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Seven or so years ago I was browsing a local web-based classifieds and found someone selling an unicycle. It wasn't very expensive and it seemed like a skill that would be fun to pick up. It also seemed useful. My kids were quite young and learning to ride their own bikes at the time. This seemed like it would be an interesting way to lessen the speed mismatch between them and me.
It was both of those things!
It took me most of a weekend to get to the point I could do anything. I would lean myself up against the wall in the garage and slowly pedal back and forth with my one arm supporting me on against the wall. Eventually, I could push away from the wall and make it short distances, then longer distances. Within a few weeks I could ride short distances outside but, because I still wasn't able to mount without leaning on something, getting back on when I fell off required a mailbox or light pole to lean on.
The real breakthrough for me was when I learned to free mount. At that point, I noticed my skills getting better fairly quickly since I could spend more time riding, and less time walking for the nearest object to lean on.
I learned to hop. I then learned that a cheap $70 unicycle isn't able to handle a full-sized human's weight as they do that. I bent the wheel, and then bought a new stronger unicycle. I rode the hell out of that. I was eventually able to handle longer distances (a few KM at a time). I learned to bounce up stairs. I learned to ride down stairs. I brought it camping and had a blast riding around on some of the dirt trails through the camp ground.
And then at some point, I realized I want to go mountain biking with this thing! I went out a few times on some local trails by myself. I then found a few locals to go riding with. I don't have the words to describe how much fun I had. Mountain unicycling (or "muni") is now my passion.
At this point, I'm more comfortable on the unicycle on rough terrain than I am on my bike. I can't ride up steep hills but almost everything else is fair game. I can handle fairly steep downhills, and rough terrain; stuff that I wouldn't ride on two wheels.
People always are surprised by this and think it must be very dangerous. I think it's safer than 2 wheels for a couple of reasons:
- Speed. My top speed on my muni uni is maybe 10km/h. I can't get up enough speed to *really* hurt myself (unlike downhillers). I certainly might break wrists and stuff, but I'm not going to hit a tree at 40kph and break everything.
- Easy to dismount. Most of the time, when you fall off the unicycle it's easy to land on your feed. In addition, on the unicycle, my default is to fall forward *on the trail* and land on my feet. In comparison, if you snag a pedal on the uphill side on a bike, the default (for me anyways) is to tip toward the downhill side where, if it's steep, there might be nothing to put your foot onto. On the bike you can't just hop off the front.
So, to the topic of the post. Why I love unicycling...
Here are a few reasons that come to mind why I love mountain unicycling:
- It gets me out into the mountains. Being outside in the mountains is something I need.
- I drive a small car. Moving bikes around is hard. The Unicycle fits in the trunk.
- It makes trails that might be boring on a bike a total blast.
- Smiles. I love the smile it puts on people's faces when I ride by. Especially these days, we need more smiles going around.
- Exercise. I like exercise that gets me outdoors and is fun to do. This is both. And it sure is a workout. Phew!
- Cheap. I bought my mountain unicycle used for about $200. I bought some leg armour (and I already had a bike helmet). That's about it. Unlike other hobbies where there seem to be an endless set of upgrades to spend money on, there isn't much more I need or want to buy for my uni.
- Focus. This is probably the big one. You have to focus 100% on the path and what you are doing. Every tree root, drop, rock, etc. has the potential to throw you if you aren't expecting it and shifting your weight to account for it. This forces you to let go of all the other stress and thoughts that are normally rattling around in your head and, instead, focus 100% on the moment. I don't do this enough, otherwise.
Cheers. I hope to see you out there on one wheel :)
