Today I had my first go at kangaroo-ing. My plan was to mount into one foot idle, start riding one foot and then simply drop the second foot (Ultimate Wheel Build - #66 by Wheelou). Well, I was a bit optimistic… since I haven’t practiced this for a while I needed the first 5-10 minutes to just be able to ride one foot. Funnily, I was better with my non dominant foot again, maybe I should say with my non preferred foot for this trick.
Anyway, after another 10-15 minutes I set my personal record: 7 full revolutions . When I ended the practice session after 40 minutes, my record was 54 revolutions or a good 150m* . That was more than I hoped for and now, one hour later I’m still smiling.
Now my attempts in brake coasting with the muni were far less successful. How anyone is able to do this is beyond me. How do you even practice? On the flat or on a descent?
*EDIT 2: That was an optimistic calculation. At roughly 1.5m distance per revolution, it‘s closer to 75m… But the next morning I made exactly 200 revolutions or about 300m . The way I felt after this I assume it must be a pretty good core workout .
Today I decided to take the UW to the skatepark and see if I could ride in a circle. Unfortunately there were some 14 year-olds on their kick scooters doing tricks and all they could do was laugh at me and make silly remarks. Naturally I had to warm up, so the first few tries failed and they were like “how long have you been practising hahaha”. And then I broke free and could make a half circle. I also offered to 3 boys to give it a try. They couldn’t even stand up straight on the wheel while holding on to something of course.
But eventually I managed 2 times to go full circle, which was really cool. The second time I would first steer to the left and then to the right. But it still takes a lot of energy. Even though I can ride longer stretches, I always have to hop off all winded.
After the session I rode another 10km on the 32", which was much more comfortable. I really love unicycling
I was at the Bavarian track race last weekend (Germany) and verified that I cannot spin fast at all (I like short cranks and the 125s were really awkward).
But I set my (recorded) personal best in long jump: 130cm!
I generally have little problem switching between unis as I often ride my 29 Muni with 110s, my 36" with 125 or 100mm and my freestyle with 89mm.
Although in the days before the track racing I practiced a lot of brake coasting with the freewheel and although I improved in brake coasting, I think it actually made my high cadence on the track worse as I was trying to stay center-forward balanced rather than fully forward. The first race was 100m and it was like I was riding in slow motion
Then, at the end of the second day of track on 24/125mm, I rode my 36" into the city with 100mm cranks. Wow, that was strange! The first few kilometers I was really cautious, after freewheel and then 24"/125mm. But on the way back I finally was comfortable enough to kick up the speed a little.
This is the brag thread, right? Oh, it better be, 'cause bragging is just what I’m about to do!
So, today I shifted my Schlumpf for the first time on the move
The fear of falling on my injured wrist held me back almost half a year. But now that the wrist is quite useable again I took the plunge. And this is where the bragging really starts: I made my very first shift to second gear without UPDing!
As we all know, what has been shifted up needs to be shifted down again, and once again I didn’t UPD! So I had another go, and it worked again …and again …and again …and at some point I had made 10 shifts up and 10 shifts down …and was still counting. I said to myself tongue-in-cheek that I’ll stop at 20. And that’s what I did in the end. I made 20 shifts up and 20 down in a single go without touching for a single moment the ground or a wall! Man, I’m really proud of myself (now you know, in case that wasn’t clear already ).
Now I was riding slow - about walking speed - and my hit rate for shifting at the first try isn’t great, especially with my left foot. But I’m confident enough to shift on the move from now on, when riding the G29. I’m wearing my protective gear anyway when I intend to ride in high gear. And what’s best: shifting on the move seems to be easier than shifting while holding onto a post or a wall. For some reason (that I don’t really understand) the freewheeling moment was better manageable when riding than when standing still.
I just wish I made that shift earlier.
Very well done. I never got the hang of riding in the high gear. It was just too strange that the wheel would turn faster than my feet. I hit the knob a few times while riding back then too, but as I couldn’t ride in high gear, it just threw me off. I’ve sold it since then and will never buy another geared uni. “Been there, done that, don’t like it”.
Though I’ve still kept my freewheel uni. It is something I am more confident in learning and just the idea of rolling without pedaling is enough not to sell it.
So congrats on your winnings. A well-deserved brag
Thanks. I‘m kinda used to ride in high gear. Or let‘s say, I quickly get used to it again, every time I ride it. But starting in high is a b!tch. It takes a lot of patience to get that „heavy“ wheel slowly rolling. Once you‘re up to a reasonable speed it behaves much more like a normal uni, just moving faster.
When I ride a few km in high gear and then switch back to 1:1 it a) feels strange (because the legs are used to apply a lot more force to the pedals) and b) is very disappointing to move at a slow speed while the legs are moving comparably fast .
I think I was lucky to pick the right day for my first gear shifts on the fly - before today I never rode so controlled when in high gear but moving slowly. That helped a lot.
As to shifting unintentionally: that‘s why I bought some KH Spirits. The Q factor protects the button from being hit by accident.
It’s is a wonderful feeling when you get comfortable and skilled enough to ride it on descents. I/We look forward to you bragging about it in the future.
This doesnt mean much to anyone, but I feel I can go longer stretches with my UW. Generally I ride on a dike far away from peeps. This is about 6km of just riding straight. The downside is, that there are no lampposts to take off from on the UW, so today I practised freemounting. I had 2 very controlled freemounts that will pave away a way forward to finally getting out to riding along the river. It is like I know I can do it and I am soo close all the time, just need a bit more practise.
These freemount have really paid off. Today after the 24” ride, I got the idea to try out the UW at the same spot. Still had it in the car from last session.
Initially I thought I could push off from the gate but it was too low, so gave freemount a try.
I like to keep bragging about my UW sessions. Last time I only had 2 freemounts and then the 100+ metres distances. Today I had 5 freemounts. I think the first one was around 150m. At least all were 100+ metres, so 500 metres total. Normally I like to speed with the car, but this time I was drained of all energy and only drove 50kph when I’m allowed 80. And when stepping outside of the car, my legs could barely keep me upright.
The first freemount took the longest to nail, but then after some rotations they were a bit easier. I have big respect for those peeps who can ride more than 1km without stopping.
Also I noticed that that what drains the most energy is when the pedals are vertical. Then the momentum has to carry me through the dead-stop. Possibly by bending my knees enough I can apply a more horizontal force instead of stepping from left to right. It is a pity there is so little to find about UW techniques online and I just have to feel my way forward.
Today I achieved a new personal record for distance. My previous record was 10.05 miles with my 26" Oracle (5.9 mph over 1 hour 42 minutes). I decided to try the shorter crank length, and I doubled my previous record. I rode 20.83 miles with an average speed of 7 miles per hour. My total ride time was just 2 minutes short of 3 hours, but I also scattered in breaks, adding up to an hour. I just paused the workout so I could see an accurate average speed at the end. I’d like to start training for 2026 Ragbrai, so I have a LONG way to go. I think I will be getting a 36" wheel soon, so that should help. Just out of curiosity, how big of a difference will a 36" wheel make? When I first got my 26" wheel, the 6" difference compared to my 20" looked and felt intimidating. I can’t imagine how that would feel with the massive 36" wheel.
For me the difference between the 26“ fatty (effectively a 29er circumference) and 36“ felt bigger than the difference between the 20“ and the 26“ fatty. But as always in unicycling: if you persevere you will get used to it. The big wheel is indeed a different ride, and certainly a good choice for distance.
Before the 36er, my biggest wheel was my Club unicycle at 26x2.125”. It felt like a rather large jump in size in comparison! I think the biggest hurdle when starting out with a 36er is learning how to freemount the larger wheel. Riding isn’t too different apart from getting adjusted to the different feel.
. When I ended the practice session after 40 minutes, my record was 54 revolutions or a good 150m* 
. That was more than I hoped for and now, one hour later I’m still smiling.
. The way I felt after this I assume it must be a pretty good core workout 
.
…and again …and again …and at some point I had made 10 shifts up and 10 shifts down …and was still counting. I said to myself tongue-in-cheek that I’ll stop at 20. And that’s what I did in the end. I made 20 shifts up and 20 down in a single go without touching for a single moment the ground or a wall! Man, I’m really proud of myself (now you know, in case that wasn’t clear already 
