Now that my video is online, I would like to share my ideas with the
members of the forum regarding my vision for a new form of competitive
riding. Obviously, Kris Holm and many other unicyclists have been riding
the kinds of obstacles featured at Rays MTB for years (in their
traditional outdoor mountain bike park environment and on trials
courses). It is the availability of facilities like Rays, however, that
I believe has opened up a whole new dimension to riding Cokers, and
perhaps smaller wheel uni’s as well. I have worked out the basic concept
of the sport… but it will need much refinement and many questions will
need to be answered... so I hope some of you will find this interesting
enough to want to be involved in the formative stages. If you haven’t
already downloaded and viewed my movie, I recommend that you do that
first because I will be referencing certain scenes in order to
illustrate certain points. For the thread from which to download my
movie, click here:
All that being said, here goes:
The basic concept of the sport is very similar to uni trials, but the
major difference is that the competition I propose does not involve
hopping to get over obstacles, but rather simply riding over them on a
Coker (and perhaps there could be a 28”/29” class and other classes as
well). In order to successfully ride many obstacles a precise line using
the proper entry speed and momentum management is required in order to
carry you over the obstacle(s)… and it can be extremely challenging!
Since I already rode at Rays and have the video footage of specific
obstacles that I’ll reference, I will be using Rays park in my
description… but various obstacles could obviously be constructed and
laid out at other locations besides Rays, for the purposes of holding
competitions (or just to have a practice course).
A “Section” is a predefined segment of a course. It is defined by an
“entry point” and an “exit point” and has a difficulty rating (1 – 10,
10 being the most difficult) defined by the number of points the rider
receives for completing the Section. There is also a “starting point.”
The rider mounts his/her uni at the “starting point” and rides the
distance from the “starting” point to the “entry point” in order to gain
sufficient speed/momentum to clear the obstacle(s) contained between the
“entry point” and the “exit point.” The “exit point” will usually be
positioned a minimum of 10 feet beyond the last obstacle, so the rider
must cross the “exit point” on the uni in order to successfully complete
the Section. If the rider clears the obstacle but falls down before
pedaling ten feet to cross the “exit point”, the rider will not be
awarded the points for completing the Section. Sections get
progressively harder. Initially, Sections consist of a single obstacle.
As the competition progresses, the Sections get longer and contain
multiple obstacle. Sections may contain a multitude of obstacles, such
as: ramps, jumps, teeter/totters, skinnies, elevated skinnies, swing
bridges, drop-offs, or really any type of obstacle that allows
continuous pedaling (no hopping). Riders are given three attempts to
make a Section. If the Section is completed, the rider wins the points
for that Section. The rider with the most points wins… simple as that. I
know this is probably very similar to Kris Holm’s rules for uni trials…
it’s supposed to be. I do have a couple of additional ideas I’ve been
throwing around to spice things up a bit. For example: Each section
could also have “bonus points” (I don’t like the word “bonus” so I’d
want to use a different term, but I just wanted to give you the idea).
If a rider is extremely confident in his/her ability to complete a
specific Section, the rider can opt for the “bonus points” (which are
usually about 10% - 30% above the point value of that Section, so a
level 10 difficulty section could have an additional 1-3 “bonus
points”). If the rider wants to opt for the bonus points, it means
he/she must declare there intention (to try for the bonus points) before
attempting the Section. By declaring your intention to go for the “bonus
points”, the rider gives up his/her right to three attempts at the
Section, and is given just a single attempt. If the rider completes the
Section in that single attempt he/she wins the “bonus points” for that
section. This would add an additional element of drama and could help
narrow the point spread between the leader and all the other riders
making the competition more pivotal and exciting.
Now let me illustrate some sections from Rays that are really great for
this competition. (Point value is just a quick example to give you an
idea - no official point values have been assigned yet, as this is
obviously still in the very formative stages)
_Single_Ramp_Obstacles:_
• Jump Ramp w/Flat Horizontal Top and Drop-Off to Downramp
Timecode: 4:26, 4:40
Difficulty: 3
Bonus Points: ½ point
• Multi-level Ramp w/Hollow Step
Timecode: 5:24
Difficulty: 4.5
Bonus Points: 1 point
• Double-Hump Drop-Off Ramp
Timecode: 5:56
Difficulty: 4.5
Bonus Points: 1 point
_2_Ramp_Obstacles:_
• Hump Ramp & Tabletop
Timecode: 4:31
Difficulty: 3
Bonus Points: ½ point
_Single_Skinnies:_
• Small Elevated Skinny
Timecode: 4:45, 5:09
Difficulty: 4.5
Bonus Points: 1 point
_Multiple_Obstacles:_
• Teeter-tooter through turns and over exit ramps back to floor
Timecode: 5:39
Difficulty: 5
Bonus Points: 1.5 points
• Elevated Dip-Turn, Over Speed-Bump & Beyond Log Skinny
(I didn’t make it… wiped out on the log skinny, as you can see)
Timecode: 6:24
Difficulty: 5.5
Bonus Points: 1.5 points
Now here are some observations and questions:
Being that (to my knowledge) “Trials” is defined as a competition
involving navigating over obstacles on a uni/bike/motorcycle, I would
think that this new sport is a form of Trials. However, Trials almost
universally implies hopping, which is not a part of this new sport… so I
would think that designating it as a form of Trials would be quite
misleading! What do you think? And what the heck can we call this new
sport/competition? I’m at a loss! Any suggestions would be greatly
appreciated!
I can tell you that this form of riding/competition is extremely
challenging and TONS of fun! I think it can be a very exciting new
element of the sport with lots of appeal. What do you think? Thanks for
your help! I look forward to your comments…
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HardcoreCokerRider - Skateparks, MTB & Urban Insanity
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