New personal best for hopping height.



B

Billham

Guest
Tonight I decided to work on my hopping. I still am a seat
in hopper since I haven't gotten enough control with seat
out yet. My best was 13" and my goal was to get onto three
pallets which came to 15". I warmed up on the single and
double stacked pallets. After I got sweaty, I decided to go
for the triple stack. Boy that stack looked high, even
though it was only 2" above my best hop!

On the first attempt I landed on the tire, but fell
backwards. This boosted by hopes and helped grow my
positive attitude. Following attempts would often land on
the tire (about 60-70% of the time), but I was either
falling backwards or had not committed my body enough to
stay on the pallet and fell back towards the spot where I
started my jump.

I worked on it with and without a prehop, both worked and
failed about the same. I worked on concentrating on
compressing my body before the hop and extending my free
hand/arm fully into the air before pulling the set up.

I finally made it onto the pallets and managed a few hops
before I fell off. The the magic moment... using a pre hop,
I landed on top of that towering stack of pallets, stayed in
control, hopped a few times to celebrate and then hopped
back to the ground. The only bummer of the whole thing was
that I no one with me to celebrate my success. I still gave
a holler to celebrate, I have no idea who was supposed to
hear it. Ah... the lonely life of a uni rider. :(

As I think about the hopping technique I was wondering if
anyone has worked on just body extension during a hop. I was
thinking it might be useful to work on jumping onto an
easily attainable height, but do it by extending upwards
only. Really concentrating on achieving a full body
extension. Doing the hop without recoiling the body (to help
pull up the uni for more height).

My theory here is that with better extension, you will get
more height. By separating the moves, you can work on
better extension, and thus get more height. You don't get
much time to compress, extend, and recoil during a hop! I'm
sure I wasn't geting the best compression, extension or
recoil on my jumps.

Well thanks for listening to my celebration post... or is it
a mini brag fest? Either way, it feels good to be moving up.
(moan...pun intended)

Thanks to all the hopping posts and videos that have helped
me to learn some techniques.

Bill

--
billham

"Watch out for those widow makers!" What I said to chirokid a few
minutes before a widow maker (dead tree) landed on his unicycle
immediately after an UPD.
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congrats!

im about where you are as far as hopping goes. i am also
just seat in (at the moment), and i get about the same
height. tell me when you get to 4 pallets :)

btw, im thinking of switching my signature to your quote:
"ah... the lonely life of a uni rider" hehe

-grant

--
tennisgh22

The problem with America is stupidity. I'm not saying there should be a
capital punishment for stupidity, but why don't we just take the safety
labels off of everything and let the problem solve itself?
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Hey:

I only started hopping about a month ago, and after a few
weeks down at the Venice boardwalk, I could only go up and
down stairs (8 inches) and lacked the experience and courage
to tackle the bigger stuff. So last Friday I got some
pallates and started practicing. I mention this to indicate
that technique wise, I don't know what the hell I'm talking
about . . .

Anyhow, your question about going higher.

I found, for me, a lot of it is psychological--that the
pallates look high because it's all new. So at the beginning
I just jumped up on them without the uni and realized three,
even four pallates is not really so high as far as vertical
jumping heigth goes.

To the point, I found that snapping off the ground and
staying relaxed in the "extension" phase of the jump was
crucial. At first I was yanking up too hard on the seat
which retarded my initial spring. Once I started relaxing
and snapping off the ground, extending and then snapping the
uni up at my apex, three pallates became very doable. Today
I started working on the "coiling" phase, sucking my body up
after the hop, and got up on four pallates (20") ten
straight times.

I'm jumping from a dead still position because I don't
have the experience yet to prehop or even prebounce off
the tire. I'll start fiddling with a prehop and all that
jazz tomorrow, and I suspect and hope these might increase
my heigth.

Like many other things with the uni, what seemed impossible
one minute becomes almost routine a day later. But I'm a
beginner (4 months) and I suspect the learning curve will
start to flatten out soon. My hunch is that you can add
inches every day for the first few weeks, but after that it
gets very tough to improve.

But I don't know . . .

Anyhow, good luck on going sky high.

JL

--
vivalargo
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Hey billham, I think you're doing pretty great for your age!

I'm 40 and guess we're really close in ability, which means
you're really better than me, once corrected for age:D

I jump about the same height seat out or in, but would
encourage you to not be afraid of the seat out jump. The
first day I tried it, it seemed totally awkward, but just a
few days practice later, I'm pretty stable. I think with two
or three weeks of consistent seat out practice, I would be
going higher with it than seat in. Throwing in sideways
jumps (gapping) is where the seat out gets wierd, feeling
like I'll roll an ankle or something.

Anyway, great job and keep it up!

--
elmer - uniimpaired

"At 40 life begins...to show."
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elmer wrote:
> *Hey billham, I think you're doing pretty great for
> your age!
>
> *

Elmer

I am trying not to read your line as "Pretty good for an old
man." ;) I was wondering if anyone would remember my age.
I'm turning 48 next month. The way I figure it, you get old
quicker when you don't keep on trying and doing things. When
it comes to the body, it's USE IT OR LOSE
IT.

Thanks for the encouraging words for seat out hopping. I
keep the seat fairly high on my KH24. I want to keep the
seat at an all around height, both for riding and for
trials. Due to the seat height, I think seat in will limit
me pretty quickly. After I learn seat out hopping, I'll go
for the 4 pallets!

The neat thing about uni riding is the sense of
accomplishment you get when you do what was once not
possible. I enjoy (as do most uni riders) taking on a
challenge and working it out until completion.

It doesn't matter if you are hopping onto a 2" platform or
onto a 36" platform, the joy of doing it the first time is
always a rush!

Bill A little older and a little better

--
billham

"Watch out for those widow makers!" What I said to chirokid a few
minutes before a widow maker (dead tree) landed on his unicycle
immediately after an UPD.
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Hey, Billham:

I'm 50, so count it a fact you'll be soaring over 4 pallates
in a week or less.

You're enthusiasm is fantastic and good luck on going up to
5 pallates, which I think is pretty much the limit for seat-
in hopping for us seniors. But get the seat out and six or
seven is doable I reckon.

Keep us informed on your progress. It's inspiring.

JL

--
vivalargo
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Congratulations Bill. That is some hopping. Now I'll really
get behind on the trail. --chirokid--

PS: I like your signature line :D

--
chirokid - Wolfman 2004: Unicycle Catagory

"Other than that, the best maintenance is to keep riding it as this
helps to keep the eccentric nut on the saddle in optimal condition."
quote by Mikefule

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I'm a "spry" young 15 year-old, and I've come to the
conclusion that just about anyone can, with the right
equipment and enough practice, jump just as high on a
unicycle as they can on their feet. After about 6-8 months
of serious trials developement, my record sidehop is about
4" short of my sidehop on my feet. My record pedalgrab is
actually higher than my record sidehop onto something with a
1-foot landing. Just shows that despite the weight, the tire
really helps when jumping.

As for extension, it's something that'll come naturaly. One
needn't practice specific parts of jumping except for mabey
the prehop. I automatically lift the uni as high as it
goes. On some hops I've actually scrubbed the rear part of
my KH seat on the side of my right shoulder. I don't
consciously think about tucking the uni up, it just
happens. As for extension, I just think about that when
doing really high jumps without a prehop. Then, I try to
squat a bit lower than usual, and then immediately kick
down, extend, and lift.

Go for seat out, it's awkward at first, but eventually it'll
be better. Especially for pedalgrabs.

--
gerblefranklin - Trials Unicyclist

Don't you think it's a cruel irony that acting like a G.I. Joe in the
army can get you a Medal, while playing with one can get you thrown out?
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vivalargo

Somehow 5 pallets with seat in seems like a bit much. But 4
I'm going to work on. Definitely time to work on seat out to
get up to 5 or more pallets.

Thanks for the encouraging words from all of you.

Bill

--
billham

"Watch out for those widow makers!" What I said to chirokid a few
minutes before a widow maker (dead tree) landed on his unicycle
immediately after an UPD.
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Well, billham, today I went out and bought some 2 x 4's and
some plywood. I'm going to build a 2' square deck for me to
hop up on to. When I can do that height well, I'll add a
1/2" layer of plywood, and repeat that process until I get
it up to an impressive height!

You and vivalargo must be pretty athletic, There are a lot
of 50 yr. olds who can't jump 6" even without a unicycle.
Americans are just getting so FAT these days. I guess the
economy really is improving.

--
elmer - uniimpaired

"At 40 life begins...to show."
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Hey, Gerblefranklin:

15 years old? Either that's an outright lie, or you have had
wonderful teachers and spend a lot of time with your nose in
a book. Your phrasing, diction and word choice indicate a
writer, now, or in the near future. And thanks for the input
per high hopping.

And thanks for the kind words, Elmer.

JL

--
vivalargo
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gerblefranklin wrote:
> I've come to the conclusion that just about anyone can,
> with the right equipment and enough practice, jump just as
> high on a unicycle as they can on their feet. Just shows
> that despite the weight, the tire really helps when
> jumping.

gerble is right, I know one guy, who can jump onto anything
with a unicycle under him, that he can with just his feet.
he actually proved this to me. he won't try jumping onto
something waist high untill he tries it from his feet. even
if he just barely makes it, he knows he will be able to do
it with a unicycle.

I however, find that a tire hinders my hopping ability.
think about when you push off. What happens? the tire will
take some of your pushing force, as it squishes under your
weight. a tire dosen't act like a trampoline, more like a
shock absorber.

the reason well seasoned riders can jump as high with a
unicycle as they can on their feet, is because of the way
your feet are posisioned during the hop. Also because no
momentum is lost in a rolling hop, while you stop for a
moment during a jump from your feet.

For a visual watch Dan Heaton's big jump in U2.

-mike

--
onetrack - street terrorist
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elmer

Go for it and enjoy your platform. May I suggest you not use
the superman cape when you are working on your hopping? :D

About being athletic... yes, God has blessed me with a body
that has tried to stay young. I don't bounce as well as I
used to, get sore quicker and heal slower. But I'm not going
to sit back and just grow old.

My father is 82 and has been a significant role model for
me. He started to water ski and snow ski when he was 40.
Started riding a quad with my youngest brother when he
was in his early 50's. He tried rock climbing when he was
60. His friends thought he was crazy and asked him why he
did it. He said, "My son asked me to go try it, so I
did." He didn't it enjoy it much, but he gave it a try.
My father is always willing to try. That's been a great
role model for me.

He still plays lots of golf and stays very active. Last year
in August he slipped and fell on a railroad tie (while
golfing) and tore his quad from his knee. He had surgery to
repair it and was off his leg for 6 weeks. Then he worked
hard at rehab and was getting back to golf in December. A
quick recovery because he worked at getting it back into
shape. He's not one to sit around.

So I've got a stay active life that has been given to me
genetically and by example. It's been a great blessing that
God has given me.

Quite a few people think I'm a little crazy for doing the
things I do at my age. But I am in better condition and
health than a lot of those people. Partially because I am
doing these physical activites. I often enjoy the attention
I get doing these things as an "old" man. Right now,
unicycling is giving me a good sport to keep me exercising
and having fun. My daughter is riding a uni now and I hope
uni riding will provide a good activity for the two of us to
do together.

So... back to the hopping. Tomorrow I work on getting more
consistent on hopping onto the 3 pallets. And I think I need
to work on seat out hopping onto a single pallet. Time to
bust into the seat out action!

Up, up and away!

Bill

--
billham

"Watch out for those widow makers!" What I said to chirokid a few
minutes before a widow maker (dead tree) landed on his unicycle
immediately after an UPD.
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vivalargo wrote:
> *Hey, Gerblefranklin:
>
> 15 years old? Either that's an outright lie, or you have
> had wonderful teachers and spend a lot of time with your
> nose in a book. Your phrasing, diction and word choice
> indicate a writer, now, or in the near future. And thanks
> for the input per high hopping.
>
> And thanks for the kind words, Elmer.
>
> JL *

Thanks for the complement, but my teachers suck. I rarely
read more than 3-5hours per week. It's just I come from a
family of copy editors, and they've seemed to rub off on me.

As for foot position, I think the tire helps more. The fact
that both feet push at the same point helps focus my
hopping, and also the snap of the tire seems to take some
power away in the initial kick, but double it 1/100 of a
second later...

--
gerblefranklin - Trials Unicyclist

Don't you think it's a cruel irony that acting like a G.I. Joe in the
army can get you a Medal, while playing with one can get you thrown out?
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onetrack wrote:
> *
>
> I however, find that a tire hinders my hopping ability.
> think about when you push off. What happens? the tire will
> take some of your pushing force, as it squishes under your
> weight. a tire dosen't act like a trampoline, more like a
> shock absorber.
>
> -mike *

Watch the pros in slow motion and you'll see how they
compress the tire and hesitate until it rebounds and pushes
back up. It does act like a trampoline, but a very quick
one. Timing is very important here. Just a slight pause to
keep the tire from acting like a shock and to allow it to
give a push upwards.

Pump up your tire with lots of air and try hopping. Then
lower the pressure for a bouncy tire and try hopping again.
I think that'll help you see how the tire can help you. a
softer tire is easier for a less experienced rider to hop
and take advantage of the compression.

I went out again today and did some trials. Only missed my
13" hopp a couple times. it seemed pretty easy after working
on a higher hop yesterday. I had on all my protective gear
and got more aggressive on gaps. I had one that was from a
17" high platforn onto a 13" platform. I figured the height
would give me more incentive to commit more to the gap. You
know, higher risk, better make it! Gap was about 30" and I
was trying to do it jumping forward, not to the side. I
tried twice, almost made it twice. Almost doesn't work very
well, especially when jumping forward. Tire rolls done the
side of pallets very quickly. Wrist protectors were great to
have on since I slapped both hands on the pallet on both
falls. My back is getting a little tight now, probably from
those falls. Overall everything seems okay. Nothing a little
stretching a few Motrin can't fix.

Didn't work on any extra height, but did do some other
hopping that felt pretty solid. Tried a seat out
hop....total failure and very awkward. Gonna take some work.
This thread had encouraged me to be more aggressive on my
trials effots today. Thanks to all.

By the way, if I get hurt being more aggressive, I won't
blame you! :p

Later

Bill

--
billham

"Watch out for those widow makers!" What I said to chirokid a few
minutes before a widow maker (dead tree) landed on his unicycle
immediately after an UPD.
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Bill, you said you wanted to keep that seat up high. I
did too. I kept it up to benefit the knee. I have
recently figured out, lowering my seat 3/4" made a big
difference in how I hopped and landed my drops. For
trials, I run it this low.

In the real world of MUni, I end up riding at the higher
height and if I hit a spot in the trail, I want to work on,
I lower the seat. I think most people would think this
cumbersome and inefficient, but it works for me. I hop with
seat in all the time, but started working on seat out, until
I pulled too hard with bad timing and screwed up my back for
a while. It's getting better though.

Got a connect on some pallets at my school. Will pick up 6
next week to start this stuff in the back yard. Hope to
follow suit.

Keep up the good work gentlemen!

--
The Munieer - Mountaineer + Uni = MUnieer

Rod Wylie

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Rod

I don't have a quick release on my MUni so the change on the
trail won't work with my present set up. I wish the seat was
higher for overall trail riding, so I feel I've got a seat
height to stick with for a compromise. Just for the fun of
it, I may drop the seat a little sometime and try it.

My lower back tends to tighten up and bother me. I sit at a
desk a lot at work and that makes it even worse. I have
found the uni riding very helpful in strengthening the back
and keeping it stretched out. That is of course until I over
do it or injure it riding. Only had one time that I hurt my
back enough that it required some time away from riding to
recover. Uni has been good to my back.

Back to your back, glad to hear you are getting better.

As soon as I get access to gallery on my account, I'll post
some pictures of my trials set up. It's growing into a fair
amount of stuff.

Bill

--
billham

"Watch out for those widow makers!" What I said to chirokid a few
minutes before a widow maker (dead tree) landed on his unicycle
immediately after an UPD.
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