How to ride an electric unicycle - understanding the dynamics

[travsformation]

4 hours ago, Rywokast said:

toques.. to see if they're a good stand in for helmets xD

Make sure they're thick, quality wool, and consider removing the pom pom and fixing it to your chin

[erk1024]

On 1/9/2020 at 1:02 AM, MR BRAD said:

what kind of boots do you wear? More power to you guys... I just think I would feel kind of disconnected with the wheel

I got a pair of these, and they've saved my ankles and the area above my ankles many times when things have gotten out of hand. They're comfortable, and I don't have any problem feeling the connection to the wheel. 

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00T3IQ41Y/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[HuskerDawg]

Question- I am 55 years old, 6ft, 235lbs. I want to learn to ride a EUC. Am I dreaming at this point in life? Through reading I believe I need a 18" wheel. Maybe the King Song 18XL? 

In any case, what do you guys think? Should I go for it? I dont have any physical limitations other then I am less flexible than I once was.

Opinions are welcome even if they tell me to stick with the idea of a Segway X2. 

[meepmeepmayer]

8 hours ago, HuskerDawg said:

Question- I am 55 years old, 6ft, 235lbs. I want to learn to ride a EUC. Am I dreaming at this point in life?

No dreaming necessary. There are plenty of riders like you!

The two things about higher weight riding to consider: if you crash, that weight will come down on your arms etc. And you will lose some range compared to lighter riders. So losing a bit of weight would give you a double bonus, should you need some motivation

8 hours ago, HuskerDawg said:

Through reading I believe I need a 18" wheel. Maybe the King Song 18XL? 

Or one of the wide tire "16 inch" (more like almost 18) ones: Nikola or 16X. But the MSX/MSP or 18XL are great for you, too.

[Elliot_Mess]

First day on an EUC will be tomorrow or Sunday depending on weather. Will report back on how much I suck..  

[evX_Mick]

Hope this helps everyone:

 

 

[bigwave]

12 hours ago, MickeyMicklos said:

Hope this helps everyone:

I liked that you emphasized a couple exercises, the circle and the step. IMO ,they are the key to learn control with your dominant leg which makes riding easier. The limited use of the wall is a great tip. Obviously ,everyone needs to use a wall type support initially but getting away from that ASAP is important. When I taught my wife,(seriously sketchy thing to try and I'm not talking about a crash...lol) I held her hand and walked with her till she was comfortable enough to lessen the need for support. Easy peasy!

Well done!

Edited April 8, 2020 by bigwave

[Unventor]

On 2/27/2020 at 1:54 AM, HuskerDawg said:

Question- I am 55 years old, 6ft, 235lbs. I want to learn to ride a EUC. Am I dreaming at this point in life? Through reading I believe I need a 18" wheel. Maybe the King Song 18XL? 

In any case, what do you guys think? Should I go for it? I dont have any physical limitations other then I am less flexible than I once was.

Opinions are welcome even if they tell me to stick with the idea of a Segway X2. 

Like others said. We have serm many sharing similar starting point. Comen for us all we all had to start at some point. 

As of wheel choices there are actually quiet a few options to choose from. It all depends what you prefer. To answer that question we need a little more info on what you expect from your wheel. 

[Gazza-usa]

On 2/26/2020 at 4:54 PM, HuskerDawg said:

Question- I am 55 years old, 6ft, 235lbs. I want to learn to ride a EUC. Am I dreaming at this point in life? Through reading I believe I need a 18" wheel. Maybe the King Song 18XL? 

In any case, what do you guys think? Should I go for it? I dont have any physical limitations other then I am less flexible than I once was.

Opinions are welcome even if they tell me to stick with the idea of a Segway X2. 

You are not dreaming.  I am of a similar age and weight.  Love it, It's so much fun.  Don't listen to the nay sayer in your head or from people around you. This is most definitely doable by you and you'll really enjoy it.  I'm sure there are guys local to you who would love to show you how to ride.  If you were local to me (or any other people here are local to me) I would be more than willing.  This IMO is probably the most incredible invention of the 21st century.

The learning curve is steep but you'll figure the basics within an hour (maybe 2).  Within 5 hours you'll be doing miles.  It is exhausting and you may do this in batches of 30 minutes with cursing every 5 minutes or so.  But you will learn.  This is where experienced people are helpful.  This forum is most definitely the place to ask questions.  I've had so many helpful tips here from very experienced riders which has been incredibly helpful and encouraging.

Edited April 27, 2020 by Gazza-usa

[HuskerDawg]

I agree completely. I have managed to learn and can ride pretty well now. Getting used to the different stances and starts and stops. It does come pretty easy once you just go for it. 

Throw out the worries of crashing and go for it is what I did and I learned rather quickly as a result. 

I am hoping to get together and ride sometime with some locals, if only I could find some LOL. 

[evX_Mick]

Hope this helps: 

 

 

[Nostris]

On 6/4/2019 at 12:21 AM, Planemo said:

With all respect, they are not. Eucs are more akin to motorcycling than skiing hence my previous post. Unless MotoGP riders have been doing it wrong for all these years.

Surely skiing and EUC riding are two very different animals. For a start, skis aren’t spinning around and generating centrifugal precession like a wheel does. 

[Planemo]

3 hours ago, Nostris said:

Surely skiing and EUC riding are two very different animals.

Holy thread resurrection!

You repeated pretty much what I said so I'm not sure where you're going with your post.

[Nostris]

Sorry...it was a bit... I was reading a few pages back. 😂

[wheel-life]

I got my KS16X yesterday and only put in about 15-20 min before I called it a day, drenched with sweat wondering what I got myself into. The farthest I could make it was maybe 5-10 feet.

No matter how many videos you watch of beginners and posts you read, really have to try this out for yourself before you fully appreciate the difficulty. This morning I went back out for more embarrassment and was amazed to be able to ride to the end of our street, half a mile in one stretch. I tried to turn but had to bail.The biggest thing that clicked after reading some of this thread was to let the wheel twist back and forth slightly (or not so slightly at times) instead of trying to lean it back and forth.  Many thanks to this thread/forum. I also put on my snow boots which helped since I haven't added any padding to the 16X yet besides the neoprene cover.

Have to give an extra thanks to @Mike Sacristan as I watched him train a few new riders in videos and I think that helped me a lot too.

Taking a 30 min break and then going back out for more practice.

Edited September 1, 2020 by manieuc

[null]

Congratulations with the progress, it’s interesting how the body « sinks in » the new stuff while your not training.

Turning: you’ll see many approaches, what made it click for my brother was to tilt the wheel by raising one of the feet. Hard twist from the hip is only for exceptional needs.

[Mike Sacristan]

10 hours ago, manieuc said:

I got my KS16X yesterday and only put in about 15-20 min before I called it a day, drenched with sweat wondering what I got myself into. The farthest I could make it was maybe 5-10 feet.

No matter how many videos you watch of beginners and posts you read, really have to try this out for yourself before you fully appreciate the difficulty. This morning I went back out for more embarrassment and was amazed to be able to ride to the end of our street, half a mile in one stretch. I tried to turn but had to bail.The biggest thing that clicked after reading some of this thread was to let the wheel twist back and forth slightly (or not so slightly at times) instead of trying to lean it back and forth.  Many thanks to this thread/forum. I also put on my snow boots which helped since I haven't added any padding to the 16X yet besides the neoprene cover.

Have to give an extra thanks to @Mike Sacristan as I watched him train a few new riders in videos and I think that helped me a lot too.

Taking a 30 min break and then going back out for more practice.

Congrats! And thanks for the mention. 

Sounds like you have gotten pretty good progress quite quickly! Turning can be quite tricky haha. Different riders develop different turning styles but there aren't an infinite amount of styles. Monika just falls to the side and turns.... I point with my hips, shoulders and knees and crouch. We are all just a bunch of clowns lol.

Riding an EUC has a very high ceiling for skill development. Today we went for a group ride and did some bonking practice. Fun times.

[wheel-life]

10 hours ago, null said:

Congratulations with the progress, it’s interesting how the body « sinks in » the new stuff while your not training.

Turning: you’ll see many approaches, what made it click for my brother was to tilt the wheel by raising one of the feet. Hard twist from the hip is only for exceptional needs.

Thanks for the tip! That worked very well, granted, I was just doing some wide slower turns at an empty movie theater parking lot but it helped me visualize it. I have seen a lot of videos about turning and keeping one left stiff while relaxing the other but it's a lot to process early on so the idea of raising one leg did the trick with a nice gradual turn. 

 

1 hour ago, Mike Sacristan said:

Congrats! And thanks for the mention. 

Sounds like you have gotten pretty good progress quite quickly! Turning can be quite tricky haha. Different riders develop different turning styles but there aren't an infinite amount of styles. Monika just falls to the side and turns.... I point with my hips, shoulders and knees and crouch. We are all just a bunch of clowns lol.

Riding an EUC has a very high ceiling for skill development. Today we went for a group ride and did some bonking practice. Fun times.

I'm appreciating all the videos I've watched now even more, ha. Just simple things are impressive to watch knowing how hard this is at the moment.

 

Quick question, am I causing myself future problems by learning to ride with winter boots? it's a lot easier riding with them. I went back to low tops on my 2nd ride today because I wasn't sure if I was handicapping myself for the future but the wheel feels so much more unstable when I don't have that extra padding around the ankles.

Edited September 2, 2020 by manieuc

[null]

Nice, you’re getting there, it only gets easier.

I don’t believe the winter boots matter at this time. In the long run free flexible feet to variate poses might be better, but it shouldn’t be handicapping to learn with more support. The stiffer boots might give a bit of cramp on the first longer rides, (due to tense single position) that’s about it. (IMO)

[Mike Sacristan]

10 hours ago, manieuc said:

Quick question, am I causing myself future problems by learning to ride with winter boots? it's a lot easier riding with them. I went back to low tops on my 2nd ride today because I wasn't sure if I was handicapping myself for the future but the wheel feels so much more unstable when I don't have that extra padding around the ankles.

The more shoes the merrier.  It just adds to variety and I have had many "issues" riding with different shoes.
So in the end we just get used to the shoes we ride with the most and any other shoe will feel a bit weird. Sort of like changing wheels.

[rdogus]

Hi. I have been learning EUF for 5 days in a small progress. I could stand and ride with a small speed. My big problem is about mounting. I put my right foot on the pedal. I have to stand near a wall or supporter (someone's shoulder). I can not put my second foot on the left pedal without any kind of support. How more easy possible to put the second foot on the pedal during the leraning progress. I purchased KingSong KS14D. Thank for all advices. 

[mrelwood]

55 minutes ago, rdogus said:

How more easy possible to put the second foot on the pedal during the leraning progress. I purchased KingSong KS14D.

Push your right knee inward, so that the wheel is in an angle. To be able to lift your left leg from the ground, your right knee must be above where the tire touches the ground.

 Some wheels have a low leg contact point, which makes mounting much harder since the wheel must be tilted even more.

I recommend following these exercises:

 

[pandel]

@rdogus You said, you are learning for 5 days, so take your time :-) - mounting can take some time until you feel comfortable. Just keep practicing and regarding @mrelwood's video, especially practice one-foot control, (see video beginning at 6:20). And have in mind that you have two different ways to get on your wheel: a) one foot on the first plate, hop on with second foot while the wheel isn't moving and start going forward directly after - needs a bit more body balance right from the start or b) start rolling forward slowly with one foot and then step on the second paddle, like riding a skateboard - needs a bit more stable foot and leg control. Just give both methods a try and choose what's working best. In the end you will be able to do both even without thinking :-)

ym2c...

Edited September 3, 2020 by pandel

[wheel-life]

@rdogus Are you having more luck now with mounting?

This is only my 3rd day riding so I still have "beginner's brain"....a couple things that really helped me get on the wheel from this thread and videos (in addition to what mrelwood & pandel mentioned).

The  back of my shoes are lined up near the back of the pedal so there's a lot of overhang off the front which helps get you up to speed faster.

I don't look down when I'm finally getting on. When you are ready to push with your off-foot, just place it by feel on the pedal and put pressure on your toes to get the EUC moving forward as you look straight. If you miss the mark and aren't happy with your foot placement, you can slow down, stop and mount again. I try to wiggle my foot into better placement after I have a little speed but it can feel a little scary doing that.

Embrace the idea of letting the wheel twist left and right (not lean, but twist) in small and sometimes not so small increments to keep you moving forward.

 

Edited September 5, 2020 by manieuc

[erk1024]

I wouldn't try to mount until you're good at riding, because mounting is so much easier when you can balance the wheel. But I think it helps to have a little push off (like a skateboard). I've seen people try to "get on" then "go forward" in two separate steps. The problem is you can't really balance the wheel if it's not rolling. So a little push off can help.

When I start, I have one foot on the pedal, and the foot that's on the ground is right next to the pedal. Do a little push off, step onto the pedal and go.

Edited September 5, 2020 by erk1024