coasting

[votson]

k does anyone have any tips about coasting

[ntappin]

I would recomend learning how to ride one footed with both feet.

Being able to pedal with either foot on the frame will alow your feet to get used to being on the frame.

When you are coasting you control the wheel by balancing your upper body aswell as putting pressure on the frame to keep the unicycle straight up and down. Being used to putting your feet on the frame will help with putting pressure alot!

Alot of people will probably suggest that you learn to glide first but I'm going to say that you don't have to. I learned coasting first and its a much different way of balancing. For Gliding you are leaning back alot but with Coasting you are trying to stay as straight as possible and actualy leaning forward a bit.

Being able to wheelwalk will also help because it helps you get used to removing your feet from the pedals. The biggest problem will be taking your foot off the pedal and going through that stage where you are coasting one footed to coasting with both feet on the frame.

With all that said I would recomend finding a gentle slope, ride one footed at a comfortably fast speed then lift your foot onto the frame and just coast. Trial and error was how I learned and it wasn't the fastest way to learn but I learned it without being able to glide and without being very good at wheel walking.

I hope that helps. Also I'm not the best at coasting, I used to be pretty good but now that I have learned Gliding my Coasting has gotten much worse.

[nimblelight]

I like using both feet on frame, it feels like I have more control and I go twice as far.

You need to find a really smooth flat area such as a skatepark and just go for it, you will automatically be leaning forward after a few of those awesome times where you do an adjustment from leaning too far back and feel the wheel slide back(feels great, I don't do it that often). I practice coasting on the street now, the bumps mess me up but after I got a good distance on the smooth surface I feel like I'm getting better more quickly that way.

I personally transition from one foot riding, mostly because you can get more speed, but some people prefer to transition from one foot wheel walking (if you do this DO NOT glide your feet back between strokes, you will be leaning too far back) because they are already almost in the right position, just like 1 foot or both feet on the frame it is preference, though it is undoubtedly easier to get longer distances at higher speeds.

Whatever skill you transition into it from, you need to be going very smoothly, any changes in balance you make before you go into a coast you will have to make up while you are coasting, and when you're just learning it's not easy to do. To go smoothly while one foot riding I take as much weight as possible off the pedal and instead press on the frame with my other foot. I then simply lift my foot up and place it on the frame as it comes around the back. If I'm not pedaling smoothly I almost immediately fall off, which is a good skill in itself. Also, I put a LOT of pressure on the frame.
Some people transition from 1 foot idling but this is mainly to backwards coasting due to the lower speed and greater difficulty of transitioning into a smooth coast at the right balance point to learn at.

It seems to me that the balance corrections are similar movements to those of a bc wheel, but as the frame is quite high above the axle while plates are below, they may be almost exact opposites(so they don't really help one another), and due to the greater distance frame to axle coasting is undoubtedly harder. Another difference between bc wheeling and coasting is the way you can use your feet on the frame for some of the balance adjustments by pushing them in relation to the saddle, one of my arguments for both feet on the frame coasting.

You need to learn to fall off from coasting fairly well, and you will, but if you get your feet caught in front of the pedals and remain on the seat pushing the unicycle down and forward the resulting fall is very unpleasant. Almost every other sort of dismount I've had while coasting resulted in a perfect landing on my feet, and trust me, I didn't get tangled up again after I did it once. When you fall you need to clear the seat and this won't happen(try not to trip over your uni even if you do clear the seat:rolleyes:)

Certain saddles can be unpleasant to catch from a dismount due to the bolts holding them to the seatbase. One of these is mine, the nimbus gel, though I still prefer it due to its thin profile that is easier to hold. Short of a full-on wipeout the worst I've done is hit one of those bolts with my middle finger at top speed, bruising my finger badly but not so much that I couldn't keep riding.

To transition out of coasting I simply move my foot forward and glide out, but you need to lean way back when you do this because of the quite different postures of gliding and coasting. This is similar to when you lean back just before you transition into gliding from normal riding at high speed. After you get into gliding it doesn't really need much explanation.

Maybe I'll make a video tutorial sometime:)

[1wheelwonder]

what is coasting?

[padst3r]

what is coasting?
Coasting is when you roll along with both feet on the frame and no contact with the tyre.

[1wheelwonder]

sounds hard

[padst3r]

sounds hard
If you can 1ft ride well or even glide then you are well on your way to learning.Just takes practice

[jamessd]

Coasting is when you roll along with both feet on the frame and no contact with the tyre.
Your foot/feet do not have to be one the frame, they just cannot be touching the tyre.

[nickvb123]

practise. a lot of it.

[Napoleon]

Is in your opinon, coasting more difficult than gliding? I can wheel walk (not perfectly, but i can), know one-footed with both feet, but i don't know one-footed wheel walk. Which should i try?

[Magixause]

Your foot/feet do not have to be one the frame, they just cannot be touching the tyre.
So when I normally ride I'm coasting

[jamessd]

Is in your opinon, coasting more difficult than gliding? I can wheel walk (not perfectly, but i can), know one-footed with both feet, but i don't know one-footed wheel walk. Which should i try?
Get better at normal wheelwalk and then do one foot. And then learn to glide. Coasting is harder than gliding.

[jamessd]

So when I normally ride I'm coasting
Who said that? My post did include a quote, and stop trying to be a smart-ass.

[mynutsache]

what is gliding????????

[petad]

gliding is where you have at least one foot up on the crown, the other is rubbing against the tire to help maintain balance. It can be on the crown or it can be towards the front of the tire. You are pretty much always going down a hill when you do this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOaqnOEy_GQ

[Napoleon]

I am learning right now one-footed wheel walk. It's much more easier than i thought. Soon, i am gonna practice gliding. Iam very happy!

[guilhermeteles]

Napoleon, for how long have you been riding?
Im trying to learn wheel walk and it is really hard.

[Napoleon]

I am riding for about 5 months. Don't worry, it just needs practice... You will learn it, just be a little patient. Here is a great tutorial (not mine of course) http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=prrX0sY7QVo The key i think is to fall backwards when you try to wheel walk...

I am trying gliding, but i have not done anything yet. Actually, i should master one-footed wheel walk. Should i have speed when i try gliding? Every time i fall backwards...:(


Oh, and sry for my english, i am from Greece...

[guilhermeteles]

Thanks for the tutorial napoleon I will practice it hard.
Can you alredy hop sif?

[Napoleon]

Yes i can hop sif but i have not practiced pre-hops and tucking, as my uni is only beginner, so in August, i am thinking of buying a trial... Oh, and in wheel walk, your feet should always keep in touch with the tire. Here are the IUF levels (i know, off topic, just to help...) http://www.unicycling.org/IUF/levels/
Try to follow these levels, they are really useful...

[guilhermeteles]

Thank you for the helping Napoleon.
Sorry about the off topic.

[Napoleon]

I managed yesterday to glide for 20 metres. I will keep at it for longer gliding and the transition from riding, and then i will practice coasting. Any news of me will be posted...
Oh, and thank you for the coasting tutorials, i am sure they will help me...

[Napoleon]

I have bee practicing coasting sinceyesterday. I must admit that the progress is a bit slow, but i can now put both feet on th frame, and i have coasted for very little. I will keep practicing, and my news will be posted...


P.S. 1) Anyone else practicing coasting?
2) How much time do you think that it will take me to coast for 10 metres, with much practice?

[1wheelwonder]

I'm not sure about you but it would take me ages to learn...

[Napoleon]

Hi! Got 3,20 metres 2 days ago. Unfortunately, i lost 2 days of practice, but i will continue and hope i will reach 5 metres soon...

[uniaddict]

Way to go.:D You are learning these skills very fast. Although it might be easier because people your age learn stuff faster. For me learning coasting took about a week to get 10 meters, but I had experience with gliding and wheelwalking skills. But yeah way to go.

[Sophia p.]

the guy who did world record in coasting at unicon 13 told me that you must orient yourself upwarts. your arms shoul be in front of you,so you can balance best by going up and down with your hands.because when you want to learn coasting your problem wouldn´t be that you dump through left or right..your problem would be not to dump in front or in back of your uni.. (after these hints i learned coasting about 10 meters in i think one and a halt day);):)

[votson]

[QUOTE=Sophia p.;1106402]the guy who did world record in coasting at unicon 13 told me that you must orient yourself upwarts. your arms shoul be in front of youQUOTE]

yes this helps so much just keep your arms straight in front of you start a one foot wheel walk then its pretty easy to master

[uniaddict]

I have found that stretching your arms straight up really hard helps a lot. It makes you feel way more stable and correcting your balance is easier when doing this.

[einradfahren]

I made a coasting Video tutorial.

Maybe I will already upload it today :) (I haven't finished it yet)

Philipp

[1wheelwonder]

I'm still not sure what the difference is between gliding and coasting

[uniaddict]

With gliding one foot is touching the tire to slow you down and help you balance while the other stays on the frame. With coasting your feet don't touch anything except the frame. The balance comes from your upper body rocking back and forth.

[uniaddict]

With gliding one foot is touching the tire to slow you down and help you balance while the other stays on the frame. With coasting your feet don't touch anything except the frame. The balance comes from your upper body rocking back and forth.

[1wheelwonder]

cool thanks, coasting sounds hard...

[MondayHopscotch]

So I have a 24" (Torker LX) and a 20" (KH), would it be any easier to learn coasing/gliding on one of them compared to the other?

[petad]

Definitely learn it on a 20 inch.

[MondayHopscotch]

any specific reasons you say that? My 24 has a somewhat worn down tire that slips nicely under my foot (when gliding), my 20 has a brand new creepy crawler on it which doesnt seem like it would be all that good (for gliding). Coasing -- well... I'm still working my way to trying that out.