Commuting - Commute by unicycle?

I just caught up with a contractor acquaintance who has been away from our office for a few month, and he told me he took the plunge and bought a unicycle, which he had told me last summer he'd been thinking about doing. We had just been talking about how close he lives to this job (1.5 mi), and I jokingly said maybe he could ride his unicycle to work! But we then went on to consider if it would really work. A google search for "commute by unicycle" reveals a few hits, so I suppose someone, somewhere, has done it. Anyone here?

Obviously it would depend on the roads or sidewalks on the route, and the length. He said a unicyclist is generally considered a pedestrian legally, and we wondered whether the road or the sidewalk would be more appropriate and safe. Is there such a thing as "vehicular unicycling"? Or would its lower speeds truly make it more appropriate to operate in pedestrian mode than vehicle mode?

Thoughts? Experience?

yeah, just don't forget to put panniers right on it !

Corsaire LOL

I just caught up with a contractor acquaintance who has been away from our office for a few month, and he told me he took the plunge and bought a unicycle, which he had told me last summer he'd been thinking about doing. We had just been talking about how close he lives to this job (1.5 mi), and I jokingly said maybe he could ride his unicycle to work! But we then went on to consider if it would really work. A google search for "commute by unicycle" reveals a few hits, so I suppose someone, somewhere, has done it. Anyone here?

Obviously it would depend on the roads or sidewalks on the route, and the length. He said a unicyclist is generally considered a pedestrian legally, and we wondered whether the road or the sidewalk would be more appropriate and safe. Is there such a thing as "vehicular unicycling"? Or would its lower speeds truly make it more appropriate to operate in pedestrian mode than vehicle mode?

Thoughts? Experience?
It amazes me where and how far a unicycle rider can go, from many hundred mile touring trips to trail riding among MTBers. Seriously.
al

Yeah we have a guy who commutes via unicycle. Carries a backpack wears a helmet. Don't know how he does at the various stop lights...maybe he times them so he doesn't have to stop.

I had a buddy in Chicago who did that. He rode his uni on the sidewalks, took it to the bus stop, then carried it aboard the bus. This was 20+ years ago.

I think unicycle speeds are more appropriate to the sidewalk...closer to walking speeds than a bicycle. They also maneuver more like a pedestrian than a vehicle.

Yeah we have a guy who commutes via unicycle. Carries a backpack wears a helmet. Don't know how he does at the various stop lights...maybe he times them so he doesn't have to stop.


well a good unicyclist would be able to idle. plus he could use the side walks and such. those guys are crazy

Lance Armstrong just gave us the most credibility and respect we'll ever have, and now you unicyclists and recumbent guys wanna' put us back to looking like circus clowns! :D

I use to see a young guy(20's) riding one near my home to the local University, UMBC . He road on the shoulders of the road but there were no sidewalks in that area.

Here is a crazy guy in Idaho!

http://www.reeder.unicyclist.com/

http://www.reeder.unicyclist.com/trailerpic.jpg

I am afraid of traffic on my unicycle... until I get real good I probably won't venture anywhere near a road at all, even on a sidewalk :) Bad thing is, there aren't many sidewalks between home and work... I might wind up trying off-road unicycle commuting.

The cagers have a hard enough time taking a bicycle seriously. What do you think they'd make of something more commonly associated with clowns? I can't see it as practical, even though it's smaller size would more readily lend itself to cubical parking.

I did a LOT of research before getting mine. The unicyclists definately get a bad rap from the common clown association, but you would be surprised what they do on unicycles these days.

As far as the size, it's bigger than I'd like it to be (had to get one for my 6'4" body) but I'm told it's only practical at larger wheel sizes. Which makes sense. The clowns have this little tiny wheel, which is great for control and tricks, but for any sort of commuting / riding a distance, the larger wheel gives an obvious speed advantage.

I must admit I do get some strange looks and conversations from passers-by as I practice outside. Kids always ask to try to ride it.

crazyjeremy

There's a guy around here (Northern Vermont) who has a unicycle with a studded knobby tire. I don't think he commutes, but he does ride in snow...

In college a buddy of mine had aspirations of being a barnum & baily circus clown (which he now is). Anyway, he used a messenger bag and rode to all his classes and to the store (and in the store much to the chagrin of the managers) on his uni. When he someone stopped him to chat he would do a uni version of a track-stand and talk to them, then he would be off to his destination. He guessed that his speed was about 7-8 mph usually, which he based off of the 7-8 minutes it took him to get to the store that was almost a mile away, and he always rode on the sidewalk.

When he got really bored he would carry his clubs and juggle them as he went. He now does the fire wands, but didn't ever use them in college. Too bad, that would have been fun to see. He also didn't go out until the snow/ice was cleared from the sidewalks. Unis are cool, but I don't think they belong on the road.

I've ridden my muni to work twice, and I'd do it again, but not often. It's a short ride for a two-wheeler, but very long for a unicycle...6.5 km's. That means when i get home I've ridden 13 km's on a uni. I don't have the skills to coast, so downhills are a *****.

For the record, I ride on a 20" wheel, 3" (yes 3 inch) tire, and it's as knobby as you can get them. It takes MASSIVE quad strength to push that thing around and balance.

There was a guy in Killington Vermont who used to ride his unicycle (carrying his snowboard and backpack) about 4 or 5 miles up the Access Road to work everyday. He started riding the unicycle because he was grinding through rims too quickly on his commuter bicycle. Don't know if he is still there/still riding but he was definitely interesting and had some interesting ideas on keeping his equipment running (for cheap). I used to live there and sometimes worked on his stuff, my commute was from Killington to Rutland (15 miles) but I really think he had me beat big time unicycling up to the Baselodge!

I've occassionally seen someone commuting by unicycle in Portland.

Lance Armstrong just gave us the most credibility and respect we'll ever have, and now you unicyclists and recumbent guys wanna' put us back to looking like circus clowns! :D

Only if he's going to be juggling...

What's odd is when you want to go fast on a unicycle you lean forward and you get the sensation that you're falling forward. You pedal hard to keep from actually falling and so you go fast.

Anyone know what kind of revs per minute you do on a unicycle?

yeah, just don't forget to put panniers right on it !

Corsaire LOL


And go clipless, most definitely!

:D

Koffee

I've seen mountain unicyclists. It's the strangest, craziest thing I've ever seen. You can't think about clowns after seeing something like that. How can they do that? And we've got mountain bike trails they make videos about here in Santa Barbara.

For three years now, I've seen a guy on a 36" wheel unicycle ride the BP MS 150. It came from unicycles.com, which he said is the only source he has for tires & tubes. Claims the hardest part is the downhills.

Last year when I would roll into work, every once in a while I would see someone riding to work in a suit and bowtie riding a unicycle. It was one of the greatest things ever.