Balance help.

[Tritzzy]

So this is probably my 5-6 help thread for different issues. But it's been like 2 and a half weeks. But i've hit a serious brickwall. 

I CAN NOT. Seem to stop turning left and crashing. No matter how much pressure I have on my right leg. No matter if I lock my right leg, and bend the left. I always turn left. Every time. Uncontrolled. I physically can't go straight ever. I started very determined. But I'm getting discouraged. Because I've practiced everything else till I'm blue in the face. EVERYTHING. Watched hours and hours of helpful videos. Read a million tips comments. And nothing. I still can't go straight more than 50ft without falling. 


I also don't understand how to not then throw my wheel and let it smash itself on blacktop. Am I just terrible? Everyone seems to have learned a trillion times faster than me and always talking about how "it clicked" and they were then doing 30 mile rides. And here I am 22 days later still struggling to go straight. 

[Hellkitten]

I wonder if it’s possible to find a local rider to try your wheel out and see if there is a bigger problem? 

[Tritzzy]

3 minutes ago, Hellkitten said:

I wonder if it’s possible to find a local rider to try your wheel out and see if there is a bigger problem? 

I mean I'd be the first to say I'd love for my failure to be mechanical. Sadly, it does perfectly fine getting trolley straight. It's definitely me, but damn I don't get what I am doing wrong. 

 

[Hellkitten]

Wish I was closer and could help in person. One thing I’ve really noticed since learning to ride is how nuanced the experience is. It takes very little to alter direction and steer for the most part. Speed plays into that, but that’s a different topic. Remembering back to what I was doing and comparing to what I do now is semi enlightening. My movements are far more subtle and controlled. I was over compensating and flailing around. Doing big swings of weight, leaning to far one way, then back to far the other. Perhaps you are doing similar things? Can you roll along a wall or fence line fairly well? Can you get a grocery cart and try that trick? Hold onto a friend and have them walk along side you? If you think the wheel is balanced, it’s likely just about figuring out being more subtle. 

[.....]

1 hour ago, Tritzzy said:

So this is probably my 5-6 help thread for different issues. But it's been like 2 and a half weeks. But i've hit a serious brickwall. 

I CAN NOT. Seem to stop turning left and crashing. No matter how much pressure I have on my right leg. No matter if I lock my right leg, and bend the left. I always turn left. Every time. Uncontrolled. I physically can't go straight ever. I started very determined. But I'm getting discouraged. Because I've practiced everything else till I'm blue in the face. EVERYTHING. Watched hours and hours of helpful videos. Read a million tips comments. And nothing. I still can't go straight more than 50ft without falling. 


I also don't understand how to not then throw my wheel and let it smash itself on blacktop. Am I just terrible? Everyone seems to have learned a trillion times faster than me and always talking about how "it clicked" and they were then doing 30 mile rides. And here I am 22 days later still struggling to go straight. 

it took me a while. Ignore the people in videos who edit to make themselves seem perfect. Ignore the whizz kids that stand on it and ride off like mad. This is YOUR wheel and YOU are the pilot. Thats right, its yours and YOU are the only thing that determines if it takes a while. There is no matter of reference, there is no official licensing. Long or short, its all perspective. Sadlt, a lot of people underestimate the delicacies involved and get discouraged. Aint no hurry, don't hurt yourself, and lower those expecttions.

For what I hear, I BET you have a weak side you have been favoring. I dont know if yuo are older and worn out or simply have a physical limitation. Doesnt matter. If you keep going one way and never the other, I'd say you have a weak side and are merely putting extra weight on the other side. You wont notice it, if you've been fovring it for so long, that your body has accomodated it for everyday life. I have a weak side and it became OBVIOUSLY apparent when on a unicycle. I spend a lot of time, trying to make sure Im mirrored in stance and evenly weight myself. You wil condtition past the issue, or simply find a stance that caters to it.

Since you know which way you keep falling, perhaps be vigilant and look to make sure your hips are not out that direction. Obviously you have tried foot positioning. I would bet that your feet arent the issue, and its a stance imnbalance that you are just simply unaware of. Also of note, roads typically lean left to right (in usa) for drainage. If you are managing to go 30'+, maybe you need to simply quit overthinking it and stop looking down? Keep your head up and focus on the subleties of weight in your feet and even your toes. Its all very minute.

It took me over 3 months, to finally make a 30 mile trip to my gas station, on an empty rural road. It took the rest of the year, for me to do it with any manner of safety. Start and stops also took the season. You are on a wide wheel. Perhaps you need to bend the knees and bow the legs a little bit. When new, we try to clench the wheel with our legs, to force it stay upright. THAT is not the answer. If you lock the legs too much, you end up undermining the lock and lean at the hips. WHen locked, the wheel cant lean itself without totally screwing your alignment. Try to bow those legs. Let the wheel move side to side a little bit, by keeping the ankles loose. We dont really 'manhandle' the wheel cept when pullnig some serious speed turns. Its more a matter of weight on the plates, not grip on the wheel.

Take your time man. Just remember, its prolly less than 1% of the population that has ever tried a unicycle. I would fathom that a large majority would give up LONG before you even stopped to ask us for advice. Keep going man. Short sessions on a tennis court perhaps? Maybe you simply aint got a jambox cranked to keep you in the right mindset... I have a ton of crap vids. If yu go back far enough, you may notice that I wasnt so great for the first season as well. Hell, if nothing else, maybe you're destined to be a nascar track racer.....

My wheels are ALL covered with a RollNZ cover. I typically step off the xl and mten and let it fall over. Who needs a kickstand, I let em lay. If you have to jump off at speed, theres not easy way to secure the wheel. YOu gotta be fast to grab it and just HOPE your back doesnt pay the price. If you are aging, just let the damn thing go. Of course, it all depends on what its aimed for. IN the beginning, you will drop the wheel a lot. It just happens. No, you wont be able to catch it everytime either. I mean hell, if every fall was that controlled, why would we have even fallen?

Edited May 10, 2022 by ShanesPlanet

[OldFartRides]

“ I CAN NOT” 

Sounds like a bad case of neuro- linguistic programming to me. Try to rephrase that as “ Currently I am experiencing difficulty riding in a straight line”.  
 

Keep at it. Stay positive. It’s worth it. 
 

Best,

 

[h00ktern]

Don't get frustrated and give up. Take a few days off, get your head clear and back in a positive place before you return.

First the positive: you say you are *consistently* turning left. Consistent is good. It means you are doing something the same, all the time. To correct that, all you need to do is correct one thing - more than likely.

A wheel traces an arc across the ground, as opposed to tracing a line across the ground for one reason - differential tire circumference.

The tire profile is rounded, and when it rotates on the crown, it presents its largest circumference perpendicular to the ground.

When the tire is not perpendicular to the ground, it leans to the right or left, which presents a smaller diameter to the ground, and will thus arc across the ground in the direction of the lean.

   I    <- Center line / largest diameter

I     I <- Off center & smaller diameter

I     I <- Off center & smaller diameter

   I    <- Center line / largest diameter

Your tire must be rolling on left of center, whether or not you know it.

Even if you wander, you are predominantly riding on the smaller diameter on the left. Just like you must force yourself to look ahead and not down, you must force yourself to ride on the center of the tread.

Ignore what your brain is telling you, or the sensation your body is feeding you, because, for whatever reason, you are not level. You are inducing a left turn because your wheel is tilted to the left, thus rolling on the smaller diameter to the left of the crown.

Try to consciously induce a right arc. If it turns too much, ease off. If not enough, tilt the wheel more.

Rolling a wheel in the direction you want to travel is simply moderating the angle of the lean, or the duration of the lean, to the left or right of center.

If you can travel forward thirty feet without falling off, then you are on the cusp of getting it. Just think of my explanation as saying that if the tire is anywhere off the center of the tread, then the crown will be pushing the wheel to the side of the smaller diameter, in your case, to the left.

Your solution is to spend less time on the left side of the tire, even cumulatively. To travel forward, you must average all turning inputs to be equal, or nullify them. Simplest way is to minimize them and ride on the crown, lol.

Hang in there. You'll get it. Everyone who wanted to ride, did. You'll be no different...

Shane makes some good, wise points. 

Edited May 10, 2022 by h00ktern

[.....]

oh durr... flip the wheel around...

[techyiam]

1 hour ago, Tritzzy said:

still can't go straight more than 50ft without falling.

Can you ride from point A to point B with a 10 ft separation? If not, can you do it if the distance is 5 ft?

Does it make a difference if you rode with your body rotated to the right, and pressing hard on your right pedal? How about staggered foot positioning with the right foot much in front? 

The RS19 is around 60 lbs. That is not a beginners wheel. If will be more difficult to learn for someone with zero experience. 

Also, it is easier with lower tire pressure.  What is your current tire pressure?

 

[h00ktern]

Wear one stilletto and one sandal? 

[Begodecrashtestdummy]

1 hour ago, Tritzzy said:

I mean I'd be the first to say I'd love for my failure to be mechanical. Sadly, it does perfectly fine getting trolley straight. It's definitely me, but damn I don't get what I am doing wrong. 

 

Did you order yours from ewheels ?they gave me the free spiked pedals and begode power pads for free along with mud guard ,free wrist guards and extra reinforced rs shell and I love them pedals I’ve heard it makes a huge difference .I’ve been riding just a week and I’ve already been over 40mph .did you download the gotway app and use it to calibrate your wheel ?? It makes a huge difference if you haven’t properly setup your wheel watch YouTube videos of how to set up calibration it makes all the difference in the balance of your wheel .also tire pressure I noticed makes a huge difference. start out at around 30psi I keep mine between 30-35 psi when I had it at 42psi it was very sketchy .also with our heavier wheels it’s better to stagger your feet a little I usually keep my left foot further back than my right foot and it has kept me from getting speed wobbles. I have a smartphone coming this week hopefully I can shoot some videos of me learning aswell .also if you did get the power pads make sure to buy velcro so you have the option to move the pads around to find your sweet spot 

[Begodecrashtestdummy]

2 hours ago, Tritzzy said:

So this is probably my 5-6 help thread for different issues. But it's been like 2 and a half weeks. But i've hit a serious brickwall. 

I CAN NOT. Seem to stop turning left and crashing. No matter how much pressure I have on my right leg. No matter if I lock my right leg, and bend the left. I always turn left. Every time. Uncontrolled. I physically can't go straight ever. I started very determined. But I'm getting discouraged. Because I've practiced everything else till I'm blue in the face. EVERYTHING. Watched hours and hours of helpful videos. Read a million tips comments. And nothing. I still can't go straight more than 50ft without falling. 


I also don't understand how to not then throw my wheel and let it smash itself on blacktop. Am I just terrible? Everyone seems to have learned a trillion times faster than me and always talking about how "it clicked" and they were then doing 30 mile rides. And here I am 22 days later still struggling to go straight. 

You anywhere near ohio cuz I’d be down to help get your wheel setup right.if your not near me search the local group ride forum for riders in your area .everyone in this community are always willing to help ..also I noticed another thing that makes a difference is shoes and or boots ..I prefer wearing high top basketballs shoes (dirty bred jordan 13 retro plus they match my wheel colors )🤣👌🏻over my flat van like skater shoes .i seems to have better grip and balance on the pedals with high tops .

Edited May 10, 2022 by Dosingpsychedelics

[mrelwood]

@Tritzzy, it would tell us a huge amount of more details if you could shoot a video of you trying to ride. All of the advices above are great, but since you are a beginner, there could be a very obvious aspect going wrong that you don’t realize yourself just yet.

[h00ktern]

I feel the same way. I even checked his profile page to see where he is.

Anyway, we want you succeed. A video might help someone spot something. Absent that, can you try to intentionally travel to the right?

Your body will follow your eyes and your head, generally. Once mounted and rolling, torque your noggin 45° to the right, and look ahead. As suggested earlier, twist your torso similarly, as if leading with your shoulder. Then try to exert more right pedal weight.

Start out at whatever right induced positioning is tolerable to you, and if you get no result, work your way down, and then with more effort. You want to arc right, doesn't matter if you land up circling back.

I'm thinking you're arcing left, so lets try to get you turning right. When you finally arc right, then you will have the other half of directional control.

So, whenever you're ready to get back on your wheel, have a goal of turning/arcing right. Consider left as bad, or heading to a steep canal bank. Stop, and try again. Mounting and dismounting is good practice anyway. If you travel forward, or right, continue until you must stop.

Once you begin to turn right consistently, then reduce your right input strategy to progress forward, and finally, what happens in real life, you swap inputs as needed to go where you want.

Traveling forward and want to turn left, add input to turn left. Not enough, add more. Too much ease off. Not responding enough, counter with right input. Riding is exactly that, subconsciously. It just happens, like when driving your car.

Go to your practice area in a good frame of mind, feeling well, and set the goal to only succeed in turning right, be it a five foot circle, or a thirty foot arc. Any right progess is success.

It seems you're calibrated on drifting left. If we can get you going right, then whatever thought process works for you, you will go forward even if you equalize constant intentional right and left inputs. In short order, you'll break through and all those conscious left/right thoughts will fade away.

Edited May 10, 2022 by h00ktern

[Begodecrashtestdummy]

9 minutes ago, h00ktern said:

I feel the same way. I even checked his profile page to see where he is.

Anyway, we want you succeed. A video might help someone spot something. Absent that, can you try to intentionally travel to the right?

Your body will follow your eyes and your head, generally. Once mounted and rolling, torque your noggin 45° to the right, and look ahead. As suggested earlier, twist your torso similarly, as if leading with your shoulder. Then try to exert more right pedal weight.

Start out at whatever right induced positioning is tolerable to you, and if you get no result, work your way down, and then with more effort. You want to arc right, doesn't matter if you land up circling back.

I'm thinking you're arcing left, so lets try to get you turning right. When you finally arc right, then you will have the other half of directional control.

So, whenever you're ready to get back on your wheel, have a goal of turning/arcing right. Consider left as bad, or heading to a steep canal bank. Stop, and try again. Mounting and dismounting is good practice anyway. If you travel forward, or right, continue until you must stop.

Once you begin to turn right consistently, then reduce your right input strategy to progress forward, and finally, what happens in real life, you swap inputs as needed to go where you want.

Traveling forward and want to turn left, add input to turn left. Not enough, add more. Too much ease off. Not responding enough, counter with right input. Riding is exactly that, subconsciously. It just happens, like when driving your car.

Go to your practice area in a good frame of mind, feeling well, and set the goal to only succeed in turning right, be it a five foot circle, or a thirty foot arc. Any right progess is success.

It seems you're calibrated on drifting left. If we can get you going right, then whatever thought process works for you, you will go forward even if you equalize constant intentional right and left inputs. In short order, you'll break through and all those conscious left/right thoughts will fade away.

Also he can play with the ride modes thru the app .i started on medium skipped soft all together now I only ride in strong mode I like the full torque and power.for me it seems  the faster you get moving at speed the easier it is to stay balanced ..it’s at slower speeds when ya start having balance and drifting left or right  issues 

[LeKeiser]

6 hours ago, Tritzzy said:

So this is probably my 5-6 help thread for different issues. But it's been like 2 and a half weeks. But i've hit a serious brickwall. 

I CAN NOT. Seem to stop turning left and crashing. No matter how much pressure I have on my right leg. No matter if I lock my right leg, and bend the left. I always turn left. Every time. Uncontrolled. I physically can't go straight ever. I started very determined. But I'm getting discouraged. Because I've practiced everything else till I'm blue in the face. EVERYTHING. Watched hours and hours of helpful videos. Read a million tips comments. And nothing. I still can't go straight more than 50ft without falling. 


I also don't understand how to not then throw my wheel and let it smash itself on blacktop. Am I just terrible? Everyone seems to have learned a trillion times faster than me and always talking about how "it clicked" and they were then doing 30 mile rides. And here I am 22 days later still struggling to go straight. 

Hello,

I feel your pain
I'm a bit like you, even worse I think.
I bought last year in May a nice Kingsong 16S. I had watched many many videos on YT and thought I would really love to ride an EUC. So I bought it, got an insurance, bought some protections, and I went to the parking lot of my residence to have some fun. 
And I didn't have any fun at all. I could barely hold my wheel with my right leg without stumbing. I leaned on a wall an tried to step on it. It was easy, I wasn't moving. But when I wanted to move forward, that's when the troubles arrived. I couldn't move more that a few feet without falling down gently. And I was sweating like a big whale. 
So I tried to find a spot outside. I found a place with a rail that I could hold on to, ride next to. But it was getting boring, and also it's not a good way to train. I depended of that rail. If I wanted to ride like on the sidewalk, I was lost. "Where is my railing???!!" and I had to dismount.
I got discouraged also. So many could ride easy, young and old, with a big smile on their face. And I would cringe and sweat and swear  Lots of swearing.

Then the weather turned bad. It was raining most of the time. Covid was spreading too. Work was tiring. I had all the excuses I needed to put the wheel aside for a long time.

Then a few weeks ago, I decided to give it another go. I have found a place where I can ride at least a 100 meters straight, where there aren't that many people around. But it's still hard. I can ride those hundred meters in a straight line but I ride very slow, like under 10km/h. Too slow. So I'm not comfortable on the wheel. It's wobbling a lot. I know I have to go faster but something in my brain is keeping me from going faster. And I still can't turn. Because I ride too slow. 
And  when I want to ride, when I decide that I want to train a bit, it's like I feel I'm going to be disapointed again. That I won't have that spark, that thing that you feel when you're not scared anymore, when you really start to have fun. I think I'm gonna fall again, or sweat and swear.

But I want to ride like all the others. With a big smile on my face. With lots of fun. So I'll keep practicing till I get there. It's taking a long time, but I won't quit
 

[Robse]

2 hours ago, LeKeiser said:

And  when I want to ride, when I decide that I want to train a bit, it's like I feel I'm going to be disapointed again. That I won't have that spark, that thing that you feel when you're not scared anymore, when you really start to have fun. I think I'm gonna fall again, or sweat and swear.

 

But I want to ride like all the others. With a big smile on my face. With lots of fun. So I'll keep practicing till I get there. It's taking a long time, but I won't quit
 

Dont give up!  Practice, practice, practice, repeat .... suddenly you will have that big smile, and a laugh - at yourself, for not giving up

[Robse]

14 hours ago, Tritzzy said:

So this is probably my 5-6 help thread for different issues. But it's been like 2 and a half weeks. But i've hit a serious brickwall. 

I CAN NOT. Seem to stop turning left and crashing. No matter how much pressure I have on my right leg. No matter if I lock my right leg, and bend the left. I always turn left. Every time. Uncontrolled. I physically can't go straight ever. I started very determined. But I'm getting discouraged. Because I've practiced everything else till I'm blue in the face. EVERYTHING. Watched hours and hours of helpful videos. Read a million tips comments. And nothing. I still can't go straight more than 50ft without falling. 


I also don't understand how to not then throw my wheel and let it smash itself on blacktop. Am I just terrible? Everyone seems to have learned a trillion times faster than me and always talking about how "it clicked" and they were then doing 30 mile rides. And here I am 22 days later still struggling to go straight. 

This is the "may seem mad but ment serious" advice:  Try to wear different shoes left/right ;  the one on the right side must have a bigger/higher heel.

[The Brahan Seer]

If you aren't already I suggest changing location, when learning the slightest slope on the ground will pull you that way. Maybe find a flat area with a very slight right slope to compensate.

Going round in circles on grass using a goal/lamp post or equivalent to hold on to is a great way to get used to the wheel without needing to go anywhere.

Always look straight ahead and keep reminding yourself by saying it as you practice.

You are so lucky, this is really the best and most exciting time, enjoy the experience of learning and failing for when you get it (which I guarantee you will) the feeling is amazing! and as everyone has said no rules here, this experience is between you and you alone.  Enjoy! 

[h00ktern]

LeKeiser reminded me, I too found it hard to keep the speed up at the beginning. I now remember recognizing that, and I told myself repeatedly, "weight the front of the pedals... more... weight the front of the pedals" to pick-up speed. It's ok to coach yourself in your head. Whatever you recognize that you're doing wrong, tell yourself what you need to do, and then focus on doing it, just like keeping your head up. It may take a few concerted tries to accomplish it, but the more you tell yourself to do it (just like an outsider would coach you) the less concentration you will need to dedicate to doing it.

If your drifting or arcing left is evident to you while it is occurring (and your speed is not lacking) "Weight the right pedal! Weight the Right pedal!" If you slowly lose speed, "weight the front of the pedals... more!"

You will get it.

[rcgldr]

On 5/9/2022 at 5:48 PM, Tritzzy said:

turning left ... pressure ... my right leg.

Pressure on your right leg will cause the EUC to turn right from underneath you, causing you to lean or fall to the left. As soon as you start to lean left, you want to put pressure on the left (not right) pedal to steer into the direction of imbalance and to turn left. A better description is you steer into the direction that you are leaning (yaw or tilt steer, explained next). Once leaned, steer more inwards to lean less and steer less inwards to lean more (counter-steering). Counter-steering applies to unicycles as well as motorcycles, you need to lean in order to turn (otherwise you'd fall outwards). 

Kuji Roll mentions steering into fall in his how to ride video where he teaches a beginner girl to ride (using support to mount and launch) in about 90 minutes. However he mentions putting pressure on the inside toe, which would accelerate as well as tilt a wheel (unless a rider exerts pressure on the outside heel to compensate), so that should have been put pressure on the inside pedal evenly, so that speed remains constant. You may want to watch the entire video. The 25 psi he mentions would be too low for a rider heavier than that girl or on a heavier EUC.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6o8ZMlo5ko&t=208s

For a lot of beginners, it's easier to yaw steer | arm flail (flail arms left to steer right, flail arms right to steer left), since this works well at lower speeds, and doesn't require uneven pressure on the pedals, since the EUC is just being twisted to steer it. 

Extreme slow speed example of arm flalling. Constantly twisting left and right like this over-corrects, but you'll learn balance via yaw steer quicker this way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro3o8U9uZeU&t=57s

3 year old arm flailing:

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/z9YiHu5HJ6o

Yaw steering - Me arm flailing on day 2, essentially the same as day 1. I was hunched over, which I corrected after seeing that video, but you get the idea. After about 30 minutes of using a rail on a pathway and a fence on tennis court, I ventured away from the fence at 3 to 5 mph using arm flailing to steer into direction of imbalance, expecting to go 10 to 15 feet, but I was able to do laps on my first attempt:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPyy84EThmM

Tilt steering - since I could at least ride using yaw steering, two days later, I moved to a long straight where I could go a bit faster, and found my V8F became stable at 6 to 8 mph, where I didn't have to focus on balance. Leaning forwards | backwards to accelerate | brake wasn't an issue. It was time to learn tilt steering. I had already looked for a Marty Backe style (minimal motion) rider doing turns, and had found this video of a girl on a S18 almost motionless, no body twisting, no carving, just leaning and tilting her S18 to turn and very stable. Due to weight, tire profile, speed, turning radius ..., she leans more than she tilts her S18. My first goal was to emulate the weaving she does near the end of this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hWMwK3Cfs0

While riding at stable speed (about 8 mph), I tilted my V8F left | right (move inner foot down, outer foot up) to see how the V8F would respond. I then tried mild weaving like the video of the girl, and a few passes later, large radius turns. Two days after this, I learned free mount (mount and launch without support) following Kuji Rolls and Wrong Ways advice to learn to ride before attempting free mount. It was my only time on grass and I didn't lean enough to get enough speed on the first two attempts, but got it on my third. Once I could free mount, I practiced at other locations. 

My wife took a video of me on day 10. This was at night, from the headlight beam, you can see how stable the V8F becomes at around 8 mph.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keDvRMScO1g

 

Edited May 11, 2022 by rcgldr

[Hellkitten]

Can confirm. I did a bunch of arm flailing on my first couple of days. 🤣

[360rumors]

On 5/9/2022 at 7:56 PM, Dosingpsychedelics said:

Did you order yours from ewheels ?they gave me the free spiked pedals and begode power pads for free along with mud guard ,free wrist guards and extra reinforced rs shell and I love them pedals 

Wow that’s a lot of free stuff! Did you have to ask for them or did ewheels just throw them in? 😮

[Funky]

9 minutes ago, 360rumors said:

Wow that’s a lot of free stuff! Did you have to ask for them or did ewheels just throw them in? 😮

Nothing in life is free. If product is free - you are the product. So knowing that, i would call those freebies as down payment for being a "test" dummy.  Because let's be honest - we the customers are the testers of the wheels.

All i got as a freebie was a lighter wallet. 

[360rumors]

11 minutes ago, Funky said:

Nothing in life is free. If product is free - you are the product. So knowing that, i would call those freebies as down payment for being a "test" dummy.  Because let's be honest - we the customers are the testers of the wheels.

All i got as a freebie was a lighter wallet. 

If one company is offering the same product as other stores but with extra products included then I don’t see how I am worse off or thereby being a test dummy. If I get the same wheel somewhere else but without the free items, does that mean I magically don’t become a test dummy?