hi peoples,
i’m pretty much a freestyle unicyclist but i wanna get into some trials type stuff…but i’m a real wuss at doing scary stuff but i wanna get not scared. so does anyone have any suggestions as to how i should start learning trials, like what things i should try to start with?
thx heaps
First practice hopping, then use 4x4’s and pallets.
-Sabin
Re: trials unicycling
Buy some armor.
i was the same way at first but the more you get into the trials you more willing you will be to do scary stuff
Hey Lauren,
I’m also a bit of a wuss with trials. What I do is only try things I know I can either do or attempt without hurting myself. Just do heaps of trials and like everyone says, you’ll get more confident. With the hopping, I’ve forgotten who said this but someone mentioned it a while ago and I think it’s really good. You find a fairly steep surface and hop on the spot. Then you try to spin around (little by little) while hopping to get used to having to apply pressure on all the different angles. Good luck.
There’s a little UniNats movie at www.unicyclist.com/gallery/andrew in the ‘My Movies’ album. There’s part of your freestyle routine in there.
Andrew
Build up slowly. Small drops. A curb. Two low steps. Then four. Practice riding on skinnies (2x4s, etc.) and stuff that are low to the ground. Then slowly raise them higher. FEAR exists for a reason. On the other hand, irrational fear should be ignored. The trick is to know which is which.
Dave Lowell (uni57)
For me, this is something that usually works if I’m worried, almost said scared, about soing something.
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Just try it out. For example I did my first one foot drop just by trying if I could do it. From that height you propably won’t hurt yourself. Before that I only had tried something like 4" or 5".
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If someone else is going to try something a bit scarier stuff out, and is wondering if he really can do it, I have this nasty habit of trying it out too. For example last weekend at the DH-tracks. This biker was wondering if he would survive a quite steep descent. I decided to try it before him with my unicycle.
This is something people also call stupidity, but that 's the way I learn new things and do the scarier stuff. Don’t think about it too much. Just do it. Of course this only work on things I know that they might work. I won’t go rying a 5 foot drop just to see if I could do it because I know my legs nor my unicycle cannot take bashing like that yet.
methods
i like trials i find if you relate stuff to what you can do eg i measure stuff with my shoe,i can now do picnic tables they are 4 of my shoes high so i know i can do any thing that is 4 shoes high and under to learn drops i find the best way is to find a low step or curb the get some tape coloured not clear the work out the minimum you have to hop side ways.mark this point with tape and when you can make it past the tape every time then you are ready for drops above crank height
Relax.
I have found that I am more likely to fall and/or get hurt when I get tense. Ride / fall like a cat. If you are up-tight you will ride like a piece crystal. The only way for me to relax is to feel comfortabale and confident by gradually expanding my limits and with loads of practice.
As always, have fun,
Tommy
I find putting the uni aside first helps… or, to put it another way, learn to pootle before doing stuff on a unicycle. Riding along high-up skinny things is a lot less scary if you’ve walked it, and jumped off it so you know you won’t panic and do yourself a nasty if you fall off when riding.
I found this helped with drops; bouncing up and down next to an edge is scary, but if you’ve jumped it and landed on your feet it’s not so bad.
Of course, you have to bear in mind that you look damn silly doing this. But people give me weird looks all the time…
Phil
This is a very good suggestion! I suggest you do this as well. I always make a point to do this before i try something new. I usually try to do it on one foot to get the balance factor in. This also talls you that what your trying to ride on is stable enough to ride on to begin with.
Plus it does take away of alot of the fear.
OOH! Another thing. You may find that it’s easier to practice your trials stuff on a beat up old 20" freestyle uni. You may be used to a lighter uni. I staretd doing all my trials stuff on a 24" chrome torker. But then it just got to a point where i had to take the step up, you know?
generaly speaking if i can do a line on foot, making the jumps with my feet together, then iL try it on the unicycle.
i dont normaly jump off stuff 2m high on my feet, but i have done on my unicycle, and it hurts my ankles.