Riding uni vs. biking no hands?

[hoshnasi]

My Nimbus comes today, it is my first uni and tonight with be my first attempt in riding one. I ride road bikes and fixed gears bikes mostly. When riding the fixed I mostly ride no hands. Are there any similarities in riding a bike no hands and a uni? I am assume left and right control to a degree could be similar. The bikes added wheel provides tons of the forward and backward stability though.

Thanks everyone!

(If that his been covered I am sorry. I had a hard time using search terms that would yield good info.)

[Jerrick]

From my experience in doing both, they are completely different.

Being able to ride from point a to point b with no hands on my bike didnt help me at all, not even when I would stand up on the frame, and just fly down hill. That one is a fun trick. lol

[john_childs]

There is not much similarity in terms of feel or technique between riding a road bike no handed and left-right balance on a unicycle.

The closest similarity is that maintaining balance while no handed is about moving the bike under you to correct for balance. Same on a unicycle. It's all about moving the wheel to keep the wheel under you. It's not at all about moving your upper body to keep your body over the wheel. So in that sense the technique is similar but feels completely different on a bike and unicycle.

Riding a bike or unicycle is not like walking on a tightrope. On a tightrope you correct your balance by moving your upper body. On a bike and unicycle you correct your balance by moving the bike underneath you.

[tholub]

Being used to learning physical stuff makes it easier to learn to ride a unicycle, but the skills of riding a unicycle and riding a bike no handed are pretty much unrelated. Other than that they're both fun!

[phlegm]

Originally Posted by john_childs

Riding a bike or unicycle is not like walking on a tightrope. On a tightrope you correct your balance by moving your upper body. On a bike and unicycle you correct your balance by moving the bike underneath you.

Upper body balance corrections can be helpful when doing trials unicycling.

[kington99]

I've been riding uni for 6 years, I can just about ride a bike no hands in a straight line if i don't pedal. 'Nuff said.

[thejdw]

I could no hand a bike (not very well on the stright flat) befor unicycling and now I can go round conreners. So I would say that there is a small conection.

[mill_mobile]

I say NO connection at all...
I cannot ride a bike with no hands for any distance at all - i have tried but just cant do it.
The whole '2 wheel should be easier' theory is WRONG!!!!! I feel its the front wheel that throws me out of balance the most, along with the thought of the handle bars out the front.
my 2 cents.
Peace.

[john_childs]

Originally Posted by phlegm

Upper body balance corrections can be helpful when doing trials unicycling.

That's because in trials it's all about adding extra constraints to the riding. If you're doing a stillstand up on a post or riding along a rail you can when riding around in an open flat parking lot.

I will accept your correction and counter by saying that balancing on a unicycle out on the road or in the gym is about moving the wheel so the unicycle stays underneath you rather than moving your upper body to stay above the unicycle. When you start doing things like trying to ride very very slowly, do stillstands, or ride along narrow rails, then the balance gets to be about moving the upper body to stay above the wheel. That's quite a different beast and balance like that is a whole different ball game.

How's that for a serious response to a sarcastic post.

[johnfoss]

It's definitely a little easier to get into unicycling if you can ride no-hands than if you can't. Consider yourself 1/360th of the way there. Only 359 other degrees of motion left!

Okay to be honest, the bike gives you two (left and right). Taken in pairs, that means you only have 179 more degrees to learn. Much better!

[hoshnasi]

Thanks for the info, I'm looking forward to riding all weekend when I can sneak out of work here and there.

[hoshnasi]

Originally Posted by john_childs

That's because in trials it's all about adding extra constraints to the riding. If you're doing a stillstand up on a post or riding along a rail you can when riding around in an open flat parking lot.

I will accept your correction and counter by saying that balancing on a unicycle out on the road or in the gym is about moving the wheel so the unicycle stays underneath you rather than moving your upper body to stay above the unicycle. When you start doing things like trying to ride very very slowly, do stillstands, or ride along narrow rails, then the balance gets to be about moving the upper body to stay above the wheel. That's quite a different beast and balance like that is a whole different ball game.

How's that for a serious response to a sarcastic post.

I think I have your avatar beat John

[john_childs]

Originally Posted by hoshnasi

I think I have your avatar beat John

Brilliant!

My muni is named Guinness Mojo (it's a black unicycle)

My Coker is named Espresso Mojo (it's also black)

My fixie is named Java Mojo (it's also black)

There is a pattern there.

My MTB is red and doesn't have a name.

[martin.phillips]

Curiously, I was thinking a similar question this morning. When I was at university many years ago, I rode a gent's upright (no sniggering at the back please), and had no problems in controlling it for miles on end no-hands. In more recent years, I bought a mountain b*ke, and can't ride it no-handed at all. In the meantime I've learnt to unicycle, which hasn't helped with no-handing the MTB.

I suspect that the ease of riding a b*cycle no-handed is very much related to the angle of the front forks, and so to the stability of the machine.

Wassail!

[john_childs]

Originally Posted by martin.phillips

I suspect that the ease of riding a b*cycle no-handed is very much related to the angle of the front forks, and so to the stability of the machine.

Wassail!

It depends on the geometry of the bike, the angle and trail of the fork, the profile of the tires, and the condition of the bike. Some bikes are easier to ride no handed than others.

Some old bikes are trivial to ride no handed because the headset bearings have created indentations in the headset that naturally centers the front wheel. That's cheating.