. Note that it was around 2 pm that this happened.
Also, he tried to get me on the gear I was wearing: Shin/knee guards and elbow pads. He tried to make it seem like I was wearing them because I fell all the time. I could hardly say to him (because he didn’t give me a chance) that I wear them just in case I need them. I mean, skateboarders, and BMX riders should have them for they’re own personal protection.
I’m just glad that I don’t have to pay a $325 fine. That could buy me another uni. (Wanna get a coker so bad… But I have to save for other stuff)
Edit: He also told me that the uni belongs at the skate park. Barely anything there.
Have any of you heard of the guy killed by a taser in the vancouver airport?
We have ourselves some trigger happy RCMP officers.
I have been told to get off my uni and walk on a sidewalk. I got off, walked a block away, then rode again. I have also been told many times to leave areas (many trials obstacles).
Another time, I was riding on railway tracks downtown. I didn’t know that there were many cameras all around me. They came, took my ID, and told me that if I was ever caught riding on transit property I would be ticketed $500.
Although I do have a great respect for the police, there are some individuals in the force that come down way to hard on innocent people and aren’t doing enough to stop the real criminals
I felt like I was being treated like known hooligan when all I did was ride my unicycle. I wasn’t trying to bother anyone or anything like that. To be treated as a threat on the road when I was in control was crap. I’ve never been pulled over or had any criminal record. Another detail I left out was when the officer asked me if I wanted to be arrested when I was trying to find out whether a unicycle was defined in some way in the law books. That is when I shut myself up. I think it’s an abuse of authority when police officers even do that.
A similar thing happened to myself and my friend when we were out unicycling in the middle of the night. Only one of us had a helmet on, and although I had a front light, neither of us had reflectors or rear lights. To their credit the police didn’t try to lay anything like a fine on us (though they did call for another car!), they were just concerned that we were up to no good. Which we weren’t, and after I was open with him they seemed satisfied.
I’d be outraged, but I know of several people who’ve had cars pinched in the same area around midnight and appreciate the cops keeping their eyes peeled… though I wonder about thieves or vandals using unis to appear inconspicuous!
Depends where you live. In Australia, unicycles are explicitly defined as bicycles (parse that!), so in theory we are obliged to stay off footpaths, wear a helmet, and be equipped with a brake and bell. Considering that 95% of unicycles sold and used in Australia don’t come with a brake, it’s frustrating that the legislation continues to ignore reality!
I was arrest last week for impersonating myself.
the bouncer didn’t think the I.D i was using was mine and then called the police when i persisted.
I spent half an hour standing outside the pub giving details and then the officer checked the I.D i was said to be ‘falsley’ using and threatend me with more charges and serious things. I told him that it might be difficult for any of these to hold in court because i am me and not someone else To which he lost his temper and put me in his car and drove back to my car followed me out of the city, more than likely rather embarrassed.
well i am not sure how it works in canada but in the states you can ask a cop to show you any RCW that relates to your current situation. I dont know about all states, but in washington a cop must show you the RCW for your situation… yadayadayada. if you have any time to sift trough all your state and county laws that relate to this matter i sujest you do.
“muscular powered vehicle” sounds like something a cop is making up off the top of his head. the Washington State RCW definition of a vehicle refers to a bicycles as being one. Any other form of muscular transportaion would not be a vehicle in this case.
I highly doubt he could actualy justify giving you a ticket and even if he did i am sure a judge would be much wiser to letting you off for such a silly acusation. Worst case you could ask a lawyer for advise, I’m sure they would love to look into a civil case like this.
Next time you could ask the cop if he knows how to ride a unicycle. if he answers “no” then you could ask him how he could determine what is or isnt safe riding, since he or she obviously has no knowledge relating to unicycle riding.
If he/she answers yes, then i suggest you tell that they should then know what the deal is and to back off your case.
Kidding. that would brobably be a bad idea.
Any way. I have been stopped by cops MANY times and what really gets me is the inconsistency.
I have been jumping a stair case and have a cop stop and tell me that it was very impressive and drive off. Other days on the same stair case a cop will stop me and say that they never want to see me there again. Some tell me i need a helmet, others tell me that its not nessecary for a unicycle.
Here you can ride on the side walk but must yield to a pedestrian on the sidewalk if nessecary. So I’m not sure what to tell you about that. I mean if you on a 20 in. i think its kinda rediculous to have to ride on the street. But i could see that on a 36.
I guess all you can ask is that a cop uses a bit more common sense to the situation then read up on definitions. Unicycles are kinda getting to the point were they need there own rule. But who knows if that will happen.
In many countries, states, territories or provinces police need a reason to actually stop someone. I think that in many cases the police are curious about the unicycle and threaten a ticket in order to cover thier ass. They are not allowed to stop you just because they want a close up look. You would be free to file a complaint. Last week I was gapping from this stone bench to a raised cement platform in a town next to were I live. Tow cops on mopeds stop and just look at me for a while. I did a few more gaps and jumps for them and they just rode off!
The only time I have ever been asked to dismount and walk is when unicycling through a fairly busy large town centre where a police “person” asked us to dismount, no further conversation or accusation took place just a polite “please walk” comment. Since it was a busy town centre I complied but still wonder if it is against the law or frowned upon to ride in a public area.
Oh there was one other time when we were told we could not do anything in Manchester, UK, City Centre as it had cracked down on anything that wasn’t basically sitting and walking around.
The only other issue I can imagine coming up is if we are doing trials lines, street lines in and around certain areas they could fine you etc for damage of public property, a bit like what skateboarders get issued with now.
Further information for UK unicyclists, according to this letter we are governed by cycle laws and should be on the road and using lights if used at night. Therefore the police were perfectly within their right to ask me to dismount when riding in the town centre. Ah well.
I got a ticket from a ranger for riding down into the Grand Canyon even though the sign only said no BIcycles. He put “cycles prohibited” as what my ticket was for. I was going to fight it but since I live a good 7 hours away it wouldn’t be my worthwile for a $125 ticket.
Barely anything there.