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Bought a Ninebot One? Things to do before riding.


Bwuce Wee

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I believe he is plain wrong when he says "there is more surface area so you get more to stand on therefore less balancing required". The added surface area is nothing you can use to keep balance, as it is not stable. I also strongly doubt that he is right when he says "the more responsive it is [...] the harder it is". I think that lack of responsiveness for turning the wheel around its vertical axis is a main obstacle when we start to learn. We could test this hypothesis by experimenting with different surfaces (instead of different pressures). I suggest that a surface where the wheel doesn't stick is easier to get started. 

Why not give it a try. Once you do, you will see that that is exactly what happens. The less tyre pressure the easier to ride. Bigger contact surface, higher roll resistance (if you like, better grip) and less distance you can squeeze out of the battery. And vice versa.

In science it is always helpful to think in extremes in order to make something visible. Think really big and flat tyre. What do you get? A cylinder. Self stabilising. qed.

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Why not give it a try. Once you do, you will see that that is exactly what happens. The less tyre pressure the easier to ride.

Not my experience. EDIT: Of course I can't roll back the time and see whether it's easier to learn with different inflation. I am just questioning the mechanisms as to why this might be the case. If one feels more comfortable on a less inflated tire (like riding in soft mode), this is likely to have a great benefit on learning quickly. In this case one really should use low pressure for learning. 

Bigger contact surface, higher roll resistance (if you like, better grip) and less distance you can squeeze out of the battery. And vice versa.

In science it is always helpful to think in extremes in order to make something visible. Think really big and flat tyre.

I have. 

What do you get? A cylinder. Self stabilising. qed.

I don't get a cylinder when thinking about a big flat tire. In any case, if it were self stabilizing you should be able to stand on it without moving. But you can't, because it is not stable. If the shape would be stiff, it could be stable. If by rolling/leaning the point of support would change significantly, it could be stable. Maybe it does change to a greater extend with a flatter tire, but I am not sure (there might be an inflation with maximal change which is not the minimal inflation).  

EDIT: In short: don't hesitate to use less inflation if this feels more comfortable as a beginner. Being uncomfortable or stressed and thereby stiffen up is the greatest obstacle for learning. 

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Quotewars, really necessary? :rolleyes: Everyone has his own experience, so if one feels more stable with a rockhard tire, good, there are a lot of people that like to ride slow with a soft tire as well. No need to discuss it to death.

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I learned with strongly inflated tires, the retailer was so kind to inflate the tires for me on purchase and it was hard.

I learned to ride my EUC really fast i think, it took me about 45 minutes and i was testing top speed etc.  So it's definately doable.

 

That said;

- Soft tires should be better for control, think BMX, mountainbikes, stuntbikes, they got low pressure to perform better stunts, to stand still and balance on 1 wheel etc.  On the other hand, the EUC balances forward and backward movement on its own, so it might not be that much of an impact, still easier for riding rougher terrain

-Hard tires are for distance and speed, think Tour De France racing bicycles, extremely thin tires with high pressure for less contact with the surface.  You will feel all bumps a little harder.

 

It's definately possible to learn to ride with both.  In the end, you will need at least 30 minutes of practicing before u can actually ride the EUC safely.  So i don't think it matters that much.  

 

Let's not fight, we all love the EUC's, we are one, some of us even Ninebot One :-P

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you mean that the wheel lifts your toes when riding fast? Thats the "speed limiter" to make sure you dont go faster than the wheel can balance you. The beeps are to warn you if you accelerate too much and the tiltback would throw you off if it kicks in.

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- Soft tires should be better for control, think BMX, mountainbikes, stuntbikes, they got low pressure to perform better stunts, to stand still and balance on 1 wheel etc. 

To all I know they do it mainly for two reasons: grip and damping. Although I am not sure whether one of them is invariably more important, in the end of the day it's probably grip, certainly in the case where suspension is anyway part of the machine.

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When I increased the tire pressure on my generic crap wheel from ~1bar to 3.1bar, My ranged increased from 10km to 13km, but the wheel also got MUCH harder to balance, now I am used to it, and I think it is fine.

here a link to my post right after experiencing this.

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  • 5 months later...

Hello Guys, 

I've just got my 9bot E+ :rolleyes:

I don't know how you guys got use to drive it. I watched Ninebot Videos, this chinese lady stepping on it with one foot and gliding. When I try I feel like my leg gonna snap, I'm not that heavy or non-fit :D I suppose. 

I was trying it inside of the house, holding on whatever I found. One word, this is impossible to drive! Start considering to push myself by the hill with it. :blink:

 

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@zixu Don't expect to get your Ninebot out of the box, hop on and roll away if you haven't had experience with an EUC before.

Most people take a few days of training to get to roll just a few meters. It took me about five days training.

Just don't give up and keep trying. Read alot (some good advice in this forum), watch videos and keep trying. 

You'll get there and start enjoying it soon.

 

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ToniG123 thanks for the encouragement. I feel like 5yo stepping on a bike for a first time. Difference is my whole knees hurts and I'm moaning like a little girl. 

As a person who never able to ride roller skates. I feel its impossible to balance with one feet stepped on it and other feet over the ground. It just tilts on the side and falls. Am I not doing it wrong?

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Do you mean one leg on the ninebot and stepping with the other on the floor while advancing? That is not easy, it is not something you should start with.

My recommendation:

1. One leg on the ninebot, other still on the floor. Balance the ninebot forward and backward without moving the foot on the floor, just to get a feel of how the ninebot moves.
2. Lean on a wall or something and get both feet on the ninebot. Make the ninebot go forward and backward. Again, just getting a feel of it and seeing how it reacts.
3. Move out to an open space. The ninebot wants to roll, you will not learn just by mounting it and leaning on a wall or inside your home or garage. It needs space. I started learning on an empty parking lot. I Would lean on my car, hop on and try to move forward, letting go of the car (crashing a few meters later the first times).
4. Don't look down at your feet when riding. You'll soon notice that the Ninebot goes where you are looking at. (sounds strange, I know, but its true). If you look down at your feet you'll fall down. Look forward.
5. Relax. You will ride much better when you relax. Your muscles are not so tense, your legs will absorb better the bumps and your control will be better.

Once you've done all that, the first thing you should learn is mounting the ninebot without having to lean on anything. It takes some time, you have to keep on trying it until it becomes natural.

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, Zixu said:

ToniG123 thanks for the encouragement. I feel like 5yo stepping on a bike for a first time. Difference is my whole knees hurts and I'm moaning like a little girl. 

As a person who never able to ride roller skates. I feel its impossible to balance with one feet stepped on it and other feet over the ground. It just tilts on the side and falls. Am I not doing it wrong?

Mounting the EUC is one of the most exhausting things in the beginning. But it will come to your 'muscle brain' by itself over time!

I myself started in a cellar ?hallway/aisle? having the chance to hold to my right and left side. Once i get the first trust to the machine i changed to the garage and went from pillar to pillar.

before i was able to really ride the 9bot, i went with my brother to a recreational side with a wide straight path and i made it for a couple of kilometers, managed it to make some (horrible) turns, but never got a real start - always held myself to a pole or wall, mounted the EUC and than drove.

Take your time and relax - you will learn and enjoy it! Never push it too much or overdo it - its just exhausting and frustrating in the beginning. Give your brain/muscles/nerves/or whatsoever time to get used to this new experience!

The pain in your knees you have by now is just because you are cramping and not knowing how to do it the right way - so dont rush it, build up the necessary muscles and experience and let it come. I started with 5 to 15 minute sessions and this was more than enough! Ok - my younger brothers (about 20 years old) managed to ride the EUC in 30 minutes - this was a bit frustrating to watch, but they are young, fit and and more able to do the balancing. For us a little bit older people it just takes a couple of sessions more - but we still manage it!

Keep on and give us your success story!

 

 

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try practicing 'stepping ': inside of the lower leg (dominant leg, f.ex. right leg) blocked against the EUC tilting the EUC to the 'stepping ' side, try to take a step with the weak leg (left leg) while keeping a straight line. This way you'll be riding 0.5meter each time on one leg, practice to take longer strides.

Try 10min a time, several times/day.

These are the basics before to step on, ride, gracefully step off, or simply control you wheel standing with one foot on the ground.

It's tough to start like this but I have the impression it speeds up the learning. My wife (40) has started riding the EUC and with this practice, after 3x she could already ride several meters alone (using both legs ofcourse).

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If you have air compressor just buy extended valve for that.  Reaches right up to nb valve.    Also as mentioned most gas stations in US have long flexible air extensions that reach no problem.     

       I will tell anyone to NOT use bumpers....what a residual mess removing!   Just practice on grass.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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On 14.1.2016 at 0:41 AM, Chriull said:

but they are young, fit 

Thanks, sounds like you started caring about your casket already ;-)

sry for OT 

@Zixu

The best and easiest way to learn it, imho, is if you have a buddy with a second wheel ... or someone who likes running and doesnt sweat much, so you dont get a bad conscience for torturing him/her :-) 

find some broad empty street/sports court/parkinglot, somewhere with place for a big "0" Pattern or big square. including straights and turns

- the first couple of minutes/rounds just stand comfortable on the wheel, look forward, not down, and drive some slow big rounds with him/her holding your hand/arm, try that your arms are spread appart for better balance. vary your speed from slow to medium and back, stop and drive off again then make round after round until you get a good feel of cornering. choose your buddy depending on your weight :) so he has a chance to catch you.

- after some rounds (s)he just walks beside you with an high raised arm (like as you would guide an old women/pensionist or Chriull ;)) ... this way you just need to lower your arm a tiny bit to regaining/correct your balance. try out differnt ways to balance/drive. like normal balancing with arms, janking your waist/lower body left/right, drive small slalom patterns, turning your upper body left/right, lowering one foot/raising the other (like i describe later) ... different people find some techniques way easier than others and you get a feel of how the wheel behaves in different situations ... so dont get stuck and discouraged fixating on one way ... imagine going very very slow with a bicycle, balancing with your handlebar & front tire - this is quite compareable, you also steer in the direction you would fall to counter it.  

- then the next step, you stand on the wheel holding hands, quite wide appart, ready for takeoff. your buddy with his wheel just needs to be good in mounting, if he can drive on one leg, its even easier (i used to start with 1 or 2 "inbetween" steps then put the second foot on the pedal. found that easier as both starting from stillstand, but thats just me) as long as you keep your wheels apart and the streets in front of you free ... then let his hand go for longer and longer moments, like the walking part above.

your helper should also tell you if you go to fast, if nessecary over and over again :) he should prevent you from your first faceplant, thank him later or buy a beer  ... for corners, he just needs to reduce his speed, this way your upper body will do the corner almost automatically for you.  Also while turning he should remind you to not lean/bend to much forward/slowing you down. but at this point be ready to drive alone just use his arm as security ... while driving together, he should be very attentive, watching your wheel, he has to get out of your way, always and fast :) 

 

 

done this with several people now and most drove alone in a very short time, way less then i needed learning it alone ... the hard way ... 

 

some other "workouts" or trainings for in- and outdoors

while holding onto something, not just try to get the feeling for front/back leaning, but also try left/right leaning, by that i mean not your body but just tilt your wheel. put more weight on one foot (keep contact with the calve) and raise the heels of the opposite foot - use the toes(ball of foot?) to keep balance.  this will "hurt" a bit in the beginning, after 1 week or 2 it gets way way less painfull, dont worry too much about it (use some paddings (thick socks/chinguards). if you train this you can soon turn in tight places and you can start scraping your pedals - the burnout of e-wheels :)

Train controlling your wheel on the ground with one foot down is always a good exersice as it spares you a lot of embarrassment and pitty while driving around other people :))  

always get good calve-contact doning this, if your wheel is in front of your center of mass you need to use your heel+calve-pressure to get it back and more pressure on the toes if its behind you. try to move it straight forward, backwards, hop afterwards with the other foot or just spin around until you puke :) 
 

for starting, lean your wheel to the left side (if you start with your right on the wheel) this way you have a tiny bit more time to get up. as soon as you can drive one legged you'll have all the time in the world to step on ... until then train, train and train ...  try holding on a wall, step up and down some xx times ... until you get your foot in the right position most of the times. then drive 2 meters dismount, mount drive 2 meters .... 

for stopping  hmm. always really stop before you putting one foot down, or your risk running after it :) and lean a bit in the direction where you want to dismount, dont let the luck decide. if you accelerate too fast (overlean)  you can fall forward, probably the same goes for braking! if you lean brack to extreme you'll maybe sit on your bottom

try to drive on one foot as soon as possible. first holding on the wall trying to balance, then hopping with one foot ... sounds terrible painfull, which it is but just first week or two ... if you get the balance ... starting and stopping is a peace of cake as you have all the time of the world to get your foot up and in the right possition. if you train this you need good shoes tightly tied up.

 

and as the others already said, make pauses, many short sessions over the day, icepacks for your calves 

chriull's tips for learning alone in a cellar or a path with rail/handguards works well too. if you have a cellar with wodden doors/walls use some snowboard/motorbike gloves to not get splints or break your fingers.

depending on your flat you can improve your balance also while e.g. brushing your teeth, making coffee ... get creative ;) but take care of your interior and dont pick up your wheel while still on to prevent black tire marks on the floor ... same goes if you use the wheel as propulsion device for your wheeled flowerpot-stand :)

and always wear at least wristguards, better full protection.

 

sry for the length and grammar

muh!

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What @Blunzn says about holding on to someone is probably the best advice.  Sometimes you cannot find someone, but if you can, it works SO Much faster to learn.  I've now taught someone to ride the Unicycle in about 10 mins and I used to teach people to ride the HoverBoards this way and it's the FASTEST way to success.

The knees, inside of the legs and the bottoms of the feet really hurt until you are comfortable enough to relax.  If you keep at it, it WILL come, I promise...  Then, you can ride 20+ miles no problem.

I wear these on each and every ride now because my knees are a bit messed up from being silly all throughout my life.  They help a LOT. I just strap them over my pants.  $11ea at Walmart, best $22 ever spent, (besides my helmet).

WrapAroundHingedKneeBrace__68929.1417450

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Welcome.

 

I taught my friends to ride, my tips were;
-stand near a wall or small fence, get on your wheel starting with 1 leg, do a minor "jump" without losing contact between your foot and the EUC when you bring your other foot on the EUC.    This way the biggest impact, your both feet and your full weight on the EUC, will be balanced because you sort of land with 2 feet together.
-get on, get off, get on, get off.  Repeat this a couple of times.
-Now practice getting some forward movement, imagine it's a bike, when you take off with your bike from standing still you also push forward a little so you have momentum, it's simply easier to balance on 1 wheel when u have some minor movement forward, it's like riding a bike.
-Once you push/lean forward a bit with your strongest foot and get your other foot on the EUC as well, try to lean forward a little, don't be scared, u can keep contact between the wall/fence and your hand the whole time.  Take off, stop after 2 metres, and repeat, try to take your hand off the wall as much as possible.
 

Other tips i liked but didn't necessarily use;
-go to a private parking from some store with shopping carts, u'll have a huge place to practice and u can use a shopping cart to balance yourself.
-Taking off is the hardest, just like with a bike, sometimes i pretend to be holding a bicycle when i take off, i do the exact same movement; i push off a bit before i start "pedaling".
-bend your knees a little bit, good workout but also helps when you ride over rougher terrain or get off a sidewalk, in this case you have some natural suspension.

 

Have fun!

 

Bwuce Wee

 

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Finally, after practicing for hours with TGT3 I decided to try on with my NB E+ that been sitting for weeks in the box.

This thing is really a beast, much heavier and faster than TGT3. Even I can hop on/off quite successfully with the T3, a bit learning curve is still needed for NB1, hopping on, and especially stopping and stepping off the bot is bit more difficult for me. Turning is also bit more difficult with the NB.

I got the tire checked, pumped it to 50 psi ( what's the recommendation for 125 lbs?), knee pad, helmet, and wrist guard, and off I go. The adrenaline is still pumping, while I can ride the T3 more relaxed, I still couldnt do it with the NB, only run around the block for half hour, and I have to take a break, my knees are still shaking, LMAO

OK, just when I feel good about myself for being able to ride couple blocks with no fall, just saw this video, where these 2 little girls just crushed my self esteem and put me in my place, LOL

 

 

 

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I believe you are just afraid you are going to scratch it so you are nervous and tense.  Once that goes away, you will LOVE it!

Cool Video.  Kids are DUMB! :P  Just kidding, I love kids.  That is some pretty good skills though.  Way beyond me.

Here's More:

 

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Got first ride in today at minus 2 degree celsius temperature with wind chill -10.

Fell down and almost scratch the unit on the second take off!! Fell down on ice once, lucky the pedal partially slide on ice, no scratches.

The bigger pedal felt more comfortable than airwheel, able to adjust feet position better.

Able to make direction changes more quicker, make tighter turns more easier.  More enjoyable ride, more control results in more confident on the wheel in tight environment.

Riding backwards on this unit should be easier compare to airwheel.

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Thanks for the encouragements guys, today I did loops with friend on the middle on who I could lean on. I can say that 15min - break - 15min kinda exercises are the best. It helps your body/mind to able to accept and adjust the weird way of driving EUC. 

It's a shame its winter season and I cannot practice on a grass without being scared of falling and scratching it.

 

Your advices helped alot. Thanks guys. 

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  • 6 months later...
53 minutes ago, Duf said:

I have had my NB 1 for two days.  It's been rough, the bot already looks like it has been through a war.  If anyone wants to watch my video to offer pointers it would be most welcome...  Day 2 on my Ninebot One

If it was not wet, I'd say ride on the grass to help soften the landing on the wheel, and yourself.  You will look back and wonder how this was so hard.  It's a normal part of learning for many.  Try riding along a wall or fence that you can hang onto.  It will allow you to ride further.  Or, have your wife walk along side you and hang onto her shoulder.

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