A few weeks back I posted about a uni clas I had arranged to teach.
http://tinyurl.com/6f3xz The main idea was to use the class to build a
larger group of riders in the area with the end goal being a uni club.
Last night we held our third class. The class is being held every
Tuesday night for 7 weeks (unitl Thanksgiving) in a church multi-purpose
room.
For the first night we had 5 show up to try it out. That night a few
others who were at the church for another event tried to ride for a
little bit also. My daughter also was at this first class as an
experienced rider and helped teach others and loaned her unicycles to
the other kids to try.
For the second class, 5 unicycles had been purchased by these people and
one by a person who is unable to attend the class but will be learning
on his own. Another 2 or 3 people who were at the church for meetings
also tried to ride for a while. One of these people spent a lot of time
working at riding on my uni. Fortunately I have a couple unis that can
be used for this class and I have another uni that I've borrowed from
billdavey (thanks Bill!). For this second class, unidaddy showed up and
was selfless in giving his time and unicycle to help teach the others.
Last night we had the third class. Several riders had made some great
progress by practicing at home. It was great to see. One rider, Chris,
took his uni to his scout meeting, rode for the scout troop and invited
them to come out and try it. He also invited a friend to come, who
invited a friend who already rides and so Chris brought 5 new riders to
our third class. We had 13 people, experienced and new combined, at
this class. Again unidaddy was selfless in helping others learn, at the
expense of his personal riding time. Chris also spent lots of time
helping others and loaning out his unicycle. He figured since he got so
many people to come, he should help them learn. 😉 Thanks to Chris
and Bob (unidaddy) for all the help! Big time kudos go to Chris who is
the most improved rider in the class. After 2 weeks he is freemounting,
hopping, turning, dribbling a basketball, and progressing very quickly.
He's going to be a great rider and with his willingess to help others,
will be a real asset to the group. One of the new riders this week has
been riding for several months. It was a refreshing change to teach him
some new mounts, hopping, idling and other skills.
After three classes, over 20 people have tried unicycling and most of
them are very interested in learning. Several more poeple are asking
advice for which unicycle to buy. We are having way too much fun!
After the class is done, a few of us stay afterwards and play some more.
Last night we played a little basketball. It was my first time to play
with others and the first time for Bob and Chris.
Support from the church has been very positive and I anticipate no
problems with getting permission to continue using the room every
Tuesday night through out the winter. At no cost to us. It does help
that the original 5 class members and several other new recruits are all
members of this church. For several years I was also a part time
employee at the church and left on good terms, so this all is supportive
to the uni class and room use. One more cool (or is it kewl?) thing, I
got permission to post pictures of the riders and students on a wall in
the room to promote the uni class and the fun we are having.
On the negative side, the newspaper reporter who said he was going to
take the class has not shown up and didn't respond to my last email
asking if he is still interested. With as much interest as we are
getting for this class. I think I'll still be able to get him to the
class. At least once, then get him on a uni, and then he'll be saying,
"Just let me try one more time." The he'll be hooked.
Needless to say, I am excited about how things are going. We are
already talking about the group riding in the local Christmas parade on
Dec 3rd. What a great way to finish the class and start off a winter of
riding together.
In summary, can you say MOMENTUM?
😄 😄 Bill 😄 😄
--
billham
Bound and determined to start a local unicycle club!
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