Just curious on people’s thoughts. As a primary distance rider I’ve found that short cranks but a heavy/more planted or stable wheel helps me go faster.
I practiced with 125mm and got really good at spinning them and it carries over to smaller cranks.
Also having a wider tire that means you can have more control on rough surfaces means more speed for me as well.
What factors (besides skill and practice) do you find help you go faster on your uni? For fun let’s say average speed vs top speed.j
I had a dog chasing me once. I had never been faster before, nor since. But I’m not planning to do this as part of my regular riding routine.
Similar situation for me, I was trying to keep up with a couple friends on 36ers during the marathon at NAUCC this year and I was on a 29er. We rounded the halfway turnaround more or less together still but after that one fell back a bit and I fell back farther than him, but still managed a 12.19mph average speed.
This dog is obviously not running… 
Conditioning… it will allow you to continue to ride, without stops, throughout physical stresses that would have previously grounded you.
Continuing to ride brings up your average speed more than standing beside your unicycle, bent over trying to catch your breath halfway up that hill. (or on your hands and knees catching your breath!)
I agree with Canone about conditioning. Slow riding buids it (zone 2/blue zone), not fast/threshold puls zone.
Also, losing weight if that’s a problem you have.
I would say technique can have a large impact as well, but you need conditioning and technique to really go places. I put a lot of weight on my handle and saddle to keep my feet light on the pedals and spinning fast without using them to hold me up much at all. Doesn’t work well on bumpy surfaces but is really good for high speed spinning. I do this on long high average speed rides and sprints so it works for all kinds of stuff.