Help its just not "cool"

[jbarker]

My older brother wont let me uni to school because it will ruin his "rep" along with mine (which i hate to admit but its so true) Im in grade 9 , he's grade 10. Most my friends bmx and i havent told them i muni but im scared they'll think im a clown or something. thx for any help

[tel]

Just go for it, if somebody dosent think unicycling is cool then their opinion is preety much worthless anyway, highschoolers can be tough (especally if your only a freshmen) but who cares. Youll probalby have just as many people want to try it, or think that is cool.



Just go do it, its all or nothing

[Tmornstar]

Don't do it! We all know how important it is to fit-in when in high school. Whatever you do, DO NOT ride your uni to school. It is more important NOT to be an individual and NOT to listen to that inner, joyous voice of being unique. DO NOT let everybody, anybody, know that you might one of the many that may express every moment as a celebration. It is far better to not draw any attention to yourself, especially as a freshman. Beisdes, what can a freshman teach upper-class folks about joy, about adventure?

[gauss]

It seems we have a tie: 1 for 1 against. Here's my thoughts: When I was in high school, I made a half hearted effort to fit in, I tried to dress like everyone else, and to make everyone think I was cool really hard. I didn't really fool anyone, when it came down to it, I was down right impervious to peer pressures to conform, said really weird things pretty often, and pretty much got made fun of incessantly. I'd venture to say that it is the exact way most people would say they experienced high school. Part of me says YES, be an individual and ride that sucker through the halls until you get busted. But, that is better suited to college where the only thing people try to do is show everyone that they are different in a conforming way. Actually, you should not, be flagrant about your unique skill. If you ride it to school, people will make fun of you and your brother to, sort of, make sure that you don't go "one up" on them. You will get some positive attention, but that will only make others more bitter. However, don't be secretive about it. Don't worry if people see you around on it. Try to get friends into it, and by all means, get in as much trouble as you can get away with in highschool. If others try to tease you about your skills, don't act like it's a big deal, just play it off and move on. It's cliche, but in reality, they are just jealous. Hope this helps! Keep the rubber side down!
-Gauss

[harper]

I think Tommy's cheek is aching from having his tongue buried so deeply in it that only a talented oral surgeon could extract it.

I'm voting with Tommy if he can slip that by.

[What_Am_I?]

I think Tmornstar is “Peeing out of the pot” (Venezuelan saying) by saying that it is important to fit-in in high-school. It is a mistake to do things just because others do it, and just as bad to do things just because others don’t do it (i.e. to be an “individual”…what ever that means in this context, where you are doing it just to not confirm, rendering you dependant to the “common” folks). It is my view that before taking any decision, you are to inform yourself about the different possibilities you have at hand. You then study these possibilities: their pros and cons. You weigh these as to which course of action will do you best in the long run, and then you pick the one that will benefit you the most. That is, you take the decision because you find it within reason that is the best course of action from all the alternatives. That way all the responsibility of the decision lies on you: it was your decision and there’s no one you can credit/blame for it other than yourself.

So there’s no clear cut yes/no answer that anyone in the forum should give you. “Do it to show you individuality” would be doing it to show how small you truly are inside. “Don’t do it because others will think you are weird” would be not doing it because you are what others think of you. Neither is an attractive alternative to someone with self-love. Do it/don’t do it because you find it within reason to be the best course of action (e.g. do it because it gets you from class-room to class-room, and it’s more fun than walking from one to the other, or don’t do it because it is too much trouble to take the unicycle in the bus on the way to school)

Best,

~Charles

[uniracer]

i say go for it. i did and i didnt get much bad feedback. actually people told me to ride more and thaught it was neat that i could hop up and down steps and do trials and freestyle stuff. and when my friends make fun of me for unicycling i show them up on my bmx which im just as them and im just as good as the best riders at my school are. i even bring my uni to the skateparks and stuff when i go bmx riding and if i go somewhere new i also bring it. if asomeone makes fun of you for riding just tell them to ride it and if they can ride over 20 ft then they can make fun of you heheheheh also you might even meet someone else at school who rides a uni but is too shy like you to bring it to school. i say go for it. if it fails then you have another 2 -3 years to get your flow back and start fitting in again well goodluck and tell us how it works out peace out Kyle Grasso

[jesse737373]

I was actually planning on riding it to school and locking it up in the bike racks like i did in elementry school , not around the halls. Also now that i've been through pros/cons i realized how someone who walks by and sees an odd bike in the rack while surrounded by peers might consider kicking in the spokes. that is quite the risk!!

[The Homey of Uni]

> i realized how someone who walks by and sees an odd bike in >the rack while surrounded by peers might consider kicking in the >spokes. that is quite the risk!


The best way to get around this is to find a really cool teacher, become good friends with them and store your uni in their classroom or office (if they have it).

Also, having a skatepark right across the street from your school, and being able to do some neet stuff in there (messing around in the halfpipe, stairs, up and down ramps) will help all of those jerk people that would normally think you're a loser hold you in higher regard. Most will probably want to try. Then YOU get to laugh at somebody falling on their face a lot!!;)

[Tmornstar]

Harper is right. I just returned from the oral surgeon. Back in the early to mid-70s I had to put up with the hassles of peer preasure becasue I rode my bicycle every where. Riding my bike brought me so much pleasure and adventure - everyday - that the teasing was far worth it. Besides, I formed the first bike club and eco club. Both of which are still going now, almost 30 years later. Just think about what a high school student could do if you just stepped out of your comfort zone to nurture yourself AND enlighten others to unicycling AND to listen to that inner voice that screams - HAVE FUN! Just becasue others are afraid to experience life to the fullest don't let somebody else limit your horizons.:o

[What_Am_I?]

uuuhhh... was the first post by Tmornstar supposed to be ironic? I didn't get Harper's refference to a dental surgeon, is that supposed to be an in-side joke?.... this is the only problem that I see w/computer communication: it's hard to convey emotion along with the words (to tell if someone's kidding/being serious/etc.)... but it's so aweseome for everythine else...

Lates,

~C

[Tmornstar]

Sorry to confuse you. Please reread what I wrote at first and hear the the words "joyous" and "adventure" and read between the lines knowing that this is directed at a teenager. What would you have done if you were told, as a teen, to conform?

[harper]

I ditto Tommy's apology. The reference is to the phrase, "tongue in cheek" suggesting that one is being sarcastic. It is an inside joke only in that, knowing Tommy through his posts, this is something he could write only tongue in cheek. He, in fact, is so sincere that he wants you to be sure it is sarcastic by exaggerating it excessively. To those of us familiar with him this was pretty much unsubtle.

[What_Am_I?]

Ok... I get it now...

When reading Tmornstar's first post, I did get the feeling that he was being sarcastic, for he was saying "DO NOT let everybody, anybody, know that you might one of the many that may express every moment as a celebration"... which did sound sarcastic... but not being familiar with his posts, I couldn't tell. I wasn't familiar w/the toungue in cheek expression either... I guess we all understand each other now.

Thanks for the clarification!

~Charles

[gauss]

Awe, heck, I'll conform with the others here: Don't conform. Ride the sucker down the halls. I sure do it. The waxed floors are fun for spin turns. Life is too short.
-gauss

[tel]

Maybe my experience is unique, I dont ride my unicycle to school (Its way too far) but everybody at school knows i ride a unicycle. I bring it to a few school events and mess around on it, and only a few people I hate anyway have made fun of me for it. I have had mostly positive experiences, but that may be because I am a senior in high school so i only have a few other seniors that would make fun of me. As a freshmen you would have a few people from every class. Its your decision but dont let a few jerks spoil your fun

[U-Turn]

Yeah, I say go for it too.... All those guys making fun of you will later be unimaginative, boring do-nothings. You'll see them in college as you ride by too; they will be the drunken ones cussing at you with all the drunken babes hanging off of them.... wait a minute! Hmmmmmmmm.... Not sure where I'm going here..... Quick, somebody help me out!

=====
^ funny part

V serious part
=====

In any case, they're making fun of you because you have something they don't -- innovation and uniqueness. That won't ever change, whether you ride a unicycle or not! So enjoy it and be yourself. If someone kicks in the spokes, get them fixed and store it somewhere else. High school is rough and your uni will make it much better. And the friends you make because of it will be much better ones than the ones that you (probably won't) make by stifling your natural self.

(43 year old guy who rode his bike to high school and was definitely not in the in crowd, but went on to do many things that the football players never even dreamed of, blah blah blah)

P.S. Besides, it will help your skills so that when unis get in the Olympics, you can win a gold.

[rhysling]

I read Tommy's post and decided to conform. Was that wrong? Is it to late to change my mind? Who's toung is this in my cheek? What was the owner of this toung eating? Please, show consideration for your fellow posters, and brush first.

Christopher

[uni_boy50]

I'm grade 8 and everyone at school knows that i unicycle. i have a wierd rep anyway, but you might be surprised at hoe many people can unicycle. One warning: if anyone with any newspaper talks to u about unicycling DO NOT DO IT AT SCHOOL. Most embarssing day of my life. But i'd just let them know, but don't put it on the bike racks or anything. Talk to the sectary or a teacher about storage

[register]

Don't worry. It is up to you wehter you wat to ride to school or not. Dont worry about your brothers rep. If it can be ruined by this then his rep is not that big anyway. As for you, i think you should go out and muni with your bmx friends.

[AccordNSX]

High school definately sucks. I managed to establish myself as someone who was known, but never really fit into any group or crowd. I had a close group of 3 or 4 guys that I had known from middle school that became my little social group. I dressed semi-fashionably but was also known to wear my BMX shirts, PEZ shirts (I collect them), and other different clothing items that stated who I was. I was fortunate to be considered "good looking" in high school, so I never had to worry much about the ladies. I was into the whole Honda car scence before it became popular and always had a tasteful looking car. (won best car of whatever for my class). Words of advice? Get to know a few people from each group of people, become semi-good friends with them. Start riding your uni. If you establish a good relationship with the people from the different groups then hopefully they'll stand up for you and your unicycle riding. After a while you'll become that cool unicycle kid and everything will be a OK. Then you'll have to talk your school into letting you ride your unicycle across the stage for graduation.

[brokenframe]

well im in senior highschool, and ive ridin to school a few times, only because i live on the Bench which is quit abit higher than the Horseshoe, so i dont like riding up the hill. But anyways, when ever i ride to school, people never come up to me, and say bad things to me, or kick in my spokes, mostly they want to try my Uni out , and ask me how the brake works, and what i can do. For the most part there real nice, and noones ever done anything ot my MUni while out front of the school (which is were i keep it when i ride) I dont really care about if i wreck my "rep" cuz damn, i did that along time ago,lol, by piercing my nipple in class, 8 times, and just being a hyper kid, and doin what other peopel thought was weird. But thats me not really caring what others thought. But ride to school, show those people that you can ride, and show them what you can do. thats what i got to say.

[leo]

You wanne know when you're absolutly NOT cool:
when you care about your rep or that of your brother.
You are never too young to start living your own live, and not being lived by others.
Did you though "the Condor (http://www.hoffmanbikes.com/)" was cool when he started being different when he started BMX?

[Drewnicycle]

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.
Just enjoy your life. There is always someone who's gonna bug ya, don't sweat it.
Maybe get a copy of universe and show it to your BMX friends and see what kind of reaction you get. Or just don't worry about it and do your own thing.

[jesse737373]

YEEHAA just got home and I thought id tell you guys that I did it. I finally got the guts to ride it to school. Got up early this morning(by the way its the last day of school) and I rode all the way to school. And then after a few "hey kid wheres your other wheel"s I got home and felt so proud i thought that I would share.:cool:

[Drewnicycle]

Way to go. Glad it worked out for ya

[U-Turn]

Woo hoo! Way to go! My nephew and I got up the courage to ride through Manhattan to a Unatics meeting last Saturday from the bus station. It was a blast!

[GILD]

go jesse!
be u

[ivan]

I rode my uni to school once for community service and brought it there another time when we had some rehearsals with all the people from our year.
I really liked it, because I jumped all the stairs, benches and some tables as well. Most people thought it was cool. The only problem I faced was that sometimes they wouldn't let me ride it, because they kept trying it one after the other and I couldn't think of a polite way to tell them to bugger off.

[dudewithasock]

I wish I could ride my uni to school, but my school is 20 minutes away when driving and I don't have a commuter.

[Catboy]

this thread is old

[ivan]

Catboy is a fascist.

[brendan]

its old and so what???

[thejdw]

Here is my concusion from a phycology point of view:

My friend is like this aswell;) In my opinion that the fact that someone doing somthing involving alot of skill next to them will make them look dull/ unskilled ;)
He's just either jelious or imature

[thejdw]

I wish I could ride my uni to school, but my school is 20 minutes away when driving and I don't have a commuter.
Same here, I can do the trin in 27mins on a 24" using woods ;)

[James_Potter]

My older brother wont let me uni to school because it will ruin his "rep" along with mine (which i hate to admit but its so true) Im in grade 9 , he's grade 10. Most my friends bmx and i havent told them i muni but im scared they'll think im a clown or something. thx for any help
Your brother is right. Everyone knows unicyclists are losers. Ride only at night so no one will see, if they do, your life is over...forever.

[Catboy]

Your brother is right. Everyone knows unicyclists are losers. Ride only at night so no one will see, if they do, your life is over...forever.


It'd be smart to wear a big white sheet with a point on it, so nobody see's what you're doing, and you don't get hit by a car. Poke two holes for eyes. You might need to carry a torch too...

If people see you, just act like a ghost, floating around.

[thejdw]

Your brother is right. Everyone knows unicyclists are losers. Ride only at night so no one will see, if they do, your life is over...forever.
I totaly disagree with you! :mad:

[Beefbully]

ya i'm a sponsered BMX racer so i thought i would rly get made fun of for my muni but i started a club at school and a lot of my friends joined...many people want to ride unis but a scared it weill hurt their "rep" so they don't and thats no fun

[James_Potter]

I totally disagree with you! :mad:
Then you're even more of a loser!
there's a good chance I'm kidding

[benjaug]

Learn to do unispins/trials on the stuff surronding your schools, if they say anything about clowns do a unispin or trials line.

[brendan]

yeah if they call you a looser just jump all the steps going up to the school and then hop onto a bench....

[BluntRM]

Catboy is a fascist.
Homage to Catalonia


All of the best bullfighters in Spain are fascists...

[BillyTheMountain]

Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could be fully yourself??

Everyone knows unicyclists are losers. Ride only at night so no one will see, if they do, your life is over...forever.

Like any fascists, bullfighters are just sissy asswipes who gang up and bully--it takes a gang to kill a bull slowly--it's actually torture, and a fascist would be nothing without the gang.

Eminem:
I am whatever you say I am
If I wasn't then why would I say I am
In the paper the news every day I am
Radio won't even play my jams
I am whatever you say I am
If I wasn't then why would I say I am
In the paper the news every day I am
I dont know it's just the way I am

[chester1234]

I brought my uni to school once, it was before i could do any tricks. all i did was ride around and go down some stairs. Crowds of amazed ppl watched me and tons of ppl wanted to try it.

[tobbogonist]

It may be old, but i am having some input.

All those people you go to school with, all those people who think your uncool, after you have finished school you will almost definately never see the majority of them again. Don't get hung up on what they think and grab life by its testicles. Go for it, they will be bumming around in dead in jobs in years to come and you will be commuting to your job no a unicycle... (not sure where that was going)

pity he didn't post again, i would like to know the outcome.

[dunawan]

dude...screw your brother and his rep, ride your unicycle to school...the only reason people think its not cool is cause they dont have amazing skills like you

[crank.unicycle2]

I am in grade 9 and i ride my trials uni to skool all the time..when i first rode it everyone was like "thats sick" just tell ur bro to screw off..cuz its sick to ride a unicycle..even muni is sweet too..they just need a hint that it is pretty sweet..like do a trick or two just to show them something..or ride down a hard line or something..just have confidence and ride to skool

[chester1234]

Haha, everyone is still telling this kid to ride to school even tho he posted this 5 years ago and is already graduated.

[monkeyman]

I totaly disagree with you! :mad:

Yet again, Potter's reputation for being a humorless stiff comes back to bite him in the ass....

[tobbogonist]

Haha, everyone is still telling this kid to ride to school even tho he posted this 5 years ago and is already graduated.

That is why i was a little dissapointed that he never posted again. It is one of those little un-answered things that will niggle away at ones life and always be there lurking in the shadows.

tis a bugger really

[fleshner]

whoa thats crazy, who brought this thread back. five years ago!

[thejdw]

Then you're even more of a loser!
there's a good chance I'm kidding
The white part saved you from an evil PM ;)
there's a good chance I'm not kidding

[thejdw]

Yet again, Potter's reputation for being a humorless stiff comes back to bite him in the ass....
That did make me laugh :D

[Hazmat]

My older brother wont let me uni to school because it will ruin his "rep" along with mine (which i hate to admit but its so true) Im in grade 9 , he's grade 10. Most my friends bmx and i havent told them i muni but im scared they'll think im a clown or something. thx for any help


Man, i wouldn't care what others thought about me. I ride my unicycles (including coker) through my hometown and most of my friends have mountain or trial bikes. They don't seem to care that i have a unicycle. If they call you a clown. Throw a pie in their face or something :p :p. You're UNIQUE and shouldn't let people change who you are or what you do. Heck, if i listened to the people who have made fun of me in the past. Imagine the looks on their faces when i come screaming past them on a coke. Their looks would be priceless.

So to make it nice and short, Just be yourself and don't let people walk all over you because you like to MUni. Also i agree with gauss when he says "lifes too short". I rode my Torker LX through the halls of my high school and people started getting jealous of my unique gift. I didn't bother them and they didn't bother me.

Take care JBarker
Hazmat

[monkeyman]

The white part saved you from an evil PM ;)
there's a good chance I'm not kidding

http://www.primotees.com/men/catalogimages/oh_snap.jpg

[skrobo]

Awe, heck, I'll conform with the others here: Don't conform. Ride the sucker down the halls. I sure do it. The waxed floors are fun for spin turns. Life is too short.
-gauss
hahahahahahahha

http://www.unicyclist.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=284504&g2_serialNumber=12&g2_GALLERYSID=c6e4111843dc90a3b54c6e8ca310d3bd

:P
I obviously ride mine to school, that was last year, more people respect you for it than you would think, i had very few friends who did BMX before I rode the uni to school, now they all know who I am, and most think its cool.

[GILD]

Here is my concusion from a phycology point of view:

My friend is like this aswell;) In my opinion that the fact that someone doing somthing involving alot of skill next to them will make them look dull/ unskilled ;)
He's just either jelious or imatureOr can't spell.

[Hazmat]

That's mad skrobo. I got detention 4 a month once because i rode my unicycle through the teachers staff room. It was hilarious cause i "accidently" ran over the deputy principals foot and he just lost it. Those were the days. :D :D :D

[ivan]

Or can't spell.
Talk about spelling (http://www.unicyclist.com/forums/showpost.php?p=66842&postcount=28)!

[GILD]

Talk about spelling (http://www.unicyclist.com/forums/showpost.php?p=66842&postcount=28)!
Touche.

In fairness tho, that was from 5 years ago.
I've subsequently added punctuation and capital letters to my attempts at communication.

And if you really want to talk about spell (http://www.unicyclist.com/forums/showpost.php?p=695164&postcount=1281)ing...

[monkeyman]

And if you really want to talk about spelli (http://www.unicyclist.com/forums/search.php?searchid=209913)ng....

[tobbogonist]

Speeling? (http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDT60800.shtml)

[UniMOG]

:D did not finish reading all the posts DO IT have funwith high school it is probly the last place you can play all day with out having to worry about a job or dinner and rent. ps in HS the girls really are horny.:D

[monkeyman]

:D did not finish reading all the posts DO IT have funwith high school it is probly the last place you can play all day with out having to worry about a job or dinner and rent. ps in HS the girls really are horny.:D

Posts like this make me fear for the human race when my generation takes over.

[dudewithasock]

:D did not finish reading all the posts DO IT have funwith high school it is probly the last place you can play all day with out having to worry about a job or dinner and rent.

Maybe if you are a rich kid who has all their stuff handed to them...

[UniMOG]

yes fear me. Dont speed in a park now :D

[UniMOG]

also did see how old it was 2002 :D

[tobbogonist]

ps in HS the girls really are horny.:D

common miss-conception.

try; in college the girls are really Horny :D

[monkeyman]

@UNImog: Dude, you're embarassing yourself. Just give up.

[UniMOG]

No, you just have to talk to them in rather then sitting in a corner. :D

[tobbogonist]

(took me nearly two years to find a horny HS girl, College, secoond week in ;) )

[dudewithasock]

common miss-conception.

try; in college the girls are really Horny :D

True. In high school, there are a decent amount of horny girls, no mistake; but they're all skanks with their steroid-packed boyfriends that can't spell 'cat' yet get a full football scholarships.

[tobbogonist]

True. In high school, there are a decent amount of horny girls, no mistake; but they're all skanks with their steroid-packed boyfriends that can't spell 'cat' yet get a full football scholarships.

the only difference, Tasmania dose not give college scholorships to football players :) but we play AFL (http://afl.com.au/) which in my opinion is a waste of a good field of grass. athough it gives the jocks something to do and keeps them away from me.

the horny girls are all with bleached blonde hair and a pink strip and they where mini skirts and 'fuck me' boots'

[dudewithasock]

the only difference, Tasmania dose not give college scholorships to football players :) but we play AFL (http://afl.com.au/) which in my opinion is a waste of a good field of grass. athough it gives the jocks something to do and keeps them away from me.

the horny girls are all with bleached blonde hair and a pink strip and they where mini skirts and 'fuck me' boots'

What would you use the grass for?

And what is a 'pink strip'?

[tobbogonist]

as in like a pink section in the bleached blonde hair.

The grass, well i could play soccer on it... or let some cows use it (reffering to drastic drought situation in Australia at the moment) there is no green grass anywhere in Australia except for council nature strips and football ovals.

[dudewithasock]

the horny girls are all with bleached blonde hair and a pink strip and they where mini skirts and 'fuck me' boots'

So your horny girls don't wear shirts? Interesting.

/books the next flight to Tasmania

[tobbogonist]

they are born with shirts

[GILD]

Futher to the 'horny in high-school/horny in college' discussion, the same is said to be true about ladies in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and beyond.
It is also said about males while they are awake.

The word you're looking for is generalising.
And it's a silly thing to do.

[tomblackwood]

The word you're looking for is generalising.
And it's a silly thing to do.
Yup, always...

[GILD]

Touche.

At least I got the spelling correct.

[Hazmat]

Touche.

At least I got the spelling correct.

That's very true.. :D :D :D