Geared Unicycle vs Bikes!
 

Had a blast trying to keep up with bikes! Even in high gear hitting close to 18 mph I lose, but it was fun trying!

First up is on the bike path, then on the trail:

Looks like fun!

Hold that package!

I like the idea of having a good excuse for holding the nose of my saddle like I'm a bull rider. And 8 seconds is about all I could manage on a unicycle.

Dude! Crazy! Looks like so much fun!

Your videos are amazing!

Amazing!

Keith

Path way too busy for my liking. Give me my rural roads with pastures, cows and horses!!

Anyone who can balance a unicycle is a better man than I am.

Thanks Terry, I always enjoy your videos.

Well done! Your videos are so much fun to watch.

:lol: :lol:

Thanks for the comments guys! :thumb:

As always UniGeezer, your videos are a hoot to view.

I honestly can’t imagine myself going 18 MPH on a unicycle (foreseeing myself doing a horribly disfiguring face-plant). You, however, make it look so easy!

A couple questions for you:

1. What’s the weight of your “geared” unicycle?

2. What are the weights of your lightest & heaviest unicycles?

Thanks Gnosis! Well, the 26er geared is about 17 lbs, with the internal geared hub adding about 1 extra pound of rotating weight, vs a non-geared standard hub. The lightest uni I own is a 24" "ultra climber" which I built using the lightest and strongest materials. It tips the scales at just a hair over 10 lbs. Heaviest is my 36er touring uni which includes T-handle and aero bars plus Shimano V brake. The tire alone weighs close to 4 lbs, with the tube a close second at almost 3 lbs! This uni weighs in at about 19 lbs.

Roughly 10 to 19 pounds is somewhat lighter than I’d have guessed. In any case, you make unicycling appear so natural, easy, and fun, which is saying something at your 60 years of age. (I turn 60 in a couple months.)

I wish I lived in your vicinity so we could go for a ride now and then to share a few laughs. We both have lots of energy to burn for our age.

Keep the videos coming!

If you're ever out in the LA area, give me a shout and we'll meetup for a ride!

UniGeezer, if I can ever traverse the distance of the states (and I’d like to someday via bicycle), I’d gladly give you a shout.

Every time I watch your unicycling videos, I find myself thinking, “Man, look at him go!!!” I don’t see a 60-year-old guy riding those unicycles, but instead, I see what appears to be a “supercharged teenager.” It always brings a smile to my face.

It seems those unicycles are your fountain of youth (and they're doing a fine job of keeping you young and highly energized)… :thumb:

Thanks Knosis! Funny you mention "unicycles are your fountain of youth" as I've said that very thing for years, believing that it has helped so many people to get in great shape, lose weight, improve focus and overall well being. (Of course, the same can be said for biking and most sports that people are passionate about.) :giver:

My bikes are surely my fountain of youth. They brought me back from the severity of my heart attack (incurred at age 53, but I wasn’t well enough to attempt bicycling until age 20 months later in mid April of 2011 at age 55).

My father presumed it would be easier to pedal a unicycle 100 miles compared to a typical two-wheeled bicycle simply because the unicycle can be made lighter. However, I was quick to remind him that a unicyclist never gets the opportunity to rest their legs while in motion because their legs are constantly powering the unicyclist while additionally maintaining their balance (my legs burn just thinking about it). I can’t imagine pedaling a unicycle 100 miles for that fact alone.

Naturally, if I could actually ride a unicycle (though I’ve never had the opportunity to try, so I’m a face-plant just waiting to happen :lol: ), I could take breaks here and there to give the old “pork pistons” a break as needed over my long distance rides, but that comes at the cost of extending one’s trip time (hence, burning valuable daylight). Conversely, when I’m riding a typical two-wheeled bike, I can take occasional momentary “coasting breaks” (which don’t bite into my trip time) and I can even achieve some fairly high descent speeds (52.6 MPH my highest descent speed thus far) without pedaling at all during those mountainous high-speed descents.

So I give you a TON of credit for keeping the old “pork pistons” in constant motion as you do over the distances that you’ve traversed particularly at the speeds you tend to maintain. You’re my unicycling hero!

As a child, I remember watching some of the talent shows that would occasionally feature a unicyclist, but they never had to pedal far nor pedal fast on stage. I never imagined anyone would travel as far and as fast as you have on a unicycle. There may be others that have also traversed long distances on a unicycle, but one thing’s a certainty; unicyclists are unique and their numbers are small relative to us two-wheeled bicyclists.

On the 32 miles of the Schuylkill River Trail (SRT)—which I commenced riding mid summer of last summer—I encountered a wide variety of interesting human powered vehicles; arm powered, arm & leg powered, a back-to-back bike (one facing forward, the other facing rearward), pedal cars, trikes, recumbents and even a dual recumbent, but I’ve yet to encounter a single unicyclist on the SRT or for that matter, anywhere else in my 11,649 miles of bicycling. Needless to say, I really look forward to viewing your videos and thanks for posting them for us!

Stay safe out there and as always, enjoy your riding adventures.

You are right on point in your explanation about unicycling to your dad! We have a S[A]RT (Santa Ana river trail) out here and that's where I did my first uni century back in 2010. Like like you, I didn't see any other unicyclists for the entire 11 hours, but I did meet a guy on a recumbent who rode about 50 miles with me, and he also made a little video of the footage he shot. And wow, 11,649 miles! Way to go!