When are two wheels better than one?

When the only riding area nearby is an old train track turned bike path
with swamp land on both sides and crossroads that have the right-of-way,
the traffic on which is not visible until the last second, due to
Louisiana’s heavy tree growth. The unibike doesn’t do too well with
surprise stops, and after a few near crashes with vehicular traffic, I
…uhh… (sheepishly) put the forks and training wheel back on (don’t
everybody throw rocks at once). Now the poor thing looks like just a
regular b*ke again (well, as regular as any b*ke with three brakes on
the rear). The training wheel has already saved me twice. That’s two
crashes that might have been. Hind sight being 20/20, I think I made a
wise decision for now. I’m not in a hurry to add my name to the growing
list of uni-patients.

It’s not all bad though. I didn’t realize until I got back up to speed,
how much I missed the higher speeds that are achievable when I don’t
have to conserve a lot of power to prevent a catastrophic leg tangling
crash. There’s also a lot more passing going on, once during which a new
question was recently asked - What’s the other wheel for? I’m only
averaging a few mph faster, but on one wheel, that’s enough to boost the
adrenaline level quite a bit. And I’m getting a better workout. The
unibike weighs over 30 lbs with a fork and training wheel. Yeah, I’m
back to avoiding windy days because of the steering problem produced by
the weather vane blowing around in front of the handlebars. But at least
it’s not collecting dust like the Muni’s.

This area of the country seems to have only two riding surfaces:
pavement and swamp. Who was it that had a wooden unicycle with an ATV
tire? I could use that kind of traction down here.

I’m looking forward to an upcoming trip through Memphis where I can
hopefully hook up with the grand master and his great group of
one-wheelers.


--
unibiker - What is that thing anyway?

Jeff Baker

______________________________

Favorite comment (from a child) 'You can't do that. That's impossible.'
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Hee hee I call mine a "safety unicycle." It has been very handy for
riding with a sprained ankle.


--
U-Turn - Mounting a Revolution

Weep in the dojo... laugh in the battlefield.

'Strongest Coker Wheel in the World'
(http://www.unicyclist.com/gallery/albup39)

-- Dave Stockton
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Unibiker,

Am I to understand that you are still riding on one wheel, with the
spare off the ground until you need it, as in a WHEELIE?
If so, that's almost weirder than the other way.

Scott


--
S_Wallis - MUni motivated

"I am always doing that which I can not do,
in order that I may learn how to do it."
Pablo Picasso
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S_Wallis wrote:
*Unibiker,

Am I to understand that you are still riding on one wheel, with the
spare off the ground until you need it, as in a WHEELIE?
If so, that's almost weirder than the other way.

Scott *
Hey Scott,

Yeah, the front wheel is just along for the free ride, but it comes in
real handy for surprise stops when I have to drop it and jam on the
brakes. It’s a bit more of a struggle to ride this way. My max non-stop
wheelie distance was 32 miles before I removed the forks and started
unibiking. I’ve gone slightly over 40 miles (non-stop) without the dead
weight on the front. With the forks in place, I either use a 26" wheel
or (when it's windy) a miniature front wheel that catches much less wind
and therefore causes less trouble with the steering. However, with no
front brakes on the mini wheel, I still have to approach the
intersections a little slower.

From weird to weirder? Maybe so. But it keeps me pedaling, and the added
safety allows me to work on the speed. Boredom has caused the road bike
and mountain bike to go unused for eons. But if it’s not too windy and
my legs are fresh, the unibike is very likely to receive an hour or two
of wear and tear.


--
unibiker - What is that thing anyway?

Jeff Baker

______________________________

Favorite comment (from a child) 'You can't do that. That's impossible.'
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