Pads, turns, armor, my V10 > V11 > Shermax journey and what I learned.

[MrEUCMan]

Thought I share the below with you all. No, most of these are not on Youtube, surprisingly.

First, some common things that I want to reiterate.

1. Wear armor. Beginner that go 15 mpg or lower, full face helmet, wrist guards, knee brace.  Beyond that, shoulder, elbow, friction proof clothing, and a good pair of shoes.
2. Even after 2000 miles, which is roughly how many miles I have now, treat every wheel like a new wheel.
3. DO NOT learn how to save the wheel. The wheel is designed to take the fall. Save yourself. For beginners, learn how to balance, feel the road, feel the wheel, and mount and dismount. When the wheel feels like it's tipping over, jump off and get AWAY from the wheels. A typical tire burn takes about 3 weeks to fully heal, ask me how I know.
4. If you don't ride your wheel frequently, get an advanced charger and charge it at 2 amps to 80%.  1 amp sometimes will give you batter errors on certain wheels. 2 amps is super gentle and is like treating your battery to a spa.

Second, here's the stuff that almost no one tells you.

1. Turning at slow speeds and high speeds is different. Read my post here: https://forum.electricunicycle.org/topic/30125-turning-with-euc
2. Those painted lines on the roads?  Treat them as ICE when wet.
3. Did I mention to treat every wheel as if it's your first?  The job of a new wheel is to kill you. There are many points of failures on an EUC, and any of them can result in you flying straight into pavement. Controller, mother board, IMU, hall sensors, suspension, wheels, tires, general structure, screws, etc.
4. Use the speed alarm on new wheels to keep yourself in check for the first 5 miles. For example, when I got my shermax this weekend, I did about 20 miles with the speed alarm set to 20mph. I refuse to go over that until I have had several miles on the wheel, so it can prove to me that it won't kill me.
5. Every wheel turns differently. For example, V10/8/5/Mten3 ,etc. turns on a dime, requiring very low foot pressure to do turns. V11, K20/22, monster pro, etc. (Yes, I have rode them all), because of the suspension, higher center of gravity, requires you to lean more and pull into the turn with your lower legs. There are wheels in between, for example Shermans, they are softer than a V10 when it comes to road feet, but harsher compared to a V11. Turning on the Shermans is somewhere between a V10 and a V11 for example.
6. When you go up a hill, especially steep ones, the contact point of your tires actually move upwards. This may cause your wheel to feel loose, feel greasy. So be careful when accelerating up hills aggressively.

Lastly, I see a lot of posts about new wheels and how to progress. I think that every rider should experience these 3 types of wheels.

1. Small, non suspension, agile wheels. V5/8/10 alike. Run over a pot hole slowly and experience the jaw shattering effect of not bending your knees. Step on the wheel too fast and scare yourself half to death when the wheel wants to throw you overboard. These are experiences that all riders needs to have.
2. Suspension wheels. T4, V11, etc. These are the future. Riders should experience stepping on the soft wheel and start off, it's a unique sensation. I believe it actually helps you mount all wheels, as suspension wheels sink when you mount them, adding complexity which means better training.
3. Larger, expert wheel. Sherman, K20/22, monster, etc. One you are here, all the experiences you learned above will apply and you'll enjoy the wheel so much more.

The above are just my experiences, I hope it helps those that are learning EUC.

Edited October 17, 2022 by MrEUCMan