Ok, I got the freemounting down...I can ride the 50 meters easily...
...but I don't really get how to dismount with the uniycle in front of me. And "gracefully", at that. I really want to call myself officially a level 1 rider, but I don't get how exactly that's done...I taught myself from the moment I started actually riding to just slide smoothly off the front of the seat and catch the seat behind me with my left hand. It looks graceful to me.
Ride Slow down While slowing to a stop remove your front foot and set it down as it begins to move from the bottom up. Step off with the other foot. You should have your saddle in your hand.
when the pedals are level, you need to sort of lean back and put your weight on the back foot so the unicycle doesn't go anywhere. then take your front foot off the pedal and put it behind you. its almost like freemounting in reverse....
-- James_Potter
to give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.
I find it really unnatural and awkward to dismount with uni in front - the only times I've ever done it is for level tests. Stepping off the front (uni behind) just feels so much better. Do many people actually dismount like that normally, or is it just a way to prove you dismounted on purpose?
I find it really unnatural and awkward to dismount with uni in front - the only times I've ever done it is for level tests. Stepping off the front (uni behind) just feels so much better. Do many people actually dismount like that normally, or is it just a way to prove you dismounted on purpose?
how long have you been riding? at first, I felt the same as you...it just felt really weird to step off backwards. but I do it normally now...I don't know if its because I practiced dismounting that way, or because eventually it just felt normal, or what.
-- James_Potter
to give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.
when ever i ride alone i just jump off and catch the seat but if people are watching i get off gracfully with unicycle in front, because they always think i fall if the unicycle is in the back, wierd
-- Radical Reed
If at first you don't suceed, distroy all evidence that you tried
I find it really unnatural and awkward to dismount with uni in front - the only times I've ever done it is for level tests. Stepping off the front (uni behind) just feels so much better. Do many people actually dismount like that normally, or is it just a way to prove you dismounted on purpose?
I dismount uni in front most times now. I'm not sure why, I never practiced. It seems natural now though. I think it's because coker a lot, and the most controlled way to stop a coker is to step down and then let the wheel roll a bit in front of you, rather than stepping off the front, which adds a fair bit of forward momentum and is harder to judge. Thinking about it I reckon I learnt it because when I'm coming home I always ride as fast as possible up to our front door and stop at the last moment, which tends to leave the wheel too close to the door for a forwards dismount at speed. If you're going fast, you can just jump straight up and hold onto the uni and land on the ground naturally behind the uni.
Do many people actually dismount like that normally, or is it just a way to prove you dismounted on purpose?
I think of it as a more stylish and controlled way to get off. Dismounting off the front can be easy to confuse with an unplanned dismount. A graceful dismount to the rear is hard to do accidentally. Plus it looks better. So for level 1, the idea is to show you can stop, then dismount, not just come off the front, which is so automatic it wouldn't need to be mentioned in a levels test.
-- johnfoss
John Foss "jfoss" at "unicycling.com" -- www.unicycling.com -----------------------------------------------
"Idiot America—where fact is merely that which enough people believe, and truth is measured only by how fervently they believe it." -- Charles Pierce, in Esquire Magazine ------------------------------------------------------------------------ johnfoss's Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/832 View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/45776
So it seems like quite a few people use "uni in front" as their normal dismount. Stepping off the front seems much more natural to me though. I think there's a difference between a controlled "nearly stop then step off the front" and a flying UPD.
Joe: I'm not in the habit of riding flat out into doors so I can't comment on that one 🙂 you nutter
Thinking about it I reckon I learnt it because when I'm coming home I always ride as fast as possible up to our front door and stop at the last moment, which tends to leave the wheel too close to the door for a forwards dismount at speed.
Joe
I do the same thing but i now occasionnally stop with 1 foot off instead Its good fun
There are a number of good reasons to dismount behind the unicyle, besides the fact that it often looks better. While the reverse mount is cool looking, I am a lot more likely to mess up on it, and so whenever somone is around, I like to dismount behind, so I can easily re-mount when I am ready to ride again. Also, when riding down a steep hill, dismounting in front can end up putting you a long ways down the hill, in a less controlled fashion.
I find that dismounting with the unicycle infront is more difficult, especially with the bigger wheels, but much easier on the knees and more controlled.
Cathy
-- cathwood
'Of all tyrannies a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive - C.S.Lewis
I used to find it difficult, as 99% of my dismounts were unplanned and I usually came off the front. It got easier when learning to freemount, as I was doing lots of planned dismounts. I found it easier to pretend I was going down a steep slope, so was sitting back and putting reverse pressure on the pedals. Sit back enough and when you come to a halt the uni will be in front. Then it's just a case of making it look stylish.
i always dismount with it infront.. if im meaning to dismount... just nice cuase you see where to uni is going.. plus i like riding really fast then jumping off the back
Chase
-- Unitik908
All hail the exhaulted Sigpoose, for he is forever king... R.I.P Unibiker R.I.P Gazzaloddi R.I.P Paul Hester R.I.P James Doohan R.I.P Mitch Hedberg R.I.P Peter Jennings R.I.P Pope John Paul II R.I.P James_Potters_Cat YAMS
