hey,
just wondering what sized unicyle wheels are better for what,
im thinking of buying a new unicycle to replace my 20",i intend to do some long distance riding and im not too sure,
would 24" be suitable?
How long is the long distance? Also, what surface do you expect to do it on?
If it’s asphalt/smooth dirt road and distance are big, then a coker would be your best bet.
If it’s more rough, think about getting a 29".
24" aren’t very suitable for long distances, unless you like going at a very moderate pace.
well
its going to be at least 15 miles on road terrain so i did consider a 26",
What’s road terrain?
If it’s over 15 miles, I think it would be best to think 26" and above. 24" would take ages.
I ride a 24" and it takes me around 20 minutes to get to my school, which is about a kilometer away. 15 miles would take you a whole day.
You need atleast a 29er if you going to regularly ride that kind of distance else you’re going to be there all day. For that kind of distance a 36" is by far your best bet.
thanks
cheers for that,its helped haha now i have to wait until i have the money! hehe,
yeah iits for charity and the bikathon people said i could use my unicycle =]
Oh that’s cool. Unfortuntely 36" wheeled unis cost more than others, but the money is worth it. 15 miles should take you between 1 and 2 hours, depending on how good you are by the time the ride comes round. 36ers are quite hard to ride though, you need to be competent on a 20" before moving up.
ive been riding
a year now on a 20" and im quite confident been getting serious since xmas and can free mount most of the time,the ride is in september and im hoping to buy my cycle in the next few weeks and get practisingthink im going to get a 26",
a 36" unicycle is a beautifull machine but they are quite pricy. I have done quite a few rides over 30km with a 27" (obsolite roadbike wheel slightly bigger than a 29er). If you can’t aford the 36 a 29er should do you quite well.
Ivan, It sounds like you uni slower than I walk!
you dont realy uni at 3km/h do you?
A 29 is slower than a 36, but more versatile, more portable, and easier to store.
On a 28 with 110 mm cranks I have done 50+ miles in a day.
A 24 can be used for distance, but it is very hard work indeed.
26" has a good range of tyres - but there are plenty of popular options for the 29.
When commuting, I usually uni at a moderate jogging pace or a bit slower. Maybe it’s father to the school than I thought. I’ll have to check.
Seems like you aren’t taking into consideration what anyone is saying lol.
To say that you are just conquering the freemount means that you aren’t that comfortable riding yet.
For a 15 mile ride, a 36" is best. It’s pricey, but worth every penny.
But again, it doesn’t sound like you’re quite ready for that. I’d recommend sticking to the 20" until you’re REALLY comfortable. Then you could jump straight to the 36". It would probably be a waste of your money to buy a 26" because you’ll want more speed soon after you get comfortable on it.
There are several types of speed: top speed, cruising speed, total journey speed, and so on.
A Coker will cruise fastest. Nice straight flat road, build up the cadence, steam along. Brilliant.
Joe Marshall can ride his 29 faster than I could ride my Coker, though.
Add a few hills, obstacles, tight turns, and so on, and the medium sized wheel starts to make up some of the lost ground. It can take 10 revolutions to stop a Coker from speed - or possibly even more than that. So you find yourself slowing down from peak speed well in advance of any hazard. Total journey speed on a complex route may not be higher on a Coker.
Top speed? This is a confidence thing, as much as a mechanical thing. There are people who can go faster on a 24 than I ever managed on my Coker. Less distance to fall, easier to bail out.
The fastest uni on a journey is the biggest uni with the shortest cranks that you feel confident on. Can you freemount it, can you idle it?
Broadsword against rapier. Who wins? On a spiral staircase, the rapier.
If this is for a one-off event, then a 36" is overkill, and, by the sounds of it, a bit out of your league right now.
Depending on what else you like to do on your uni (hockey, trials, muni, distance etc) or what you plan to do should influence your decission. It may be that a 24 or 26 will suit your day-to-day stuff better, and come the big day you’ll just have to work hard.
Is there anyone else you know with a bigger wheel? It’ll be worth asking to try out a couple of other sizes to see how they feel. Maybe you could even buy a 26 and use that to train, and borrow a 36 for the race itself?
STM
upgrade
I have a 29 and it is a great ride – I go about 8 miles every morning on it. I also have a 24 that I use for learning things, off road, and anything that does not involve longer distance.
If I could only have one unicycle – I’d probably get a 26". Decent speed, fairly maneuverable, easy to find tire size, muni capable, and not bad on the road.
If you have a 20", don’t get a 24 next if you want to ride any distance – go to at least a 26, a 29, or get the 36 (though the transition from the 20 would be significant, but you could do it).
Carey
Type of riding
I have a KH 24 and a UDC 36 . I’m not a very good rider, so I love the 24 for tooling around dirt lots and trying new skills. it’s OK for neighborhood touring. Way better then the tedious 20.
Yet the 36 blows it away on open road. Really, a 36 is to small. At least here in the flatlands. So it’s your call. If it’s open road, there is really only one choice.