What is the minimum protection you wear?

[Dingfelder]

I dunno, I've just seen bikes and skateboards go flying, and their riders go flying, and I've made them go flying, and gone flying myself, and even read of people getting hit by other people's bikes and motorcycles and getting hurt or killed.  The possibility of things or people going flying when people are riding something is a real one and one I take seriously.

But regardless of the flying part, I don't understand why you think a MSuper is unlikely to do much damage.  It's big, hard, heavy, and moves fast.

[Mono]

9 hours ago, LanghamP said:

I was quite surprised to see my V5F immediately stop wobbling and continue onward on several of my crashes; shouldn't wheels be setup so they gradually slow down and tip over if their rider falls off?

Yes, they should and I believe the Uniwheel does not keep on moving without a rider. To be fair, I don't think it is a technological no-brainer to achieve this.

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Despite the MSuper's weight, I would consider it along with any other wheel to be minimal in regards to danger as the wheel's height is well below even a child. I'm thinking the worse a wheel could do to an adult is make them look like they've been in a minor knife fight with a midget assuming the pedals hit them just right.

I think it can crack pretty much any exposed bone of the human body, if it hits "the right" spot with 30km/h. If it hits the head of a toddler or adult (the latter is of course very unlikely), it seems easy to imagine a fatal scenario.

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No one's been killed yet by an EUC (or a Limebike / electric scooter). How many people are killed by cars?

No doubt that cars are way more dangerous than EUCs. That shouldn't prevent us from doing risk assessments of EUCs though.

[maxkan]

EUC is a convenience commuter device for me and wearing full protection just doesn't work as it is not convenient and its too hot in NYC area in summer. But the topic author is right and EUCs are dangerous as they are now. I would gladly pay 1k$ more for a safe unicycle which I would rely on.

[mkygod]

Assuming speeds being equal, are EUC's the most dangerous to ride of the electric transporters?

[Toshio Uemura]

11 minutes ago, mkygod said:

Assuming speeds being equal, are EUC's the most dangerous to ride of the electric transporters?

I think they are the savest (if you put terrain into the equation). Otherwise it might be the ?, but I would not exchange my EUC for a scooter. ? 

[Dingfelder]

Can the electric bike really be beat for safety?  People learn to ride regular bikes very young, and by the time they are teenagers even the worst bike rider might as well be thought of as an expert at simple riding around.  It's rare to get hurt going at low speeds unless your luck is truly atrocious.  And the skill transfer to an electric bike is pretty good.

[Mono]

55 minutes ago, mkygod said:

Assuming speeds being equal, are EUC's the most dangerous to ride of the electric transporters?

I would believe that also the risk difference heavily depends on the speed with which they are used. Above 30km/h, I would believe that, for example, electric bicycles are safer. Below 15km/h the difference is probably small, but EUCs may have the edge because they are less often used on the street at this speed. The differences may not be big anyways, but nobody knows at this point in time.

[mrelwood]

7 hours ago, mkygod said:

Assuming speeds being equal, are EUC's the most dangerous to ride of the electric transporters?

I’d give that honour to something with small wheels. A skateboard for example, while the stance is wider to fight a wheel getting stuck in a crack in the pavement, running it off sideways is quite a bit trickier than straight forward from an EUC.

[Thai-lad]

9 hours ago, mkygod said:

Assuming speeds being equal, are EUC's the most dangerous to ride of the electric transporters?

I think you have to define which category of danger and provide a definition of your measure of dangerous to answer that question.  

Environmental danger and danger from others? Riding on a full sized electric motorcycle in mixed traffic will no doubt qualify once they become common.  I see no reason to expect fewer accidents with them than gas powered versions have presently, indeed the high low end torque of electric bikes will lead to even more accidents, IMHO.

Roadway/sidewalk imperfections?  As someone stated earlier, I think the small wheels of electric skateboards will cause more accidents than any other device. Curbs, speed bumps, sidewalk cracks, potholes etc are all accidents waiting to happen for the unwary or distracted rider.

Hardware failure?  Our EUCs will win that prize.  One-wheels a close second. Segways a distant third. Just MHO.

But will you measure by fatalities only? Those plus injuries requiring hospital stays?  Those plus the injuries requiring only outpatient care like bandaging or setting a broken bone (that would be my choice)

Will you measure per user, or by kilometers ridden, or by hours spent riding?  

And who is collectng the data??

What seems to be a simple question is far more complex when you look at all the implications.

 

[Thai-lad]

12 hours ago, maxkan said:

EUC is a convenience commuter device for me and wearing full protection just doesn't work as it is not convenient and its too hot in NYC area in summer. But the topic author is right and EUCs are dangerous as they are now. I would gladly pay 1k$ more for a safe unicycle which I would rely on.

So the opening question was what is the minimum amount of protection you do wear?  How much or how little fits with your desire for comfort and convenience?

[Thai-lad]

On 8/20/2018 at 5:53 PM, Mono said:

Yes, they should and I believe the Uniwheel does not keep on moving without a rider. To be fair, I don't think it is a technological no-brainer to achieve this.

I think it can crack pretty much any exposed bone of the human body, if it hits "the right" spot with 30km/h. If it hits the head of a toddler or adult (the latter is of course very unlikely), it seems easy to imagine a fatal scenario.

No doubt that cars are way more dangerous than EUCs. That shouldn't prevent us from doing risk assessments of EUCs though.

As I recall someone died while riding a Segway?

[LanghamP]

The real-life electric skateboarders I've met are all geared up, with at least a helmet. Talking to more than a few of them (because EUCs provoke great interest), they have all crashed but at fairly low speeds. I suppose the small wheels and lack of response for turns makes one ride far more sedated than we do.

Really, if we talk about safety, and putting on protection, then you might as well as put on an armored cage around you like a car or better yet an SUV. I would guess any form of transportation outside of an auto is several or dozens of times more dangerous, and that includes public transportation because you have at least some part of walking (which is even more dangerous than bicycling).

Rightly or wrongly, you have to accept elevated risk when using transportation outside of autos, and then try to avoid being run over by autos, or failing that be ready to jump out of the way of a collision.

Autos are your biggest threat by far, followed by collision with small but mighty objects, and then hardware failures.

[LanghamP]

6 minutes ago, Thai-lad said:

As I recall someone died while riding a Segway?

That would be one of the major investors of Segway when he fell off a cliff while riding it.

[egiljo]

One big advantage with EUC's is the nimbleness and effortless you can dodge dangers if they arrive unexpected.

The other day a car suddenly started going fast in reverse from a garage.

The young fellow couldn't have seen me if I drove a bus from where he came and in the speed he did.

I threw my body forward to the opposite side and carved to dodge him and speed ahead.

I don't think I could have escaped without being run over (or into) with  any other vehicle with 2 wheels or more.  

I'm more worried about what other people do than I worry of my EUC braking down.

There's so many different situation you could find yourself in, what vehicle is safer than the other?

One trend I don't like is people riding EUC without helmet and those speeding in street traffic or close to pedestrians.

An accident would easily be blown up in media and EUC's are sensitive to these kind of cases.

EUC's are heavy regulated and many places still illegal.

If you want to take chances, Please don't risk others health while you do so.

[Holt]

lazer revolution full face helmet and wrist guards are my go to protection.  i like my teeth and chin.

occasionally wear my normal, non full face bike helmet, but always wrist guards.

during the winter i wear a padded shirt/vest for additional protection and warmth. 

eye protection is important - vaurnet 003 (day) or simple clear safety glasses (night) work perfectly.

the key is being prepared and ready for the unexpected while still enjoying the ride. 

i find this works for euc and life in general.

[Mono]

21 hours ago, maxkan said:

EUC is a convenience commuter device for me and wearing full protection just doesn't work as it is not convenient and its too hot in NYC area in summer. But the topic author is right and EUCs are dangerous as they are now. I would gladly pay 1k$ more for a safe unicycle which I would rely on.

Wheel failure is, to all I have seen, a comparatively rare cause of accidents, so the 1k$ wouldn't help a bit to prevent most accidents. And the most severe accidents are generally caused by speeding or collusions, again hard to prevent by making the EUC safer, apart from speed limiting tiltback which most wheels already have, at least in principle.

EDIT: I am not saying wheels shouldn't become more reliable, they should while they seem not too (for InMotion it seems even to go lately in the opposite direction, sadly). I am just saying that it is also important to keep the overall perspective in mind. 

[maxkan]

2 minutes ago, Mono said:

Wheel failure is, to all I have seen, a comparatively rare cause of accidents, so the 1k$ wouldn't help a bit to prevent most accidents. And the most severe accidents are generally caused by speeding or collusions, again hard to prevent by making the EUC safer, apart from speed limiting tiltback which most wheels already have, at least in principle.

Maybe. But the fact that I couldn't do anything in case of engine cutoff at speed makes me uneasy.

[maxkan]

9 hours ago, Thai-lad said:

So the opening question was what is the minimum amount of protection you do wear?  How much or how little fits with your desire for comfort and convenience?

There was a poll about it in this forum, search for it

[Toshio Uemura]

On 8/15/2018 at 3:18 PM, Toshio Uemura said:

I agree with you on the first part and that’s why it is so important to train for that inevitably, at least the basics. It’s the first thing you get taught by a responsible ski or snow boarding instructor, and 40 - 60 year old people don’t have to practice martial arts to learn how to fall. It must be our responsibility to instruct or at least advice any newbie we introduce our hobby to to take up such training it is as necessary as knowing the basic traffic rules. I strongly believe it is an important aspect of our hobby. Solely relying on hi-tech protection gear is simply naive and irresponsible, especially when talking about middle aged and older newbies. If they can learn how to ride an EUC they can learn and practice how to fall, if they put their mind to it. It will be of great benefit.

Listen to this man, guys! Learn and practice falling! It DOES make a difference and takes off the sharp edge of many a fall. The techniques for our hobby are a bit different though, but nevertheless the wisdom of this man‘s words is of relevance to us.

[Dingfelder]

That old guy is great!  Talk about being useful to others ...

As soon as I took up jiu-jitsu in my teens, we practiced falling.  It was so obvious how useful that would be for the whole rest of my life that ever since, I've found it hard to believe/approaching bizarre that falling isn't one of the first things kids get taught in school.  Look how physically wild and crazy and adventurous kids are!  They'll be falling a lot, and for the rest of their lives.  And the consequences just get more and more serious ...

Falling is simply a basic life skill, and far more important than most.  Everyone should be taught it, and anyone who doesn't know it, should think strongly about finding a way to work on it.

 

 

 

[Hsiang]

17 hours ago, Dingfelder said:

That old guy is great!  Talk about being useful to others ...

As soon as I took up jiu-jitsu in my teens, we practiced falling.  It was so obvious how useful that would be for the whole rest of my life that ever since, I've found it hard to believe/approaching bizarre that falling isn't one of the first things kids get taught in school.  Look how physically wild and crazy and adventurous kids are!  They'll be falling a lot, and for the rest of their lives.  And the consequences just get more and more serious ...

Falling is simply a basic life skill, and far more important than most.  Everyone should be taught it, and anyone who doesn't know it, should think strongly about finding a way to work on it.

 

 

 

I use to rollerblade a whole lot and whenever I teach people how to do it, the first thing I tell them to do, is to learn to fall. IMHOknowing how to fall not only reduce the chance of people getting hurt when they fall, it also psychologically make them less afraid to fall when the situation calls for it. And I have seen plenty of situation where doing a control fall is safer then to lose control and hit something else (or get hit).
I also think that having situation awareness is just as important as having protection, and the EUC is very condusive to that, since we're in an upright position with both hands free. It is a lot easier to look around than a bicycle where you have to hold onto the handle bar.

[solocoyote]

When I learned to ride a regular unicycle on trails I fell a lot (and... still do).  I had the most trouble with surprises -- if there's no warning at all you barely have time to protect your face.  I even ran the numbers at some point (gravity minus reaction time only left a fraction of a second to lift your arms).  With EUCs it seems to be almost all surprises, so the danger factor is high. The pogo-stick posture doesn't help any either.  

Anyway, this thread (plus the injury threads) have been helpful, scary and eye-opening.  I've always worn a helmet but nothing else.  With a faster wheel in the queue (thx @Jason McNeil!) I've decided to up my safety gear a bit.  Here's my plan:

* last-mile commuting (~ 22 kph, suburbs & city):  ProTec skateboard helmet + light-duty wrist guards (same as before, but adding some wrist protection)

* longer/faster rides:  full face helmet (fox proframe just arrived), wrist guards (Flexmeter D30 -- thx @fbhb et al) , and probably my serious skateboard knee pads until I find something with a more modern type of impact foam.