New riders and practice grounds

[Yellowman]

Hello,

I am (still) new here and I would like to get some feedback / share my experience so far.

I started in a nearby park where I luckily found a long enough ramp to hold on to for the first 4 hours of practice. During that time none of the park visitors felt happy about it.

They gave me looks as if I don't belong here. Additionally, I felt / observed how unfriendly they were. In short: I was not welcome there.

Now that I don't need ramps no more, I don't feel good practicing there anymore. They get annoyed if they are blocking the whole lane (walking 3+ next to each other) and I come from behind and tell them: "Behind you, to the right", etc.

I know cyclists do that to warn pedestrians but usually my observation is that pedestrians cannot care less and in their hearts don't want you near them at all.

 

So I am not sure where to practice in a safe environment no more and I surely don't want to be around people since they are unfriendly, take too much space, walk with disregard to others behind them (even solo pedestrians get stuck behind people who block the whole lane).

Please advise.

[null]

If your country / city has bicycle lanes, those are (IMO) be the most adapted. Now that you don’t need to hold on to anything anymore, distance covered will build up your confidence, you could go for a trip as long as you are careful with the crossings(?) My first 2-300km I couldn’t get on without support, but targeted some pole to hold on to while waiting at red lights (again, bike line)

[FlyboyEUC]

Empty parking lots, parking structures, dirt roads, well trimmed grass/dirt fields. Where in CA are you at? I trained at a park for the first hour, then a school parking lot for the next 3 hours. Street, bike lanes, and bike paths ever since. I think people will always look at you weird. They don't dislike you, they are just trying to figure out why a full grown man is trying to ride a toy. Also, when learning, you look super awkward. It will go away once you are carving in the street and jumping off curbs at 25 mph. 

[Darrell Wesh]

3 hours ago, Yellowman said:

Hello,

I am (still) new here and I would like to get some feedback / share my experience so far.

I started in a nearby park where I luckily found a long enough ramp to hold on to for the first 4 hours of practice. During that time none of the park visitors felt happy about it.

They gave me looks as if I don't belong here. Additionally, I felt / observed how unfriendly they were. In short: I was not welcome there.

Now that I don't need ramps no more, I don't feel good practicing there anymore. They get annoyed if they are blocking the whole lane (walking 3+ next to each other) and I come from behind and tell them: "Behind you, to the right", etc.

I know cyclists do that to warn pedestrians but usually my observation is that pedestrians cannot care less and in their hearts don't want you near them at all.

 

So I am not sure where to practice in a safe environment no more and I surely don't want to be around people since they are unfriendly, take too much space, walk with disregard to others behind them (even solo pedestrians get stuck behind people who block the whole lane).

Please advise.

You need a better attitude. So far your entire post has just been about what you think people perceive you as, and you’ve yet to have any encounters that solidify that assumption(no one has yelled at you or given you the finger etc). 

Start thinking optimistically instead of pessimistically; people have their own lives to live and no one is out to get you (except maybe park staff or police whose jobs it is to get you!) 

No one owes you anything so don’t expect people to be friendly; but don’t confuse not being friendly as being unfriendly. 

No matter how proficient you get on the wheel you will not feel comfortable until your own outlook changes. 

Edited July 22, 2019 by Darrell Wesh

[AlexEssex]

All about confidence, wear sunglasses if it helps block the public out, wear headphones and listen to some tunes while doing your own thing practicing and learning what you will soon be very good at. Or go out and learn with a mate with you and at least you can have a laugh about your learning experience. Just dont take it too seriously, relax and have fun! Fck all the rest em' you will soon be speeding past them! 

[Yellowman]

35 minutes ago, Darrell Wesh said:

Start thinking optimistically instead of pessimistically; people have their own lives to live and no one is out to get you (except maybe park staff or police whose jobs it is to get you!) 

Ah no, that's not perception. I did not share full experiences. One old man mumbled to his wife: "We are trying not to get run over by people in the park". Mind you, I was barely at speed and always holding the ramp.

While your attitude advise is fine, reality also comes to play.

[Yellowman]

2 hours ago, Flyboy10 said:

Where in CA are you at?

In SoCal / Orange county basically. I think having riding buddies could be a nice thing to have.

I will try to go for empty parking spaces and early morning in the park where no grumpy people are around.

 

Some people were friendly and nice but the majority where not welcoming at all.

[FlyboyEUC]

25 minutes ago, Yellowman said:

In SoCal / Orange county basically. I think having riding buddies could be a nice thing to have.

I was raised there! The Santa Ana River Trail (Anaheim to Huntington) is a nice place to ride. Just don't fall in the river. Mile Square park (Fountain Valley) is another good place. Orange County Great Park is a fun new place to ride around. Really any flat place will do. Even if it has a couple bumps, you will learn to go over the bumps. Another thing you can do, depending on where you live, is explore your cul de sac. 10-15 mins a day will do wonders. I go to OC often so if you want someone to ride with let me know. 

[Darrell Wesh]

1 hour ago, Yellowman said:

Ah no, that's not perception. I did not share full experiences. One old man mumbled to his wife: "We are trying not to get run over by people in the park". Mind you, I was barely at speed and always holding the ramp.

While your attitude advise is fine, reality also comes to play.

That’s why it’s important to share full details to us otherwise how can we help if you withhold information?

Irregardless, the reality is still that you hold too much stock in what other people are saying. Sticks and stones. Unless they are calling the park rangers or police on you, don’t care for the words they say. It does take a confident perspective to achieve this. 

Headphones is a great way to ignore them. If you see someone scowling at you and trying to talk to you, telling you to take off your headphones, don’t! It gives great satisfaction to ignore people like that and have the power to make them angry without saying a word. 

[Yellowman]

1 hour ago, Flyboy10 said:

I was raised there! The Santa Ana River Trail (Anaheim to Huntington) is a nice place to ride. Just don't fall in the river. Mile Square park (Fountain Valley) is another good place. Orange County Great Park is a fun new place to ride around. Really any flat place will do. Even if it has a couple bumps, you will learn to go over the bumps. Another thing you can do, depending on where you live, is explore your cul de sac. 10-15 mins a day will do wonders. I go to OC often so if you want someone to ride with let me know. 

Thanks for the suggestions, will check them out. For now I will stick to the parking spot near work since I know it won't be busy after work schedule and everyone knows me.

I don't have enough credits on this forum to be able to message you, would you message me? I would be interested in riding with you once I am slightly more comfortable / practiced.

[Yellowman]

1 hour ago, Darrell Wesh said:

That’s why it’s important to share full details to us otherwise how can we help if you withhold information?

Irregardless, the reality is still that you hold too much stock in what other people are saying. Sticks and stones. Unless they are calling the park rangers or police on you, don’t care for the words they say. It does take a confident perspective to achieve this. 

Headphones is a great way to ignore them. If you see someone scowling at you and trying to talk to you, telling you to take off your headphones, don’t! It gives great satisfaction to ignore people like that and have the power to make them angry without saying a word. 

Thank you Darrell, I really appreciate it and I think you are right. I will work on it.

Overall, I have only a few messages on this forum so far and I get positive and friendly vibes. I am happy to be here.

[meepmeepmayer]

As a guideline, pretend your EUC is a bicycle. Go where you would go with a bicycle and don't go where it would be strange to go with a bicycle (even though EUCs are smaller and allow a bit more). Maybe that helps you judge whether you were totally out of line or that were just cranky old people yelling at clouds.

[svenomous]

I fully sympathize with the desire to remove the feeling of being observed and judged during a skill learning experience.  I felt the same way, and knowing that I should just ignore people etc. didn't help in those earliest stages.  My solutions:

• A park & ride lot (you can look up where these are located). In and out traffic is limited to morning and afternoon rush hours.  It's pretty much deserted after 7pm, and during weekends.
• Any parking lot that's large enough and has periods of inactivity.  If you have a closed/abandoned Sears or whatnot nearby that hasn't been re-purposed yet, you may even have a large lot that sees nearly no traffic 24 hours a day.
• Any business park is pretty much a ghost town of connected parking lots on weekends.
• Any commercial district with medium to large buildings.  Behind these buildings are loading dock areas with a lot of open asphalt.  During late evening and on weekends these are deserted (as long as the businesses they're associated with don't operate 24/7), and hidden behind buildings where even passing traffic cannot see.  The bigger buildings have as many as 10 or more loading docks and a giant practice space leading up to them.  I've even found ramps I could practice climbs/descents and tight turns on.  This was my favorite "private practice" option.

I scouted by car, wheel in trunk, and tried out a few promising places before settling on my favorite.  Go drive around and you'll be amazed how many places you can find to learn and practice privately!

[Rywokast]

i did all of my training late at night so i could save myself the embarrassment of being around people lol... go to an empty parking lot of a mall after theyre closed or a skate park, bike trails etc

[eucinsea]

I got lucky and when I was learning I had access to 3/4 city block long hallway of chainlink fence in storage locker area of my building. Was just me day after day of learning how to ride. 

 

Now I'm out and about all over Seattle. I have way more people say how cool, wow, etc. vs negative anything.

 

There are those a-hole elitist cyclists that I run into now and then but I just laugh at them and ask if they are jealous.  

[Scubadragonsan]

Something to give you more confidence: Know your legal rights. EUCs are a very new form of transportation, although they've around for years now. I ride on sidewalks all over the bay area. Most police careless about my riding. I do occasionally get nasty remarks/looks from runners, pedestrians, bicyclists and dogs too. In California, state legislation supports green vehicles. It's the lazy local bureaucrats not bothering to do their parts to become up-to-date. Do check out the conversations about legality of riding EUCs in California. Although EUCs have been around for years, we are still the trailblazers. If you are bothered by comments of passers-by as I once was, welcome to instant stardom. You are on the road to become a shining star. Do you accept that? This is an inevitable reality. Think about what it is like to be the 1st person driving a car on the road, 1st person going to space...1st person doing a face plant on concrete/asphalt... Sometimes stardom comes too soon will catch you off guard or unprepared. Once you have mastered your EUC skills, you will enjoy all kinds of attention.  After awhile of being on this world stage, you will fully understand these attentions are part of the repertoire of EUC daily life!

[Kens]

@Yellowman welcome to the folds! Safeguard those checking account now before its too late! 

There are a lot of riders here in SoCal to ride along. I don't usually riding by myself but we always have group ride every other weeks or so.

Check local group meet ups section regularly. And by the looks of it, we will having beach side ride in coming up 

I think this one will be relaxing ride and should be easy for newbs like us. You will have enough time by then to learn at least going straight and able to do hopping free mount.

Group ride boost your confident and also makes you feels superior on the road. I was only able to do dodgy hopping free mount before my first group ride back in April. Now I can do faster dodgy hopping free mount! 

What is your wheel of choice btw?

[Yellowman]

@Kens, haha! Safeguard my bank account!  You have to see my married friends looking at me and saying: "My wife won't let me get this, but this is so cool".

I totally agree that once you get a taste of an EUC ride you want more. I am still a newbie but I feel kind of addicted to the rides and practice! ;(

An easy OC ride by August sounds cool (V10F, my first wheel), I will check the thread you linked. By then I should be more comfortable and I can learn a lot from a group ride!

[Okiiashi]

I'm still waiting on my KS-16X; however, when I do get my EUC I plan on doing it just like when I first got my Onewheel +XR. 

I practiced in empty parking lots in the early morning and some shady bike trails.   Only Difference is I'm starting on the paved surfaces;  I thought learning near the grass would be nice.. but I kept having trouble starting out.

I've seen some people use parking garages.. maybe the flat roof level.

 

 

[lirva]

I practised in the playgrounds while my two boys where playing, when other people wasn't around off course. And in our own yard pushing the kids in pram.

Longer rides I took late at night, when I learned to go forward. I could turn only to the right first, so I ride around block with just right turns.

Maybe after 50km's of learning I did my first commute to work, with shaking legs of course.