Victoria BC eu group

[UniMe]

On 1/29/2020 at 10:08 AM, Msubasic said:

Well I got hit by a car at the galloping goose Atkins road crossing on Friday night. I thought it was just a bruise to my hip but 10 minutes later I noticed my hand was hurting and went to the hospital and there was a fracture to a small carpal bone in my right hand. So its in a cast for the 4-6 weeks.

It was dark. I had on all front and side lights on my V8. The driver was a nice older lady who has tried to be as helpful as possible after it happened. But she failed to slow down and check at the crossing and I didn't do enough precautions slowing down enough in case that happened.  I was wearing kneepads and elbow pads and bike helmet and my gloves were thick rain proof ones with padding, but they were not wrist-guards with metal plates. 

The wheel is ok, but I got a lot of family members saying "I told ya so" and saying it was stupid to ride an electric unicycle in the first place. But I think I will keep riding. Just always wear wrist guards and be more cautious around cars.

Hi, not sure if you're still on the forum @Msubasic but I'm curious if you sought any sort of compensation from ICBC for this injury. I wonder about the grey are of these devices and if the insurer may take a defensive position of us always being in the wrong...?

[UniMe]

My 5th day of training on the EUC. Went to the parking lot again and right away I was able to ride much longer and more relaxed than before. There are some mixed paved and gravel trails that circle the lot, so did a few laps of those before striking out on a fairly long trail for about 1km out and back. A couple more laps than shut down my lunch break training session.

Got off work a couple hours early and felt inspired to try and navigate from my home to an entry point to the galloping goose trail that's a couple km from here. That also went well, there and back with no real issue. Still very, very cautious, walk it across any streets etc, and I did step off at the top of a fairly steep hill (simply chickened out). but I'm fortunate to have a quiet, mostly side road, route towards that entry point. Happy to report I made it back up the hill coming back with no issue!!

I'm also sporting a full face helmet now, along with knee/shin guards, elbow pads and wrist guards. EUC limited to 17kph before it beeps, tilt back at 21 but I have enough headroom to back off before that. I can tell that a more comfortable cruising speed is closer to 20kph, 15-17 is just a tad slow and seems to require a bit more work than when the beeper starts to go off. I'll probably bump it up to 19 for my next ride and see how that goes.

I think the tire might be a touch hard as it starts to feel a tiny bit squirmy as I go faster, it's also a very hot day and the roads are hot so this may be increasing the pressure a bit. I'm thinking it may also simply be a feature of this tire with the solid center treadline...

Edited July 30, 2020 by UniMe

[Rywokast]

nice, good progress I think you should probably leave the tire as is because you likely haven't really broken out in yet I usually wait until about 200 km at speed to actually gauge the tire they usually start to feel a lot softer around then imo.. when do you wanna unleash the beast on the trail xD

[UniMe]

50 minutes ago, Rywokast said:

nice, good progress I think you should probably leave the tire as is because you likely haven't really broken out in yet I usually wait until about 200 km at speed to actually gauge the tire they usually start to feel a lot softer around then imo.. when do you wanna unleash the beast on the trail xD

Thanks for the inspiration! Unleashing the beast seems a ways off -- I didn't get to be this age by taking too may risks lol

It's an interesting trip being out on the wheel, lots of people are curious and interested and some just stare with anger and fear haha people need to lighten up!

 

[Rywokast]

49 minutes ago, UniMe said:

Thanks for the inspiration! Unleashing the beast seems a ways off -- I didn't get to be this age by taking too may risks lol

It's an interesting trip being out on the wheel, lots of people are curious and interested and some just stare with anger and fear haha people need to lighten up!

 

haha,, well the weather is so nice today I was out riding for about five hours.. I don't pay much attention to people anymore I always have headphones on and just go about my business but have been questioned lots of times at lights or crosswalks by curious people, haven't come across anyone who seemed angry or off put though mostly smiles or thumbs up.. the best one was an older guy probably in his seventies who ran up to me at a light and he's like I've seen you rip past here so many times in the last few years and I always wanted to stop you, that thing is the coolest gadget I've ever seen you're so skilled then proceeded to ask me how it works how much it is where I got it etc etc etc lol waited for three signals talking to him lol.. another guy knelt down beside the wheel at a crosswalk and snapped a selfie with it that was kinda weird haha.. even got a few shout outs from cops which was cool I was assuming they were gonna pull me over and the officer just yelled out "that thing is sweet!", another cop actually put on his lights this was at night and pulled me over and he's like I've seen you around lots and I just need to know what in the hell is that thing and how are you riding it so after I explained he's just like I don't understand but that's fkn awesome lol... so yea all good reception

[UniMe]

On 7/27/2020 at 6:25 PM, Rywokast said:

haha.. nice that thing looks pretty sweet, never looked at e-motorcycles before

Check out the Zero SR/S -- this really is the first mass production sport bike, and it is soooo scarry fast (and even more scary expensive to insure). guy at the shop, while chatting casually, says 'so, I pulled out to pass a car on the highway and tapped the throttle for about 2 seconds -- looked down and was doing over 200kph'.

As troubling as the EUC injuries documented here are they are nothing compared to the fatalities and catastrophic, life changing injuries that happen with motorcycles of all kinds, and stupid fast liter+ sport bikes in particular.

Edited July 31, 2020 by UniMe

[Rywokast]

10 minutes ago, UniMe said:

Check out the Zero SR/S -- this really is the first mass production sport bike, and it is soooo scarry fast (and even more scary expensive to insure). guy at the shop, while chatting casually, says 'so, I pulled out to pass a car on the highway and tapped the throttle for about 2 seconds -- looked down and was doing over 200kph'.

As troubling as the EUC injuries documented here are they are nothing compared to the fatalities and catastrophic, life changing injuries that happen with motorcycles of all kinds, and stupid fast liter+ sport bikes in particular.

sick, i want one lol... so expensive though >.> lmao thats more than top speed

[UniMe]

Yup, it's also top dollar!

You'd need to ditch your 'Esquimalt leathers' for some actual gear though... AGATT on a ride like that!

Esquimalt leathers definition: sneakers, shorts and a t-shirt while riding a sport bike  Brought to you from our own little Surrey by the Sea. 

[Rywokast]

5 hours ago, UniMe said:

Yup, it's also top dollar!

You'd need to ditch your 'Esquimalt leathers' for some actual gear though... AGATT on a ride like that!

Esquimalt leathers definition: sneakers, shorts and a t-shirt while riding a sport bike  Brought to you from our own little Surrey by the Sea. 

lmao thats great, when someone tells me to geat up ill tell them i have on my esquimalt leathers dont worry

[UniMe]

Seems I continue to make good progress. Rode from my place in upper gordon head down to UVic, did a few laps around the quad and came back. On the way back, took a couple detours and explored some more quiet side roads. Didn't need to step off the wheel the entire ride, but continue to stop and walk it across intersections and will often stop because I find looking for traffic difficult while maintaining balance. I can see how a mirror attached to my helmet will be very helpful and will order one today.

I was hitting the 24kph beeper constantly (up from 17, then 19) so brought it up to 29. This starts to feel like a really nice and flowy cruising speed, broad corners come easier and I can still carefully carve for smaller maneuvers. Riding in tighter spaces at lower speeds is also getting a lot better, able to carve consistently, ankle turn when needed. My tight radius turns continue to totally suck though... perhaps one part bigger wheel and one part newbie. 

I also have the experience of needing to warm up for a while before all the movements start to emerge spontaneously. The first 10 minutes or so on the wheel still feels like a nervous new activity until my motor memory starts to take over and I'm able to get out of my head a bit... 

edit: and the tire continues to feel squirmy at faster speeds... and I notice that sometimes the wheel wants to wobble all on it's own and that I need to be careful to keep it tight between my shins. I'll wait a while to see if the tire breaks in a bit before deciding if I should drop a couple psi...

Edited August 2, 2020 by UniMe

[Rywokast]

59 minutes ago, UniMe said:

My tight radius turns continue to totally suck though... perhaps one part bigger wheel and one part newbie.

yup, the bigger the wheel the more difficult to maneuver relatively.. it will come naturally. nice progress

[UniMe]

stopped counting the sessions, just trying to get out for a bit each day.

Turns out the tire pressure was too low, not too high. The tire is rated for 40-50psi and I was running about 39... brought it up to 45 and it is a LOT more stable at slow speed. I can now sustain a slow speed corner and just ride around in a circle a few times -- this felt like a big accomplishment! and it came immediately after putting a bit more pressure in the tire. Without this change it seemed impossible, now it just is

The wheel still wants to start oscillating at higher speeds though... this might have something to do with my foot position..? I'm still working that out... I've never lost control of it and find that if I firm up my riding position I can control it, but it seems life would be better if the wheel just ran in a straight line all on it's own at higher speed.

[Rywokast]

47 minutes ago, UniMe said:

stopped counting the sessions, just trying to get out for a bit each day.

Turns out the tire pressure was too low, not too high. The tire is rated for 40-50psi and I was running about 39... brought it up to 45 and it is a LOT more stable at slow speed. I can now sustain a slow speed corner and just ride around in a circle a few times -- this felt like a big accomplishment! and it came immediately after putting a bit more pressure in the tire. Without this change it seemed impossible, now it just is

The wheel still wants to start oscillating at higher speeds though... this might have something to do with my foot position..? I'm still working that out... I've never lost control of it and find that if I firm up my riding position I can control it, but it seems life would be better if the wheel just ran in a straight line all on it's own at higher speed.

cool,,, most people completely disregard the sidewall recommendation it just depends on your weight since these tires are not actually for eucs the recommended pressure doesnt mean much, however from what you say it does sound like it was too low with the slow speed cornering... if the pressure is too low and you do a slow speed corner the sidewall will become crushed and form a large flat spot making it seem very unsettling, as you can imagine at higher speeds this is less of an issue but still you should never run too low for your weight.

im assuming by oscillating at higher speeds you mean wobbling... i know its technically the same thing but when we refer to oscillation it means front to back wobble since its impossible for the wheel to do anything itself side to side.. wobbling at higher speeds is very common for new people who more often than not think its something to do with the euc when in fact its just them adjusting... on some occasions people have very poorly seated tires or crooked motors that can exacerbate this but its very uncommon...... you could check by putting it on the stand and rotating the tire around, or laying it on its side and spinning the tire to see if theres any wobble, its never exactly perfect and some wobble is present on every euc but only if its extremely noticeable should it affect riding... i bet you once you hit 300 km you will find this isnt the case, but i suggest checking to be sure, and check the tire bead since thats a super easy fix

[Justin Boivin]

2 hours ago, UniMe said:

stopped counting the sessions, just trying to get out for a bit each day.

Turns out the tire pressure was too low, not too high. The tire is rated for 40-50psi and I was running about 39... brought it up to 45 and it is a LOT more stable at slow speed. I can now sustain a slow speed corner and just ride around in a circle a few times -- this felt like a big accomplishment! and it came immediately after putting a bit more pressure in the tire. Without this change it seemed impossible, now it just is

The wheel still wants to start oscillating at higher speeds though... this might have something to do with my foot position..? I'm still working that out... I've never lost control of it and find that if I firm up my riding position I can control it, but it seems life would be better if the wheel just ran in a straight line all on it's own at higher speed.

When I was starting out, I filled my MSX tire up to the recommended pressure, it was way too touchy (it says 35-45 psi). I had a few (low speed) bumps and tumbles going over gravel and bumpy terrain that was previously fine...

Now I aim for ~27 psi and that seems to be just right. I'll know when its time to top it up again when I'll start to feel a sort of "drag"....like wind resistance but there's no wind.

As to speed wobbles, they just went away on their own as I got used to riding. I think this is mainly because there's some fine tuning of the nervous system/those precision muscle fibers that we subconsciousy use to keep us balanced. Also you'll gain a feel for how to stop a wobble before it starts; which usually involves a kind of gentle pulse of deceleration or a little turn to break the resonance. 

[UniMe]

Thanks Gents!!

I'm 235 dry and without coffee or breakfast in me, so it makes sense that I was simply overweight for the pressure in the tire. Everything is just easier now ... it's funny because I went out twice today. After the first session I came back feeling a bit dejected, that I wasn't maintaining my rate of learning progress. The second trip on the higher pressure was super rewarding though!

Thanks for the feedback about the oscillations/wobbles (yes, side to side) that I've encountered. I am able to correct them so I'll go with the perspective that it's me not the wheel. They do have me feeling quite cautious about going any faster though so I'll just give the 29kph beeper a couple hundred more clicks before inching it up again. I find this is a starting to be a functional speed for getting out of the way and going at least as fast as the average bicycle, so all good for now. Each time I go out it also gets easier to rotate on the wheel to check for traffic etc.

Learning new things is great!

[UniMe]

Longest ride yet! Upper gordon head through to the goose then past swan lake and almost down to the water before sitting for a minute to check the app and rolling home.

You all know this, but what a strange motor memory to have rolling around in my head! It's such a novel thing to train myself to do...! all smiles when I got back.

Interestingly, on the goose the beeper at 29kph seems a bit low and I kept hitting it which draws attention and may freak some people out a bit as it sometimes beeps if I'm passing someone. Thinking I'll move it up to 35 and call that my 'firm' upper limit for now (ya, I know, we'll see how long that lasts) -- the bit of headroom can be helpful in some situations. Also, people on road bikes are funny, and I know it's a lot of work to maintain 32kph or above on any bike. Being able to sustain that will keep me in pole position which I think is probably the safer location on the ECU.

I'm doing better with the wobbles thing, perhaps in part because I decided to take responsibility for it rather than thinking it's something I need to fix on the EUC. The oscillation sometimes starts up on uneven ground, which really is an indicator to just slow down a bit. Even better, to predict that terrain change by staying heads up and to ease off before I get there. Different tool, different limits, it's simply not my bike.

[Rywokast]

nice, I always set any euc to the fastest speed it can go and do whatever speed I want at the time because hearing beeps is so annoying lol and once you get more km you'll be able to gauge the speed pretty well without looking.. it's a lot safer to have that speed available if you need it if you're ever in a hairy situation, as long as you have the headroom though it doesn't matter too much what that speed is,, though who am I kidding I'm riding at the max on any wheel anyways lol

[UniMe]

It's the checking of my speed that I'm still trying to figure out. My phone rides in my shorts pocket and I most definitely don't have the attention capacity yet to carry it and watch my speed etc on the app. Having a watch that reads off the phone just seems like too much stuff... and my arms are pretty much covered in gear so I'm not sure where I'd strap the phone...?

35kph is fast enough I think, but my views may change over time. I did see 3 police cruisers today and 2 of them definitely were slow and close enough that they could have stopped me -- but nada, I just rode on! I wonder if they even have jurisdiction to pull me over if I'm on a bike trail that is separate from the road anyway...? I've been going with this imaginary limit in my mind and continue to walk the wheel across big intersections. This may also change over time, especially as my control of the wheel gets more and more dialed in. If I'm 100% stable, and moving the same speed as others walking across, then I'm just an assisted walker and zero threat or concern... 

[Rywokast]

34 minutes ago, UniMe said:

It's the checking of my speed that I'm still trying to figure out. My phone rides in my shorts pocket and I most definitely don't have the attention capacity yet to carry it and watch my speed etc on the app. Having a watch that reads off the phone just seems like too much stuff... and my arms are pretty much covered in gear so I'm not sure where I'd strap the phone...?

35kph is fast enough I think, but my views may change over time. I did see 3 police cruisers today and 2 of them definitely were slow and close enough that they could have stopped me -- but nada, I just rode on! I wonder if they even have jurisdiction to pull me over if I'm on a bike trail that is separate from the road anyway...? I've been going with this imaginary limit in my mind and continue to walk the wheel across big intersections. This may also change over time, especially as my control of the wheel gets more and more dialed in. If I'm 100% stable, and moving the same speed as others walking across, then I'm just an assisted walker and zero threat or concern... 

you will be able to very easily soon enough, i know they make arm straps for joggers and whatnot but im not too sure never used anything like that.. oh trust me your views will change lol..

cool, just dont do anything crazy and they wont lol ive seen hundreds of police while riding.. and they most definitely have jurisdiction on the trail lol, there are still technically laws banning something this powerful from bike trails but they dont give a shit, i have seen police on the trail either camped at intersections or patrolling it on motorbikes... which i have to assume is for the drug addicts that sometimes camp out there and not people on e scooters lmao

as for getting off i know a lot of people like to do that, i never bothered when i was starting, a bit of overconfidence lol its not too smart for someone new to do that, but now i have no problems going all through downtown on the sidewalks on any wheel, people dont even notice you just need to get really good at going walking speed or slower, intersections i come to a near stop without getting off then proceed or at lights just lean on a pole or whatever, if theres nothing ill step off its just faster to get going when youre already on it obviously, so i prefer not to step off

Edited August 7, 2020 by Rywokast

[Justin Boivin]

9 hours ago, UniMe said:

It's the checking of my speed that I'm still trying to figure out. My phone rides in my shorts pocket and I most definitely don't have the attention capacity yet to carry it and watch my speed etc on the app. Having a watch that reads off the phone just seems like too much stuff... and my arms are pretty much covered in gear so I'm not sure where I'd strap the phone...?

35kph is fast enough I think, but my views may change over time. I did see 3 police cruisers today and 2 of them definitely were slow and close enough that they could have stopped me -- but nada, I just rode on! I wonder if they even have jurisdiction to pull me over if I'm on a bike trail that is separate from the road anyway...? I've been going with this imaginary limit in my mind and continue to walk the wheel across big intersections. This may also change over time, especially as my control of the wheel gets more and more dialed in. If I'm 100% stable, and moving the same speed as others walking across, then I'm just an assisted walker and zero threat or concern... 

I normally just make sure to slow down to bike speed when cops are around, just to not give any bad impressions, but they don't seem to care. 

I've been using the EUC world app  to keep aware of my speed. I sometimes can't hear the beeps in my helmet, especially if its windy so I set it to vibrate so I always can feel it.  It gives you a lot of customization options too.

[UniMe]

vibrations is a good idea! Quiet, won't freak out the wobbly people struggling on their under powered ebikes. Thanks!

[UniMe]

On 8/7/2020 at 1:33 PM, Rywokast said:

 and they most definitely have jurisdiction on the trail lol, there are still technically laws banning something this powerful from bike trails but they dont give a shit, i have seen police on the trail either camped at intersections or patrolling it on motorbikes... which i have to assume is for the drug addicts that sometimes camp out there and not people on e scooters lmao

I didn't word that well, what I was trying to get at is that while EUC's may not be 'legal' for road use does this also mean they are not 'legal' for use on regional trails and sidewalks?

I went for a training ride this morning to practice turns etc and then took the EUC to go drop off my car for some work down by the Bay St. bridge. On the way towards the goose from there I was on the sidewalk, going the 'wrong way' against traffic, and  a bit wobbly as I had just made a tight and poorly executed turn off Bridge St. and rolled right past a cruiser (could have touched it). I just kept my eyes forward, my speed down, and then stopped as I approached a pedestrian and walked it for a bit to ensure it was clear to the officer that I was respectful and in full control. He drove on, that was that. I wonder if the outcome would have been different if I was on the road even if I was going the right direction... I'm just speculating, and probably over thinking (a chronic pastime ) perhaps they are genuinely interested in actual criminals and reckless drivers and not in pulling over a middle aged white guy (insert white privilege here) riding some weird thing they don't understand.

[Rywokast]

18 minutes ago, UniMe said:

I didn't word that well, what I was trying to get at is that while EUC's may not be 'legal' for road use does this also mean they are not 'legal' for use on regional trails and sidewalks?

I went for a training ride this morning to practice turns etc and then took the EUC to go drop off my car for some work down by the Bay St. bridge. On the way towards the goose from there I was on the sidewalk, going the 'wrong way' against traffic, and  a bit wobbly as I had just made a tight and poorly executed turn off Bridge St. and rolled right past a cruiser (could have touched it). I just kept my eyes forward, my speed down, and then stopped as I approached a pedestrian and walked it for a bit to ensure it was clear to the officer that I was respectful and in full control. He drove on, that was that. I wonder if the outcome would have been different if I was on the road even if I was going the right direction... I'm just speculating, and probably over thinking (a chronic pastime ) perhaps they are genuinely interested in actual criminals and reckless drivers and not in pulling over a middle aged white guy (insert white privilege here) riding some weird thing they don't understand.

its not a grey area the only pev legally allowed on bike trails are pedal assisted electric bikes with max 500W motors and 32 km/h top speed.. pretty much any euc or electric scooter obliterates this except my ninebot one lol, but thats not pedal assisted either O.o luckily, if everything goes as planned that will change very soon and we will be fully legal, but the current situation is extremely relaxed in regards to pevs so ive never once worried about it, just dont do anything stupid like go 70 km/h on the sidewalk and youll be good  hmmm, i would assume that you would actually have a better chance at a favourable outcome had you been on the road actually... they probably dont like to see people on the sidewalks at all since its been illegal to ride anything on the sidewalk for many years now but i think they have bigger fish to fry and the current mayor is wholly supportive of any of our electric devices so i think unless you literally hit someone in front of them they really couldnt care less

ive always wondered if the fact that my step dad is a police sergeant and loves my eucs has anything to do with the reason a guy with zero gear riding for almost four years now on sidewalks, roads, bike lanes, and trails has never once been pulled over or if thats just how relaxed it is, because afaik no one in victoria has ever had a ticket

Edited August 10, 2020 by Rywokast

[UniMe]

LOL -- they all have a pic of you taped under the sun visor with red bolded instructions to leave you tf alone it's all about who you know hahaha

Edited August 11, 2020 by UniMe

[UniMe]

I found this on another thread, just updated and live in the last couple days https://euc.world/library 

They are FUNNY!! I do notice pedestrians seem to appreciate hearing me coming, something a little more friendly than a fat boy harley will be nice. I'm thinking the horse track with the  sound of a horse munching grass on idle. The slow gallop sound will probably sound great at speed... will need to give it a try soon!