I would suggest learning to hop, which is easier than idling, and will be more useful for riding off-road. Air down your tire (for the KH MUni, it probably can go as low as 15-20 psi), hold onto a pole or a wall with your off hand, hold the handle with your handle hand, and start pogo-sticking. Flex your ankles to push down on the tire, and then pull up. You don’t need the hops to be big at first, just enough to get the tire off the ground, re-compress it, and hop again. If you get to the point where you can hop in one place with small hops, you’ll have a skill that will translate in a lot of different contexts.
Also, find a group to ride with; seeing how other people handle obstacles can help you make huge gains in your own technique.
Great to see that you are still riding, even if less frequently. I would divide your goals into two types: basic skills and muni skills. The basic skills (stopping and idling) can be practiced on your 20" in your driveway (or anywhere you can ride). Song’s advice on how to practice idling is good.
Practicing the muni skills requires some bumpy off-road terrain that you can ride until it becomes second nature. Riding in grass can be tricker than riding on a dirt trail because you can’t see the bumps/holes.
Don’t forget to just go out and ride for fun as well. If practicing becomes your only riding you can sometimes forget why you want to improve your skills. Have fun!
I’m 50 and I just started up again after more than 30 years - I bought a 26" Muni and I’m learning all over again - I was able to ride 20 feet or so the first time I got on but I have forgotten how to sit down and let the uni do the work - my stamina is crap, and I’m out of shape - All I want to be able to do is to ride off road on some trails here in Houston at the moment - I’m not gonna give up. some day, Ill ride downhill, down rocks, all of it - Then Ill get a 36er!!
Hopping and idling seem to fall in the same type of skill (not moving forward) and sound like a great next skill challenge.
Just FYI, I have spent most of my riding off road on the dirt trail near my house, but it is funny how even in my best shape, I could ride that uneven trail for over a mile each way without any UPD’s, but my ability to turn around in the width of a street if I didn’t practice would diminish. The trail is also flat and wide and straight, or singletrack with some roots,so I have no “hill-skills” as well. The off road riding is really great for endurance and balance, but didn’t seem to hone my turning, hill, curb jumping, or other skills.
Maybe in addition to the idling and hopping I need to ride some different trails that will challenge me differently with hills, etc.
Tholub’s right about finding a group to ride with, and also about hopping. At first, I combined learning to hop with learning to idle, as both skills require stalling, but eventually I became unable to stall without automatically going into an idle, and once you’re rocking back and forth, hopping becomes difficult. Anyway, my point is just that a lot of skills are actually more distant from each other than they appear to be at first. If you learn to idle with your left foot down, learning it with your right foot down feels like starting over from zero…
Well, you appear to be stuck, but it ain’t over by a long shot.
I think what you need to do is learn how to ride over obstacles, starting with “sticky” surfaces like grass and perhaps gravel, then move on to small roots and rocks.
Many folks don’t make the “jump” to big wheels because they never got comfortable rolling obstacles, so they go back to small wheels and hop over the obstacles instead. There is nothing wrong with hopping, but it’s not necessary for obstacles under six inches in diameter.
^^ If this is you, then the first step is to learn how to roll an obstacle. A 29" is a tad tall for learning to roll obstacles, so I’d either use the 24" or trade the 29" for a 26".
Start the process by finding a trail that is at the edge of your ability, you want success but you want to work for it, do repeats, see if you can find a line and develop a flow. You want to ride through the obstacle, letting the uni move up and over as you ride along, then once you have the basics of riding over obstacles without stopping or UPDs, then work your way up to bigger and badder.
I find road riding boring, so I only ride muni AND I rarely hop other than to regain my balance when I get catywampus
Neither can I, but honestly, I am at a loss as to understand why I need to idle or ride backwards. I never needed it when I rode bikes, so why would I need it to ride muni??
Definitely, riding different terrain will increase your skills. If you want to specifically increase turning skills, the ball sports (hockey, basketball, polo) are outstanding practice, if you can find a group doing them (or just try on your own). Another thing that’s good for turning practice is to grab onto an isolated pole and turn around it while holding on. Try to increase the amount you’re leaning the unicycle, so the circle gets bigger, and then try to reduce the amount you’re using the pole. And try it in both directions.
If you want to be challenged to do new things you can always join the OUT superbeginner game. We challenge one another with lots of useless skills like you describe :p, while the skills themselves can be silly, learning them definitely makes you a better rider all around. It also gives you a reason to get outside and riding. It’s usually folks from all over the age spectrum so you shouldn’t feel too out of place…
I think idling and riding backward are great skills to learn. Maybe not directly usable in muni, but they develop the kind of control over the uni that’s transferable to any type of riding.
IMO any skills on the uni, freestyle, trials, flatland etc. can only make you a better more confident rider, plus they are fun and challenging to learn!
Commit. I’m at the exact same stage as you; I just committed to being a unicycling waiter at a Halloween party in 3 weeks. Suddenly I’m spending an hour per day trying to learn to idle and make tight turns.
Ride with other people. OK, I’ve actually never been anywhere near another unicyclist while on my unicycle - yet. But it seems like a good idea: where are you in MA? I’m in Littleton; I’d love to figure out a time to get together and compare notes & techniques.
OK, slight thread hijack here, sorry about that. thanks skilewis74 for the tip about the map. I never noticed it there before. There are some members not far from me, but it doesn’t appear they post here very often (never seen any). I entered information for my location, but a little red tag did not appear, so I’m not sure what I did wrong. Anyway, thanks for the info.
Tips, hmmm, I think there are probably lots of these threads, maybe look for vids as well.
It really is just the same thing as riding over an obstacle with a mountain bike “while pedaling”.
The key is timing your unweighting with your pedal stroke and the “impact” of hitting the obstacle.
Start small, lay out a bunch of sticks on the road and practice riding “through” them, then add some workouts on grass (up and downhill).
It’s not easy by any means, I had the same problems when I first started riding, but over time and with lots of practice it’s no problem riding over obstacles now; though admitedly I still mess up on occassion
This is an essential skill for muni, otherwise you can’t progress beyond gravel roads and well grade trails.
Well thanks to everyone for the motivation, I broke out my little 20" Torker and started working on idling, and it was kind of nostalgic having to go back to where it all began, holding onto the side of my garage wall!
It is kind of neat riding backwards as well. This is just what I needed to get me rejuvenated!
That’s great to hear, bluesman. 20 inchers aren’t much for covering ground but they work well for practicing in limited spaces. The low speed can be an advantage if you aren’t trying to get anywhere. And there’s something to be said for the simplicity of stepping out the door and working on your skills wherever that happens to be. Have fun!
I, too, have recently enjoyed working on skills I never paid much attention to over the years. It seemed like for years what I mostly needed to do was ride forward and wave in parades. How fulfilling to get back to the long term challenges of things like riding backwards and learning new mounts. Plus, all of that has been good and healthy exercise for me!
