Tricks to Learn

[DS]

1 minute ago, Tyred said:

Do you mean that you shouldn't do anything else but try to ride backwards until the battery's run out? Don't really get what you're saying. You need to go forward before being able to switch to backward, right?

Yes exactly, only backwards. Find something to hold to turn easily and go again backwards.

[Tyred]

How did you do this then? What did you use?
I heard a shopping cart is good?

[DS]

No, I don't think shopping cart is good in this case. IMHO, it will spoil you balance skills.

Start small, just for 1 meter - 2  - 3, turn and go again backwards.

I learned near one ramp from my side, the same that I started with the straight move, holding it from time to time

Next after the ramp was to hold on one pole, start backwards and at the beginning was losing balance after 3-4 meters. Again and again ONLY backwards the distance has naturally extended. To step on and start backwards is the next skill.

IMO idling should come after learning backwards.

[UKJ]

@DS

I am not quite sure I agree with your comment that idling should come after backwards.

I feel one could, should maybe learn them together?

I have a parking lot with lines, I idle short say 50 centimeters, then 1  meter, then reverse one line, forwards, then 2 and so on, seems to be working well as in a few days I can do 20 spaces or so and seems to complement idling.

Disclaimer, I have been riding pedal unis for 50 years so this might help.

Fun can be had by doing 90° turns between each idle cycle, I can only manage the "spin" turn, going forwards but backwards will be learned.

What I find hard is backwards looking over your shoulders to see where you are going and reverse circles..

SO FUN TO PROGRESS!

ukj

[DS]

5 minutes ago, UKJ said:

I feel one could, should maybe learn them together?

Agree. In my case, I've also already had learned a little 50cm short idling before skilled in backward move. But IMO that small back move in idling does not constitute the genuine backward skills.

9 minutes ago, UKJ said:

Fun can be had by doing 90° turns between each idle cycle

And even more fun is to do it 180 as I'm practicing now

[DS]

18 minutes ago, UKJ said:

What I find hard is backwards looking over your shoulders to see where you are going and reverse circles..

I'd say here, in the beginning find empty place in order do not need to look behind. After getting confident, then start with light glances...no heavy body turns because you will turn also the EUC.

[Tyred]

@DS So if I understand correctly, you rode backwards by starting backwards. Then, you started going forwards and stopping and going backwards?

[DS]

@Tyred

Mmmmm...no, here is step by step.

First phase:

1. From standing position and holding something to go backwards from spot A to spot B, distance 3-4 meters.

2. Stop on B, and start again from B to A  backwards.

3. Start over from 1

Second phase:

Spot A is from a holding point like wall (poll, tree etc.). Spot B is as far as you can reach without holding anything.

1. Start backwards from A to B

2. Get your EUC in hand, bring it to A and start again.

3. Start from 1 and after some repetitions you may find another spot A and will not need to hand care your lovely EUC

Third phase:

Learning alone to step on and start backwards without need to hold for something.

I hope this will help

Turns and backwards tricks are different story, the above is only for straight back move.

[Tyred]

15 minutes ago, DS said:

I hope this will help

It's a perfect explanation, thank you very much.
Sure do hope it will help me as well, will try this weekend, haven't got much time on my hands this week.
Thanks!

[Jonathan Tolhurst]

Step-off, Step-back-on Trick

I have tried to put some basic instructions together for learning the step-off step-on trick.This trick is great fun to learn and looks pretty cool.

I would recommend learning any step-off step-back-on tricks in an flat open area (with a smooth sealed surface) that is at least the size of a basketball court.
Use of appropriate safety gear is obviously recommended and you may also want to consider protection for your EUC, as it will most likely get scraped a few times during the learning process. Avoid learning at the top of a hill (or on a slope) as it's possible that the wheel can run off into the distance when learning this type of trick.
Having people watch you going through the frustrations of learning something new can be off putting so try practicing when and where it's quiet.

***You should ensure that you already have good EUC balance and control before attempting this type of trick.***

Start by going slowly and practice dismounting the wheel and working out how to ensure it keeps going as straight as possible. Make sure you quickly catch the wheel after the dismount so that it doesn't fall or crash. There is a minimum speed at which it will continue to roll in a straight line. On a Ninebot One, the wheel tends to pull to the side which contains the battery. If you go too fast then it will roll off into the distance, perhaps never to be seen again :-)  I found that (for me, on a Ninebot One), a stable dismount is best achieved by ensuring that there is a small gap between the wheel and your feet on the pedals before you make the dismount.

I started with a kind of star jump off - quickly dismounting to the side and then effectively doing the exact opposite back on to the pedals.
I then tried doing the same with an added jump/hop forward so: Star-off, hop-forward x 1, Star-on
Once I started to "get it" I developed a kind of uneven dismount that keeps the wheel going straight but allows me to step forward.
I kept practising and can now run along next to the wheel before getting back on.

I posted a video in the video thread:

https://youtu.be/6MEiCqBnW94?t=130

I hope people find this post useful....

 

[Blunzn]

On 1.2.2016 at 9:09 PM, DS said:

And even more fun is to do it 180 as I'm practicing now

180 degree turn was pretty easy for me.  while slowly braking twist your upper body as far as possible. as soon as the wheel stops, turn the rest of the body. swing arms for more momentum. a non sticky surface (wooden floor or flat grass) and offroad tires make it much easier.

 

making progress driving backwards too, just in my flat but it gets better from day to day ... it really helps if you can drive slow and use a training belt to prevent scratches but long enough that you can stretch your arms and balance.

managing 1-3 back forth swings and a few meters with some corrections

first time in my life i dreamt of 2 stripper poles ... for driving reverse 8's ofc  

 

[Shoe73]

On April 9, 2016 at 1:25 PM, Jonathan Tolhurst said:

Step-off, Step-back-on Trick

That's a great trick. I'll have to try that one!

[DS]

8 hours ago, Blunzn said:

first time in my life i dreamt of 2 stripper poles ... for driving reverse 8's ofc  

Here is my backward 8's and some more

 

[DS]

On 4/9/2016 at 11:25 PM, Jonathan Tolhurst said:

I hope people find this post useful....

Very useful and great explanation

With my current generic EUC it's impossible to do this trick, cause it tumbles right immediately, but with the next wheel...

[US69]

43 minutes ago, DS said:

Here is my backward 8's and some more

 

I want to Drive backwards, also :-(

even can't Go 2 Meters....and no light in sight!

 

does this Need 10 Times longer than learning normal driving???

[DS]

2 minutes ago, KingSong69 said:

does this Need 10 Times longer than learning normal driving???

I would not say 10 times but maybe 2-3...you can look up in that page my step by step explanation

[US69]

5 minutes ago, DS said:

I would not say 10 times but maybe 2-3...you can look up in that page my step by step explanation

I have already Seen...and on every Ride i try now riding backwards....but damn thing ;-)

[DS]

45 minutes ago, KingSong69 said:

but damn thing ;-)

You may make the mistake trying to do it at once. Try to start small, set small target - just 1-2 meters first while holding something on your side and repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat.......

[US69]

@DS

I have done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done, done,

 

Ok...they are missing two or three...then i will have it :-)

[DS]

@KingSong69  

[Blunzn]

a little "side-effect" of training backward driving ...

getting there, slowly ... soon i dont have to drive circles at red lights

 

... but still cant drive backwards very far ... 

[WakefulTraveller]

Good news! I got the hang of backwards riding for the most part. I still struggle with going forward again without falling off. I found that lunging backwards after slowing down to a crawl helps to speed up the transition from going forward to backward.

[Jonathan Tolhurst]

One Footed Spins/ Pirouettes/ Whirls

Below are some basic instructions for learning how to do one legged spins. I find spinning to be great fun and highly addictive, so much so that my wife has to frequently remind me that I am almost 40 with bad knees and not a ballerina 

Use of appropriate safety gear is obviously recommended and you may also want to consider protection for your EUC, as it will most likely get scraped a few times during the learning process. Spinning will wear through the foot plates pretty quickly (NB1 E+ specific: you can swap the pedals over to increase their lifespan and they are very easy to replace).

***You should ensure that you already have good EUC balance and control before attempting this type of trick.***

You should also be competent at "falling off" which is a skill in itself. You'll need some grip on your tyres and a sealed flat area to learn - an empty outdoor basketball court is ideal.

First of all you need to learn how to ride one-footed. This just takes practice on an open flat area. Once you have mastered riding one footed you can improve your skills by practicing going around a set of cones one footed. Any exercises that help to build up the strength of your leg and core muscles will be helpful.

I am a left footed and spin clockwise. If I try to spin on the other foot my NB1 E+ does not like it and makes a horrible rubbing noise. (NB1 E+ specific: Apparently you can fix this by using a washer). Other EUCs may or may not have such a limitation.

Once you are confident riding your EUC one footed, start by going around in small circles one footed. The footless foot pedal will scrape on the ground. Once you get the hang of this you can break in to a spin. Use your arms and core muscles to assist (as well as controlling the power with your "driving foot - the one that stays on the foot plate" ). During the spin neither of the foot plates should not be scraping on the floor. It's just practice really. As you build confidence, you should be able to spin faster. There are various types of spin which are all based on figure skating spins. You can experiment with posture to control the speed and style of the spin. If you look on YouTube there are some really graceful examples of spinning. 

Getting used to the effects of spinning (I.e. dizziness) is an important part of practice. You need to be able to maintain control when your vision and ear fluid is spinning. Continuing to circle (once you have come out of the spin) is one way to deal with this.

You can exit forwards facing or to fakie. I normally put my other foot back on the empty foot plate before coming out of the spin. If exiting to fakie it's really important to have complete control over the exit. If you lean too far back on the pedals you can be sent flying (NB1 E+ specific: The 3.5 firmware is a great improvement in preventing this backwards overlean). I mention this as I managed to crack my ribs when learning to spin.

Tyre pressure and surface condition make a huge difference. Higher pressure in the tyres will result in a much faster and cleaner spin although the entry and exit may be harder to control. I like to spin when the ground is just slightly damp (E.g. after a light rain shower) but you have to be really careful to make sure that your shoes or foot plates remain dry.

You can also spin on unsealed surfaces, although you need to make sure the surface is flat and watch out for stones which may jam the wheel.

Examples

• Early on in the learning process (pretty slow with only a few spins): https://youtu.be/jWhcCi4KtXI?t=69
• Early on in the learning process, Spinning in the Dark with my Tron Costume: https://youtu.be/Sy5H3K3bXSU?t=36
• Recent example - with foot hold: https://youtu.be/nI5TEVjrTaA?t=107
• Recent example: https://youtu.be/Q1jjF5smQys?t=94

 

 

[Knoxious]

Amazing! Thanks Jonathan!

24 minutes ago, Jonathan Tolhurst said:

 

Once you are confident riding your EUC one footed, start by going around in small circles one footed. The footless foot pedal will scrape on the ground. Once you get the hang of this you can break in to a spin. Use your arms and core muscles to assist (as well as controlling the power with your "driving foot - the one that stays on the foot plate" ). During the spin neither of the foot plates should not be scraping on the floor. It's just practice really. As you build confidence, you should be able to spin faster. There are various types of spin which are all based on figure skating spins. You can experiment with posture to control the speed and style of the spin. If you look on YouTube there are some really graceful examples of spinning. 

 

Tyre pressure and surface condition make a huge difference. Higher pressure in the tyres will result in a much faster and cleaner spin although the entry and exit may be harder to control. I like to spin when the ground is just slightly damp (E.g. after a light rain shower) but you have to be really careful to make sure that your shoes or foot plates remain dry.

 

 

 

[DS]

2 hours ago, Jonathan Tolhurst said:

One Footed Spins/ Pirouettes/ Whirls

Consistent and useful explanations. You are not only a master rider but also a good teacher.

Happy to have you here in this forum