Slacklining and skinnies

I haven't slacklined on a real (taught) slackline setup, just ropes that
I've found can support me as I -try to- walk along them.

For riding skinnies, it's best to keep your eyes focused at the end of
the skinny, rather than a few inches ahead of your wheel - maybe this
is just for beginners, because it seems like Kris Holm can look
straight down as he rides along a 1" pole.

There was a post a few months(?) ago about a guy that practiced for
something like 12 years to be able to ride along a tightrope on his
unicycle while pedaling with his hands (in a handstand position)!

And it's Ben Plotkin-Swing 😎

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burjzyntski said:

There was a post a few months(?) ago about a guy that practiced for
something like 12 years to be able to ride along a tightrope on his
unicycle while pedaling with his hands (in a handstand position)!

And it's Ben Plotkin-Swing 😎

That guy was on an Ultimate wheel too. :eek:

Also, Tristan knows how to spell Ben's name, he is joking around.

Mike

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oh, hehe.

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burjzyntski said:

I haven't slacklined on a real (taught) slackline setup, just ropes that
I've found can support me as I -try to- walk along them.

For riding skinnies, it's best to keep your eyes focused at the end of
the skinny, rather than a few inches ahead of your wheel - maybe this
is just for beginners, because it seems like Kris Holm can look
straight down as he rides along a 1" pole.

There was a post a few months(?) ago about a guy that practiced for
something like 12 years to be able to ride along a tightrope on his
unicycle while pedaling with his hands (in a handstand position)!

And it's Ben Plotkin-Swing 😎

that would be so cool to uni on a tightrope while doing a
handstand:eek:

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ehh i didnt make this up but it takes twice the man (or woman) to ride
half the bike and im sure everybody agrees

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burjzyntski said:

I haven't slacklined on a real (taught) slackline setup, just ropes that
I've found can support me as I -try to- walk along them.

For riding skinnies, it's best to keep your eyes focused at the end of
the skinny, rather than a few inches ahead of your wheel - maybe this
is just for beginners, because it seems like Kris Holm can look
straight down as he rides along a 1" pole.

There was a post a few months(?) ago about a guy that practiced for
something like 12 years to be able to ride along a tightrope on his
unicycle while pedaling with his hands (in a handstand position)!

And it's Ben Plotkin-Swing 😎

that would be so cool to uni on a tightrope while doing a
handstand:eek:

--
vuniw

ehh i didnt make this up but it takes twice the man (or woman) to ride
half the bike and im sure everybody agrees

unicycle isnt a hobby, its a life style
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I can't speak on behalf of a slackliner, but I can on behalf of an avid
skinny rider 🙂 From the videos I've seen of slacklining, it appears
the entire body is used for maintaining balance... feet, legs, arms,
etc. When riding a unicycle, one becomes constrained by the unicycle
and cannot move their legs quite so much.

When riding on a skinny, I find that I can maintain balance best by
moving my hips from side to side, in addition to the usual
arm-and-hand-waving. I'm going to give the boring "just practice"
response here, as I believe that skinny riding isn't a skill that is
well replicated by other activities such as rock climbing, freestyle
walking, slacklining, etc.

I'd venture to say stillstand practice is the best for developing
balance, especially for skinny riding. It forces you to use as much of
your body as possible to maintain balance and position. You can also
gain much skill by practicing constrained riding, such as riding as
slowly as possible along the edge of a sidewalk.

Good luck! Let us know how you do!

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FOr skinnies, still stand still stand still stand. If you watch Ryan or
Kris riding a rail they are pretty much either doing tiny still stands
or riding very slow. I've found that it helps to take it slow.

I'm sure slacklining helps, but with slacklines the line moves from
side to side, it's not taught (I guess, I haven't done it) so it's a
different kind of balance, right?

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From the video's I've seen of slacklining (which isn't a lot), I think
the main source of balance is the hips, which is why I thought it'd fit
into a skinny riding practice routine. Now that I can slightly walk the
line, it's also just a fun activity, so not all is lost. Guess I'll
just try to find a few skinnies and have at it then.

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As a slacker, I would say that it does definitely help, as any balance
type of activity would. But, a lot of the balance is lower body and
being able to stand on one foot and use your whole body for balance.
Though, as far as arms and upper body, it is quite similar... Slacking
is fun, and very challenging (like riding skinnies!)

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i have been wanting to get into slacklining and was wondering if it
would help with bcing

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hmm, I practice for riding skinnies by riding on curbs for long
distances @ high speeds, I havn't found a reasonably low skinny for
riding yet, but I did get a 1"x2" board on my neighbors driveway, and
rode down that a few times, and by the 3rd try I could ride down the
whole thing w/o falling off

Isn't it just something to work up to?

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swarbrim said:

That guy was on an Ultimate wheel too. :eek:

And it was a slackrope, not a tightrope.

Klaas Bil - Newsgroup Addict
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Klaas Bil said:

swarbrim said:

That guy was on an Ultimate wheel too. :eek:

And it was a slackrope, not a tightrope.

Klaas Bil - Newsgroup Addict

Ahh, of course. How could I have been so foolish.

Mike

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so who's going to ride the slacklines on the unicycle first?
insane 🙂

EDIT: try it without the tire on, it might work better

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i think im gonna try bcing on a slackline

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