LEARNING TO UNICYCLE

by: YASMIN FRIEDRICHOWITZ

This is the “Viking Tries” aspect of the package! Here we outline our attempts at the one-wheeled apparatus more colloquially known as a unicycle. Other attempters be warned (it’s as hard as it looks).

Most regular people have never had the opportunity to ride a unicycle. Because of this, we on Viking wanted to give it a try and compare unicycling to something we are all very familiar with, biking. When we met up with Grinkrug after school, he gave us some tips and instructions to start us on our journey of riding the fabled one-wheeler.

“Free-mounting,” which is when you get on a unicycle without the help of a wall, or bench. This is much more advanced, especially with the 29-inch wheel that Grinkrug brought to school that day. Luckily, he had mercy on us and explained an easier mount: His instructions involved three “simple” steps (simple at least, in theory). Step one: line up the unicycle to the wall so that the pedals are parallel to the ground. Step two: roll out the unicycle and get between it and the wall with your non-dominant foot on the pedal. Step three: push down on the pedals and hoist yourself up onto the unicycle while holding on to the wall behind you. Being up on the seat of the unicy - cle felt like you were really high up there and it felt terrifying to move in any direction. You had to commit to it; commit to pedaling or else you’ll fall off. As much as I tried, and tried, and tried, I could only get half a pedal in before I fell off the unicycle. I fell backwards and forwards and couldn’t even make it past two feet away from the wall. said.

“It felt really scary being that high with nothing besides a wheel below me.”

- Beau Revenaugh

Despite Grinkrug making it look easy, Beau and I went into it knowing it was going to be very difficult. Unicycling completely met up to that expectation and we were not disappointed in any way. Even the so called simple steps of mounting were really impossible; I needed help the first two tries to even get up onto the unicycle, I couldn’t get a full pedal rotation around, and Beau,

I mean, I knew it would be hard but dang! Grinkrug made it look so easy!

Unlike me, my fellow Viking member, Beau, was able to make a little more progress than myself. He even made it a couple of feet before falling off!

“It felt really scary being that high with nothing besides a wheel below me,” Reve naugh said, “Leaning for ward and being confident helped me ride it for a few seconds, and I think if I practice more I could be able to ride it.”

After a few tries of riding the unicycle Grinkrug comment ed on how impressive it was that Beau was able to get so far for it being his first time riding a unicycle.

“[Beau] did amaz ing for his first try, he rode the uni cycle for much longer than most people I’ve taught,” Grinkrug