On my commute to work this morning, I clocked my fastest speed to date, without looking at the computer readout and just enjoying the control and steady cycling.
Pleasent surprise looking at Strava afterwards.
32.1 km/hr
Flansberrium Schlump 36"-100mm 1:1.5 gear
Strava Segment: BA Benchmark
Wait, you use 100 on a G36 ?
Yeah, it goes against all the advice I got while learning to use the schlumpf hub.
I feel the control of speed and balance is better than when I use 125mm.
I feel more comfortable with the smaller movements of crank providing the force I need to keep within my “balance envelope”
Also, I think it might have something to do with my inability to spin high cadence.
The way I cycle somehow suits the low cadence in bigger gear ratio.
Recently, I was feeling my lower back starting to ache in 100 1:1.5. So I consciously arch my back (straighter back) and it fixes it. Having arched back also allows better control of any slight forward imbalances and it gives me the confidence to push harder on the pedals.
I’m not trying to go faster, just enjoying the pressure I can put on the pedals in a controlled way. I just love the smoothness feeling of the schlumf hub.
I am now riding in high gear in places on my commute, that I never felt confident with 125mm in high gear.
With hill climbing I like 100mm in low gear, I am able to ride up all hills now, that I could in 110mm. I never really liked hill climbing in 125, it feels like I’m wasting energy spinning, when that energy could be better used to propel me up the hill.
Today I rode 130 meters with the 36” UW. And a few stretches up to 100. My legs are dead tired. I suse a rail to first make an assisted rotation to find my balance. I find it difficult for now to just push off and have and the momentum and balance to take off.
Also there is a section where I know I can make the turn but the ground is half asphalt half concrete plates and then I chicken out, but of course the wheel can roll on anything without stalling.
Soon there will be a video, that my daughter needs to make as I need both hands and mind for balance.
But Im making leaps with progress
Another brag: yous already know I have a lot of uni’s already, but I just made an inquiry to municycle.com about a Nimbus 24" Muni with KH Fusion Freeride saddle and handlebars.
One of these days put all uni’s together and take a picture. I lost count myself, but around 15. I could start my own uni-shop or museum, since Im not gonna sell them 
It will be my first orange uni and the smallest muni.
I did consider getting that before I decided to get a 29" distance. I still really want to try out MUni.
I like the uni tires, because they make balancing easier. Or at least when I first started. Then the KH26 was my second unicycle. Back when I lived in DK rode a lot of off-road, but now Im very wobbly there and can’t ride the tracks I used to. Possibly the 26/29 will be more stable, but this one looks cool and I just need to have it.
Oh, you absolutely should! So much fun 
I know, though since i just bought a new uni, I’ll probably have to wait a while. Maybe early spring next year.
ur still young. you can still overtake me with number of unicycles.
Muni…
…for the others watching me, starting like road riding, going straight downhills, ending below the uni 
Well, that’s part of it… If you don’t hurt yourself seriously, it’s also fun for you, isn’t it?
Today I realised that my behind isn’t yellow/green/purple anymore, and doesn’t hurt anymore. 
.
3 weeks after the fall. 
Today I had my fastest UPD yet (that I could outrun).
The cycle path I was using had a descent to a subway, followed by an ascent. I was schlumpfing and gained speed when shortly after the bottom an insect flew into my ear… Riding at high speed while trying to get rid of the insect was too much for me which led to the inevitable fall 
…I mean UPD 
. I was curious and had a look at the max speed that my computer registered - 24km/h. I certainly was a bit slower than that, but not by much since I started to push most towards the bottom, so I guess the fastest section was just after the bottom, about when the insect spotted a cozy place to land; a.k.a. my ear.
I continued my ride and set possibly a new personal record for speed on a unicycle, at 27.1km/h. Unfortunately I have only one magnet on this wheel, so it could be a false reading. On the other hand it‘s quite plausible, since there was a long but not too steep descent that was ideal to speed.
Anyway, it was nice to ride in second gear again, even if it‘s still not a smooth experience overall. But when you‘re in the zone…
Edit: All of this with a 4.5kg backpack. Among other things I transported 200g blueberries, of which most spilled (most certainly due to the UPD) . But not a single one got squished, so overall I was really lucky this morning 
.
So now I understand your first post:
Running out 24km/h is really really good. I am a fast runner, but I can not switch from slow Schlumpf movements to turbo speed running while jumping on the floor. I defined my max. out running speed to be 18km/h. Above that I require full protection.
Long ago I think I reached my top speed about 3 times. It was always 31km/h in different locations, so I could calibrate my tachometer by riding top speed. G36 140mm or 150mm cranks. It is my fear that precisely limits my speed, not the crank length.
Today I had another good UW session. The riding went really well, but taking off from standstill is very difficult. But then I figured with freemount, my body weight would be in the center and it should be doable. That was really hard at first and I wondered how @Ulkicycling managed to learn that so quickly, but eventually I managed 2 freemounts when riding off. That was really cool. I think freemounting a 36" UW should be easier than a 36" uni, coz you need to land on the seat, which is higher. Time will tell.
In no time I will be able to ride a marathon on it… NOT
Today I didn’t UPD, even though an insect 
flew right (I mean: left) into my ear 
! Yes, I had a second incident with a critter, and it even chose the same side. But this time I didn’t UPD - to be fair, unlike this morning I was just casually riding when it happened the second time.
I used to think that I have pretty neat ears, if I may say so. You know, those of the unobtrusive kind. Those that are just there, doing their job and …are just there. Like so:
(Yes, I’m one of the good-looking kind)
But that second incident got me thinking. So I decided to investigate this issue and examined attentively my mirror image. This is what i found:
Can you spot it? It’s hard to see, but if you have a closer look you may see it, too.
Aye, I think my face isn’t 100% symmetrical 
! The mouth, the eyes… I dunno. Oh well, maybe it’s just my immagination 
. Nothing wrong with my ears, though.
To be fair, it wasn’t quite 24km/h. But I’d say 20km/h at least. I think I was already swearing while still running. Then, as soon as the first exitement was over I was standing there and wondering why on earth I didn’t fall. I’m not a fast runner and usually top out around 15km/h when it comes to run out UPDs.
I think your beard is too short. you should let it grow, so the hair covers your ears and then no bugs can fly in anymore.
Today I rode my 36". I bought it around 10 years ago and rode it once, found it really hard work and not very enjoyable and it’s sat there ever since.
Having got back to riding regularly and using shorter cranks on my smaller unis I decided to give it another go tonight. I have to admit I was a little nervous about it, but apart from needing a bigger jump to mount, it was absolutely fine to ride.
My only issue was that the nerves had me using the longest cranks I have, 165mm. It felt weird and way too long. As soon as I got home I put 150’s on and took it for a short spin, and it felt much more natural. I know some people will say 150mm is still too long, but I think it will work for me for now. I may go shorter eventually though.
Oh, one other problem is I need to trim the bushes along my driveway. They were catching my head sitting on the 36 in a way they don’t when I use smaller wheels
You know the feeling when you push a blackberry branch out of the way with your face at speed? Indeed 36ers have disadvantages.
Thankfully mine are just cherry laurel, blackthorn definitely sounds like it would be painful!
