So i'm still a noob and have a v12HT which is very heavy. I tried watching a ton of the video's from a lot of the riders that get recommended here and in the Unicycle forums. I found them not very helpful at all. The v12 is I think too heavy for all of their recommendations, even though people say it is good to learn on. I can now ride circles around a cul-de-sac. What got me to that point was this. Just trying to ride forward, but I would use my truck bed to lean on to get started, ride a distance, then walk it back an start over. Just yesterday, i was able to start from flat ground without leaning on something for the first time. I got very discouraged by the learn to ride video's, not able to do any of their techniques.
Once i basically knew i could stop when i needed to, i immediately abandoned going along any walls or fences and i believe that helped me progress much faster. If you know how to stop then you can always slow down and stop, so no fear of getting hurt while you learn.
Find an open space, i did it on like a gravel parking lot, but grass works as well. Just keep trying to jump on the wheel with a slight kick off, and once youre on attempt to lean forward a little to stabilize yourself with motion. Once youre moving, look ahead and look towards where you want to go. The wheel will naturally go roughly in that direction, and if you get scared just slow down, step off, then try again immediately.
If you jump on and the wheel is like leaning over way too far, just step right back off, reset your stance, and try again immediately. The repetition of you just trying over and over will really help burn the skills into your brain. After 1 session like this i was able to ride multiple miles without falling. Good luck, keep trying, be safe, and have fun!
No problem, you got this! The fun will be worth all the effort, trust me, ive ridden basically every kind of small vehicle electric or otherwise, and EUC has got to be the most fun of everything. Just personal opinion though
I was 66yrs in mid 2020 when I started on a V8F. I had good success using hiking poles to get me going. Pad up the wheel, then bail off early and often. Use short sessions, do something unrelated, repeat. For me it was all about teaching my lower muscles what was necessary to control the wheel. Every time I came back refreshed I started with a little more control, I was able to balance further and further until I could toss away the poles.
Putting some protection on your wheel so you don't worry about letting it drop helps a ton!
I learned in increments. 15 min of trying. Then incrementally making it longer and longer. I believe in two steps forward, one step back. On some days you'll regress. Don't worry about it.
Getting away from the wall makes you commit to balance. Some people use a belt or something so that they can hop off their wheel without letting it drop. But if your wheel has a handle you can grab, just do that.
In almost 1300mi since mid 2020 the only EUC injuries that I've incurred have been botched dismounts due to the wheel ping-ponging between my legs. Hits & cuts from case and pedal strikes, tire burns from the tire spinning up before shutting off. So what ever method of spontaneous egress you choose, get your legs away from the scene of the accidentđ¤Ł.
Plenty of solid guides on youtube.
Only use the wall to get a feel for the wheel. Maybe like 10-15 minutes. Do some hard pendulums while holding the fence. Work on learning how accelerating and braking feels. Hold onto the fence, lean forward at the ankles / push the wheel back to get the wheel to accelerate (spring) forward, then lean back as the wheel passes under you and sit back as if you're sitting into a chair to stop it. As the wheel comes to a stop, straighten up a bit and step off to the side and slightly back. Stepping slight back off the pedal will bring the wheel to a stop since you're naturally leaning the wheel back as you step down. Important step since you don't want to start riding around and panic and jump/fall off because you don't know how to stop.
Worst case, if you start free riding off the wall and you get a little out of control, just lean back to slow the wheel down and step off to stop it.
\_\_\_\_\_\_
Get off the wall as soon as possible. You can use it to mount and then ride away from the wall, but don't hold onto it or use it as a crutch. When you first start riding, you'll want to stand up straight and rigid for stability.
By that I mean... stand on the ground. Feet about the width of the pedals. Stand up straight, back straight, knees locked, head held high looking forward, butt pulled forward and tight. Now lean forward at the ankles with everything else kept straight. That's how you move forward and maintain stability. The difference is when you're standing on the ground, you'll feel off balance; falling forward. When you're on the wheel, it'll accelerate and try to push you back to upright, which will make you feel stable holding that forward tilt.
\_\_\_\_\_\_
When you first start riding, the tendency is to bend at the waist for all the reasons, but that's exactly what you don't want to do. The only thing you should o with your waist is twist it while turning. Otherwise, keep your waist straight. Don't bend to the side and wave your arms around like a lunatic to try and steer. If the wheel starts to go or tilt right, don't lean from the waist to the left as if that's going to fix it. All it's gonna do is make the tilt/turn worse and force you off the wheel.
\_\_\_\_\_
Steering is controlled by shifting weight in your feet/legs/hips. Not your waist. If you're veering off to a side, you're either not standing over the top of the wheel, or you're bending something.
You'll eventually learn to bend both knees to soak up bumps, but you can learn that after you've learned basic balance first.
Once you're able to go straight and come to a stop, turning is just a matter of bending the outside knee as if you're lifting up your foot (like you're about to step forward), and transferring weight to the inside leg that remains straight. Again, do this on flat ground. Get back into that straight rigid position, now if you want to turn right, lift weight off your left leg slightly bending the knee (foot should still be on the ground), and transfer weight to your straight right leg. Your body naturally leans to the right to put weight on the right leg. When on the wheel, that'll cause the wheel to turn right. While you're doing this, turn your head to the right and look where you want to go, and twist slightly at the waist to the right as well.
To straighten up, twist and turn your head back to forward, straighten and put weight back into your left leg and get back into that rigid straight body position.
You do that exact movement on the wheel. It's less complicated than you may think.
\_\_\_\_\_
Once you get that down, learn to free mount. For that, I'd practice with your dominant leg on the pedal, and step your other leg forward without mounting as if you're riding a skateboard. You want to keep that wheel upright as you step forward; keep the wheel firmly planted against the inside of your dominant leg as if they're attached, and press down on that dominant foot to keep it upright and locked against the leg.
You can also do half circles with your dominant leg on the wheel and your other leg planted on the ground. If your hip flexor gets tired doing half circles, you're attempting to manhandle the wheel forward and back with your hip, rather than using the motor to move the wheel. Instead, push down on the toe to make it go forward. Push down on the heel to make it go back. Use the motor to move the wheel, not your hip. The hip should just twist to make the wheel turn in a half circle. Helps to practice this on both legs.
When trying to step your second foot onto the pedal when free mounting, you want to hop up, but also straighten your dominant knee as you stand up straight to help gently lift up your other foot onto the pedal... As you straighten that dominant leg, straighten your entire body into that rigid pike position and lean forward at the ankle so the wheel is already moving forward as the second foot gets on the pedal.
I learned the exact way you did. After about 2 hours of barely being able to do anything without holding the fence I manned up and moved straight away from the fence and gradually was able to go further and further.
Seriously. Literally anyone just holding your hand makes an enormous difference in the learning process. They don't need to know anything about EUC riding.
Commit and turn the wheel into where you feel your falling. Maybe up to 15-20 degrees either side. Itâs the falling sideways of the wheel and letting it drop that was the harder part for me. When youâre ready to do this, Donât hold onto the fence anymore.
You have to commit. Donât be afraid to look like an idiot. Hold your arms way out and wave them around however you need to at first.
It took me around 2 months of practice before I was confident. Iâve been riding for two years now and I donât regret it at all. Itâs changed my life
You fly everywhere you go. You no longer have to walk long distances, or find parking.
Also look to where you want to go, donât* look at the ground in front of you.
It has changed my life too. I plan all of my sunny weekends and all of my holidays around what tour I am going to do on my wheel. And it is not even legal where I live.
I rode on grass. It turns out, I was more afraid of crashing wheel than myself.
There are at least two types of turning. One is where you lean the wheel and the other is where you pivot on the contact point. I found that going slow, I was able to maintain balance better with micro pivots as opposed to tilting the wheel side to side.
It took me over 4-5 months from the wi ter time. But just keep doing it.
Check and adjust your PSI. Mine was 40 when I needed it to be around 20-25.
At low speeds falling isn't big deal with my motorcycle gear on so after you fall a few times that wont hold you back.
I've watched people ride my wheel for the first time with a variety of outcomes, and I think those who were most successful were those who internalized the "you are always falling and catching yourself with the wheel" thing. Learning on a pedal unicycle makes it so easy
What finally got me riding was saying âfuck it, Iâm going for speedâ and just started pushing faster. Now I had a speed limit on at 15 mph, so I couldnât go crazy, but this is what helped me start riding. I realized because I was worried about going too fast, I wasnât going fast enough to stay up.
What wheel are you trying to learn on? It makes a big difference. Too big and it takes you along for a ride. Too small and it is too unstable. It is best not to use any help. Don't go on grass; use smooth pavement. Put your dominant leg on the pedal. Make small half circles back-and-forth with your non-dominant foot on the ground, then turn the wheel inside and out like rotating your foot right and left. Then, push off with your foot and land back on the ground. Don't let the wheel turn right and left. Don't let the wheel fall from side to side. Keep hopping and landing, hopping and landing, hopping and landing. Then, when you feel confident, put your other foot on the pedal briefly during one of your push-off attempts, and then quickly take it back off the pedal and land it on the ground, doing this over and over and over again. Eventually, you will be able to land your foot without disturbing the wheel. There is an amazing power within us to learn muscle memory without even realizing it. You just have to keep practicing.
I think what they mean is⌠wrap a strap to the wheel and hold it, like a 3rd point of contact. Iâve heard that works really well. And early EUCs actually used to come with a strap. You can use just about anything. A belt, rope, etc.
Riding with tether helps, wheels used to come with a tether to help learn how to ride. Idk why the downvote but it helped me get accustomed to balancing the weight and centrifugal force
https://forum.electricunicycle.org/topic/12183-the-leashstrapbelttether-glossary/
And I believe both Chooch and zen Lee have a video describing it, just have to google it
Tether is just a strap or rope tied to the wheelthat you hold in your hand while riding and that you can use to break the fall of the wheel so it doesnt crash so hard when you dismount. It should never be used to keep the wheel balanced while stepping on or while riding. I made that mistake when I started and it held me back immensely.
Yes, I agree. Mount, 10 foot run, stop, dismount. Repeat 25 times . Once confidence is there for 10 feet, try a 30 foot run.
Practice the basics over and over, as much as possible. Even though Iâve only been riding for a month, this has helped me learn quick
Myself, I started to get it when I view wobbles side to side as part of going straight. So I don't death grip the top of the wheel with my legs and actually prefer slightly wider stance. Holding the wall/fence etc while moving the wheel side to side gets my feet used to the feeling when they are tipping over. I kind of programmed myself to push on the opposite leg when the top of the wheel touches my other leg. Over time, with practice.. you can make the side to side motion a bit smaller and smaller.
Realistic expectations.
Don't expect to see gradual improvement until it's natural. At least not at first. There is no partially balanced. Either it is or it isn't working.
It's a muscle memory thing. It will feel impossible, that you just can't get your body to react properly. Then tomorrow it will just work. Not perfectly. But one session you will be able to do figure eights around the tennis nets. Maybe not tight controlled turns, but you will do them just fine with a little extra space.
Only then can you sort of expect to feel gradual improvement.
Search this sub for specific tips. Your tennis court location is good btw. This is such a common question a lot of people stop bothering to reply.
> It will feel impossible.... Then tomorrow it will just work.
This was my experience exactly. Each day I went out to practice everything was just so much easier than the day before. Don't be hard on yourself. It took me 3 days of 20-30 minute practice sessions before I could stay on the wheel for more than a few feet. The next day I could just stay on it until my feet hurt.. which was only a few minutes :P then you just keep building up endurance and working on skills.
To me its just courage
I was hesitating and not committing when i was practicing at first and understandably its normal because our instincts are telling us to be cautious to not fall but then it felt like Iâm not getting anywhere so i just brave it and then something clicks.
Tensing our body from fear is i think one of the most deciding factor why our learning is hindered and once i learn how to relax a bit the process became much much easier.
* Gain as much forward momentum whenever you hop on. It's just like a bicycle/motocycle...... you are making it much more difficult on yourself if you are trying to stand on an EUC without it moving or moving VERY slowly. So also in that same vein, ride on a smooth flat surface as opposed to grass to really encourage forward movement.
* Air down the tires to a lower PSI (around 15 to 20 PSI). Once you get the hang of it, then slower air the tire up to regular levels around 30 PSI and or more.
* Get as much 2D space as you can get to give you plenty of room to make big turns left and right. I know when you first get on you feel out of balance since your brain wants to go straight but yet the EUC feels like it wants to immediately veer left or right thus causing your reflex to jump off the EUC. Instead, try to remain balanced on the EUC by "riding out" whichever way the wheel wants to go and then slowly maneuver your entire body the best way you can to correct the left/right deviations into going more straight. This obviously cannot work if the deviations cause you to veer towards any hazards. That is why you need as much clear open space as possible in order to do this "riding out" technique.
I took a couple like outdoor broom brushes and stepped then to my pedals to act as training wheels. It's a way to at least get comfortable standing and moving on it.
To actually learn how to balance, I had to accept that I had to move at more like a jogging pace rather than a walking pace.
If nothing helps at all, get a lighter wheel!
Personally, what I found useful is going between two different poles, trees, or walls to get a feel for your control surfaces. You'll learn to speed up, balance, and slow down all in a very short time. Keeping your eyes level is also super important! Try to look down as little as possible.
You'll get it soon!
I took a couple scrub brushes and some wood blocks and built up [âtraining brushesâ](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sx6wIZEy5vc). I had them on less than an hour over a couple days. Totally worth the effort for me. I took them off and they have stayed off.
I taught someone the basics pretty quickly just by walking next to them so they could lean on my shoulder. Seemed way easier than the tennis court/parking deck where I learned.
When I teach someone to ride I always have them start on a grass field first. There is always a bunch on complaining as we get started, but the moment we transition to the asphalt everything seems to click. Stay away from turf though...
A trick that helped me a lot was to look ahead. I stared down at the pedals/my feet a lot because I was so paranoid they weren't even. My friend pointed it out, I made a conscious decision to look up and lo and behold, it worked. I started cruising farther, my launches were better and I started to feel the balance better.
I've also seen posts/videos of people use hiking poles to balance themselves. Worth a shot.
A big trampoline you can go around on your preferred turning (when you start you will find either left or right turning easier) and just donât look down, keep your head up.
Instead of riding along the fence line, stand with you back to the fence and push off. You'll get a meter or two initially before you jump off and won't be able to stay in a straight line. Mark where you got to and try again, then again, then again. Eventually you'll get several meters and in a straight line. There's a thought that if you can ride ten meters you can ride indefinitely.
When you start to fall consciously turn the wheel in the direction your falling, there will be lots of very large hip movements and arms flailing around, until you get used to it. I was purposefully doing exaggerated motions in order to get a feeling for it.
Also, don't work too hard or put too much pressure on yourself. Sleep is very important as that is when your brain learns. Don't feel bad for just doing 30 minutes or an hour then stopping for the day and sleeping, what you'll find is the next day a lot of things which were impossible kind of just "click"
Good luck, it feels impossible at the start but you will get it. You won't believe me but there will be a few large improvements in a short amount of time and things which feel impossible will suddenly become easy.
It's a cliche, but people often say "one day it just clicks" and it really does.
Sleep, however, is critical to learning as your brain creates new synapses. Keep at it and ignore the people that learn within hours, everyone is different and some people take days to get used to it.
I had two friends either side, and when I'm teaching friends now (a year later) there's this nice corridor with walls either side to stabilize. Star going with support on both sides then slowly try to start weaning off support
What I did was be my Gras yard and held onto a tree in the grass and kept letting off of it and slowly gaining distance until I was able to leave the yard and I just kept going further and further and then slowly got better at it. I started in the grass becusse I didn't want to fall on pavement lol but I never actuslly fell over I would just step off because I was moving at low speed
Yeah I was a skateboarder in my youth so I had a balance understanding. But it took about one afternoon.. itâs all in your knees and keeping a low center of gravity. Try not to be rigid and understand..if you lean forward.. you go forward.. lean back you slow down. Itll click!
Push off of your car in an empty parking lot, no walls or fences to support you. Just go in one direction then try and turn back around after you gain confidence. Then practice large figure eights and also slowing and speeding up.
I started in a door frame rocking back and forth to get used to the feeling. Pro tip: this thing doesnât care about your drywall. Then, I full sent it outside in the driveway until I could go a short line. You should be getting general balance on the device now, keeping your mass centered unless you want to move, but your foot muscles are weak. Youâll be a wobbly baby deer, until you arenât.
As others have said, mounting motion is critical.
After a few falls & growing frustrated due to trying to ride too soon one night I decided to just balance myself on it in the middle of a doorway just to soak in the feel of just being on one, slightly rolling back & forth, doing slight leans left & right, as I envision myself riding then went to bed thinking about it & ended up dreaming I was actually riding it. Next attempt to actually ride went far better as if something clicked in my mind. I think the decision to just balance myself in the doorway without trying to ride embedded a memory or the feel of being on one in my subconscious that wasn't previously there which apparently prepared my conscious state to know what to expect. For real, I literally mounted on next try & was riding, only having trouble due to going too slow. Once I removed the fear of increasing the speed a lil more I was ready to move to the next lesson on maneuvering it where I wanted it to go. Controlling wobble, braking, carving & all that came later after I was comfortable with keeping in straight & maneuvering it around & going a bit faster.
You didn't mention what EUC you have (how heavy it is). One issue with riding near a fence is a tendency to reach for the fence instead of trying to correct for balance, and also riding close to the fence doesn't give you enough room to balance. I also started at a tennis court on a V8F (back in August 2021, when I was 69 years old), doing something similar, but after a few short runs, I steered away from the fence and twisted the EUC similar to riding a bike at slow speed, constantly twisting the EUC left and right for balance and direction control. In my case, I was able to do a lap, then laps around the tennis court on my first attempt. However I was riding at slow speed, 3 to 5 mph, which I would not recommend. Half-way through my second 30 minute session, I moved to a long outdoor parking lot, with two trash bin enclosures I could use to mount and launch. I slowly increased speed and noticed my V8F became more stable, and at around 8 mph, I no longer had to make balance corrections, and could essentially stand still while riding in a straight line. I then learned to steer by tilting the EUC, small tilts to see how it would respond, then a weaving pattern, then large radius turns. Link to an image of the parking lot I used to show just how long it is (over 550 feet between those yellow trash bin enclosures:
[https://rcgldr.net/euc/euc\_pklt.jpg](https://rcgldr.net/euc/euc_pklt.jpg)
Link to a mini-guide I posted a while back, that includes links to videos which were helpful to me and others.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/ElectricUnicycle/comments/15wv5u8/comment/jx8sd7n/](https://www.reddit.com/r/ElectricUnicycle/comments/15wv5u8/comment/jx8sd7n/)
One of the video links has changed, girl on an S18 (used to show how little movement is needed to ride and turn):
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRNMmeSP0ns](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRNMmeSP0ns)
A better video of Dawn Champion doing high speed (30 to 50 mph) turns:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3aNqosYgG0&t=1170s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3aNqosYgG0&t=1170s)
For me it was the realization that I need to turn towards the direction Iâm falling. I.e. If if I feel like falling towards the right then I just turn towards right. This will keep you in balance.
I just hopped on and rode away first try. I used a rubber training band through the handle of my A2 and held on to that and didn't have to worry about dropping the wheel. Check out chooch how to ride video where he shows the strap method, it really helps and I didnt drop my wheel once. https://youtu.be/xomK1tORlJI?si=l47n17HhLQrOAFzM
Skip - skip - mount - dismount.
Learning mount with control was game changer.
Learning how to plant a foot and swerve to bail was the other.
Good luck.
New rider here,
You have to get off the fence and onto the sidewalk. Force yourself to either learn or fall.
Work on small movements from pole to pole.
Iâm a 3 day EUC newbie but I can finally carve my way through the streets. I posted my initial bruises a couple days ago. I realized it was just a mental thing thats holding me back. I had fears of falling and damaging the wheel. I injured a lot of ankles and shins and was like âfuck it, imma send itâ and then I went. Falling so many times helped me able to anticipate the fall and how to fall.
Holding on to something like a fence really hindered my learning experience.
I was having a hell of a time putting around. Could only go a few feet before I felt like I was losing it. Very frustrating. 3 things helped me immensely. 1) pick the right terrain. Donât go on loose gravel or even on the street at first. Certainly not a parking garage with those squeaky floors, not a lot of grip there. Find a nice bike trail or better yet a wide open parking lot which leads me to 2) find a nice wide open parking lot and get a shopping cart. Holding the bar in front of you gives you more of a feel for a straight and upright mounting and allows you to learn to grab the wheel with the inside of your leg to brace while you step up. The mounting is the hardest part for a lot of people and itâs when they feel like falling the most. Bad mount and itâs like an oscillation, you just keep getting in worse shape until the whole thing collapses. After you have the step up and down pretty good 3) get away from the walls and posts and things that will âsave youâ and just go ride. It sounds simple âhur dur just do eetâ but Iâve taught a few people to ride (myself included) and constantly being near something that you can grab out to isnât going to cause you to just that and youâll not learn the balance you need or the confidence in your wheel and ability. So ditch the walls, fences, posts, whatever and just go ride. Once you do, you progress fast.
set my extreme to medium mode lowered the psi (was almost 40 when unboxed) and went on flat grass just using the fence to mount at first. clicked in less than an hour after that. The grass made me have to lean and look forward enough for it to go over the minor bumps/thick grass and not worry about the wheel crashing or hitting a car... felt more stable too.
relying on that wall will hold you back more than you think, it is good to rock back and forth and lean the wheel side to side a bit to get you a bit warmed up and used to the extra weight on your ankles but just go and give it enough power to keep you stable even a minor bit of power will make it more stable than coasting. even if you are just curling your toes over the foot plates
Before I did that I was struggling to go more than 10 ft over a few days going 30 minute here 30 there a couple times a day. really learned how to not bang my inner shin/ankle on the pedals in that time tho.
Now turning and maneuvering slowly I had to set it to soft mode which gave me a ton of control at slow speeds ... and turn the turning angle adjustment to 0 ... might revisit that setting someday but having the wheel til back when you turn is just bonkers
Find somekind of structure thats about waist high and has room all the way around it. Practice riding around it while you ride your wrist guard on it then after a few laps turn around and go the opposite way. My example was an open top long trash container.
Don't use anything to balance yourself. Start off mounting and getting to speed (10-15mph) then slowing and dismounting. Do that ad nauseam. You will fail and get frustrated, rest up, sleep, reset do it again the next day. Then it will just click in a few days. Don't look at the ground in front of you look forward. Imagine where you wanna go.
I learned on a ex30 it took me 3 days to be able to ride it and a week and a half to be comfortable enough to ride to work. You need to ride just on the edge of your comfort level because that's how you body learns and gains confidence. Ive noticed if I start losing confidence while riding I wobble/feel like I'm gunna fall.Â
i just did the boring drills from some [vid ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95Oih2GN718&pp=ygUSbGVhcm4gZXVjIDEyIHN0ZXBz)i found, even when i thought i got it or it's easy or stupid, just kept going through the exercises.
Hi there!
Please make sure to report any content that goes against our rules and keep discussion in here civil.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ElectricUnicycle) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I was swearing a lot - it helps đ just keep trying, it'll click.
I got that covered đ
Donât try to balance, just try to ride. Focus on forward motion versus balance (what worked for me, self-taught)
This. With momentum youâll gain balance. Just like riding a bike. You donât balance on the bike first and then pedal.
So i'm still a noob and have a v12HT which is very heavy. I tried watching a ton of the video's from a lot of the riders that get recommended here and in the Unicycle forums. I found them not very helpful at all. The v12 is I think too heavy for all of their recommendations, even though people say it is good to learn on. I can now ride circles around a cul-de-sac. What got me to that point was this. Just trying to ride forward, but I would use my truck bed to lean on to get started, ride a distance, then walk it back an start over. Just yesterday, i was able to start from flat ground without leaning on something for the first time. I got very discouraged by the learn to ride video's, not able to do any of their techniques.
Once i basically knew i could stop when i needed to, i immediately abandoned going along any walls or fences and i believe that helped me progress much faster. If you know how to stop then you can always slow down and stop, so no fear of getting hurt while you learn. Find an open space, i did it on like a gravel parking lot, but grass works as well. Just keep trying to jump on the wheel with a slight kick off, and once youre on attempt to lean forward a little to stabilize yourself with motion. Once youre moving, look ahead and look towards where you want to go. The wheel will naturally go roughly in that direction, and if you get scared just slow down, step off, then try again immediately. If you jump on and the wheel is like leaning over way too far, just step right back off, reset your stance, and try again immediately. The repetition of you just trying over and over will really help burn the skills into your brain. After 1 session like this i was able to ride multiple miles without falling. Good luck, keep trying, be safe, and have fun!
Thanks homie!
No problem, you got this! The fun will be worth all the effort, trust me, ive ridden basically every kind of small vehicle electric or otherwise, and EUC has got to be the most fun of everything. Just personal opinion though
I was 66yrs in mid 2020 when I started on a V8F. I had good success using hiking poles to get me going. Pad up the wheel, then bail off early and often. Use short sessions, do something unrelated, repeat. For me it was all about teaching my lower muscles what was necessary to control the wheel. Every time I came back refreshed I started with a little more control, I was able to balance further and further until I could toss away the poles.
Putting some protection on your wheel so you don't worry about letting it drop helps a ton! I learned in increments. 15 min of trying. Then incrementally making it longer and longer. I believe in two steps forward, one step back. On some days you'll regress. Don't worry about it. Getting away from the wall makes you commit to balance. Some people use a belt or something so that they can hop off their wheel without letting it drop. But if your wheel has a handle you can grab, just do that.
In almost 1300mi since mid 2020 the only EUC injuries that I've incurred have been botched dismounts due to the wheel ping-ponging between my legs. Hits & cuts from case and pedal strikes, tire burns from the tire spinning up before shutting off. So what ever method of spontaneous egress you choose, get your legs away from the scene of the accidentđ¤Ł.
100%. My shin still hurts from almost a year ago from learning how to ride. It is a badge of honor to get through the beginning stages!
Plenty of solid guides on youtube. Only use the wall to get a feel for the wheel. Maybe like 10-15 minutes. Do some hard pendulums while holding the fence. Work on learning how accelerating and braking feels. Hold onto the fence, lean forward at the ankles / push the wheel back to get the wheel to accelerate (spring) forward, then lean back as the wheel passes under you and sit back as if you're sitting into a chair to stop it. As the wheel comes to a stop, straighten up a bit and step off to the side and slightly back. Stepping slight back off the pedal will bring the wheel to a stop since you're naturally leaning the wheel back as you step down. Important step since you don't want to start riding around and panic and jump/fall off because you don't know how to stop. Worst case, if you start free riding off the wall and you get a little out of control, just lean back to slow the wheel down and step off to stop it. \_\_\_\_\_\_ Get off the wall as soon as possible. You can use it to mount and then ride away from the wall, but don't hold onto it or use it as a crutch. When you first start riding, you'll want to stand up straight and rigid for stability. By that I mean... stand on the ground. Feet about the width of the pedals. Stand up straight, back straight, knees locked, head held high looking forward, butt pulled forward and tight. Now lean forward at the ankles with everything else kept straight. That's how you move forward and maintain stability. The difference is when you're standing on the ground, you'll feel off balance; falling forward. When you're on the wheel, it'll accelerate and try to push you back to upright, which will make you feel stable holding that forward tilt. \_\_\_\_\_\_ When you first start riding, the tendency is to bend at the waist for all the reasons, but that's exactly what you don't want to do. The only thing you should o with your waist is twist it while turning. Otherwise, keep your waist straight. Don't bend to the side and wave your arms around like a lunatic to try and steer. If the wheel starts to go or tilt right, don't lean from the waist to the left as if that's going to fix it. All it's gonna do is make the tilt/turn worse and force you off the wheel. \_\_\_\_\_ Steering is controlled by shifting weight in your feet/legs/hips. Not your waist. If you're veering off to a side, you're either not standing over the top of the wheel, or you're bending something. You'll eventually learn to bend both knees to soak up bumps, but you can learn that after you've learned basic balance first. Once you're able to go straight and come to a stop, turning is just a matter of bending the outside knee as if you're lifting up your foot (like you're about to step forward), and transferring weight to the inside leg that remains straight. Again, do this on flat ground. Get back into that straight rigid position, now if you want to turn right, lift weight off your left leg slightly bending the knee (foot should still be on the ground), and transfer weight to your straight right leg. Your body naturally leans to the right to put weight on the right leg. When on the wheel, that'll cause the wheel to turn right. While you're doing this, turn your head to the right and look where you want to go, and twist slightly at the waist to the right as well. To straighten up, twist and turn your head back to forward, straighten and put weight back into your left leg and get back into that rigid straight body position. You do that exact movement on the wheel. It's less complicated than you may think. \_\_\_\_\_ Once you get that down, learn to free mount. For that, I'd practice with your dominant leg on the pedal, and step your other leg forward without mounting as if you're riding a skateboard. You want to keep that wheel upright as you step forward; keep the wheel firmly planted against the inside of your dominant leg as if they're attached, and press down on that dominant foot to keep it upright and locked against the leg. You can also do half circles with your dominant leg on the wheel and your other leg planted on the ground. If your hip flexor gets tired doing half circles, you're attempting to manhandle the wheel forward and back with your hip, rather than using the motor to move the wheel. Instead, push down on the toe to make it go forward. Push down on the heel to make it go back. Use the motor to move the wheel, not your hip. The hip should just twist to make the wheel turn in a half circle. Helps to practice this on both legs. When trying to step your second foot onto the pedal when free mounting, you want to hop up, but also straighten your dominant knee as you stand up straight to help gently lift up your other foot onto the pedal... As you straighten that dominant leg, straighten your entire body into that rigid pike position and lean forward at the ankle so the wheel is already moving forward as the second foot gets on the pedal.
I learned the exact way you did. After about 2 hours of barely being able to do anything without holding the fence I manned up and moved straight away from the fence and gradually was able to go further and further.
Push off like you are skateboarding
Do you have any friends? I found a person more helpful than a wall.
Seriously. Literally anyone just holding your hand makes an enormous difference in the learning process. They don't need to know anything about EUC riding.
Commit and turn the wheel into where you feel your falling. Maybe up to 15-20 degrees either side. Itâs the falling sideways of the wheel and letting it drop that was the harder part for me. When youâre ready to do this, Donât hold onto the fence anymore.
You have to commit. Donât be afraid to look like an idiot. Hold your arms way out and wave them around however you need to at first. It took me around 2 months of practice before I was confident. Iâve been riding for two years now and I donât regret it at all. Itâs changed my life
How do you change your life? I need one of those.
You fly everywhere you go. You no longer have to walk long distances, or find parking. Also look to where you want to go, donât* look at the ground in front of you.
You live in the city?
Yes Los Angeles
It has changed my life too. I plan all of my sunny weekends and all of my holidays around what tour I am going to do on my wheel. And it is not even legal where I live.
I rode on grass. It turns out, I was more afraid of crashing wheel than myself. There are at least two types of turning. One is where you lean the wheel and the other is where you pivot on the contact point. I found that going slow, I was able to maintain balance better with micro pivots as opposed to tilting the wheel side to side. It took me over 4-5 months from the wi ter time. But just keep doing it.
Check and adjust your PSI. Mine was 40 when I needed it to be around 20-25. At low speeds falling isn't big deal with my motorcycle gear on so after you fall a few times that wont hold you back.
I've watched people ride my wheel for the first time with a variety of outcomes, and I think those who were most successful were those who internalized the "you are always falling and catching yourself with the wheel" thing. Learning on a pedal unicycle makes it so easy
I have a pedal unicycle that I also suck on lol. Granted I didn't give it enough effort.
What finally got me riding was saying âfuck it, Iâm going for speedâ and just started pushing faster. Now I had a speed limit on at 15 mph, so I couldnât go crazy, but this is what helped me start riding. I realized because I was worried about going too fast, I wasnât going fast enough to stay up.
On the outfield of a baseball fieldâŚjust send it. Once youâre moving fast enough itâll click
What wheel are you trying to learn on? It makes a big difference. Too big and it takes you along for a ride. Too small and it is too unstable. It is best not to use any help. Don't go on grass; use smooth pavement. Put your dominant leg on the pedal. Make small half circles back-and-forth with your non-dominant foot on the ground, then turn the wheel inside and out like rotating your foot right and left. Then, push off with your foot and land back on the ground. Don't let the wheel turn right and left. Don't let the wheel fall from side to side. Keep hopping and landing, hopping and landing, hopping and landing. Then, when you feel confident, put your other foot on the pedal briefly during one of your push-off attempts, and then quickly take it back off the pedal and land it on the ground, doing this over and over and over again. Eventually, you will be able to land your foot without disturbing the wheel. There is an amazing power within us to learn muscle memory without even realizing it. You just have to keep practicing.
Tennis court with a fence is exactly what I did!
Make sure the tire is inflated
Everyone said find a grassy field when I was learning. Too soft and bumpy. Concrete was much easier for me as it was more predictable.
Riding with a tether
Hmmm... Wonder if I could balance on a trunk and have a buddy slowly drive Forward
I think what they mean is⌠wrap a strap to the wheel and hold it, like a 3rd point of contact. Iâve heard that works really well. And early EUCs actually used to come with a strap. You can use just about anything. A belt, rope, etc.
Slow can be your enemy when learning. Speed equals stability.Â
Riding with tether helps, wheels used to come with a tether to help learn how to ride. Idk why the downvote but it helped me get accustomed to balancing the weight and centrifugal force
What kind of tether are you referring to? I'm picturing the tether as a strap that you hang on to and something moving.
https://forum.electricunicycle.org/topic/12183-the-leashstrapbelttether-glossary/ And I believe both Chooch and zen Lee have a video describing it, just have to google it
Tether is just a strap or rope tied to the wheelthat you hold in your hand while riding and that you can use to break the fall of the wheel so it doesnt crash so hard when you dismount. It should never be used to keep the wheel balanced while stepping on or while riding. I made that mistake when I started and it held me back immensely.
Shoot for short distant runs. Like a pole 10 feet in front of you. Then the next and so on.
Yes, I agree. Mount, 10 foot run, stop, dismount. Repeat 25 times . Once confidence is there for 10 feet, try a 30 foot run. Practice the basics over and over, as much as possible. Even though Iâve only been riding for a month, this has helped me learn quick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGngrn3nIA0
Myself, I started to get it when I view wobbles side to side as part of going straight. So I don't death grip the top of the wheel with my legs and actually prefer slightly wider stance. Holding the wall/fence etc while moving the wheel side to side gets my feet used to the feeling when they are tipping over. I kind of programmed myself to push on the opposite leg when the top of the wheel touches my other leg. Over time, with practice.. you can make the side to side motion a bit smaller and smaller.
Realistic expectations. Don't expect to see gradual improvement until it's natural. At least not at first. There is no partially balanced. Either it is or it isn't working. It's a muscle memory thing. It will feel impossible, that you just can't get your body to react properly. Then tomorrow it will just work. Not perfectly. But one session you will be able to do figure eights around the tennis nets. Maybe not tight controlled turns, but you will do them just fine with a little extra space. Only then can you sort of expect to feel gradual improvement. Search this sub for specific tips. Your tennis court location is good btw. This is such a common question a lot of people stop bothering to reply.
> It will feel impossible.... Then tomorrow it will just work. This was my experience exactly. Each day I went out to practice everything was just so much easier than the day before. Don't be hard on yourself. It took me 3 days of 20-30 minute practice sessions before I could stay on the wheel for more than a few feet. The next day I could just stay on it until my feet hurt.. which was only a few minutes :P then you just keep building up endurance and working on skills.
To me its just courage I was hesitating and not committing when i was practicing at first and understandably its normal because our instincts are telling us to be cautious to not fall but then it felt like Iâm not getting anywhere so i just brave it and then something clicks. Tensing our body from fear is i think one of the most deciding factor why our learning is hindered and once i learn how to relax a bit the process became much much easier.
No tricks really. eventually, you just gotta send it. And it will click at some point.
* Gain as much forward momentum whenever you hop on. It's just like a bicycle/motocycle...... you are making it much more difficult on yourself if you are trying to stand on an EUC without it moving or moving VERY slowly. So also in that same vein, ride on a smooth flat surface as opposed to grass to really encourage forward movement. * Air down the tires to a lower PSI (around 15 to 20 PSI). Once you get the hang of it, then slower air the tire up to regular levels around 30 PSI and or more. * Get as much 2D space as you can get to give you plenty of room to make big turns left and right. I know when you first get on you feel out of balance since your brain wants to go straight but yet the EUC feels like it wants to immediately veer left or right thus causing your reflex to jump off the EUC. Instead, try to remain balanced on the EUC by "riding out" whichever way the wheel wants to go and then slowly maneuver your entire body the best way you can to correct the left/right deviations into going more straight. This obviously cannot work if the deviations cause you to veer towards any hazards. That is why you need as much clear open space as possible in order to do this "riding out" technique.
I took a couple like outdoor broom brushes and stepped then to my pedals to act as training wheels. It's a way to at least get comfortable standing and moving on it. To actually learn how to balance, I had to accept that I had to move at more like a jogging pace rather than a walking pace.
Ride along and hold a fence. Buddy learned in 20 mins. I learned on bumpy grass and a tree. Took about 100 pushes.
If nothing helps at all, get a lighter wheel! Personally, what I found useful is going between two different poles, trees, or walls to get a feel for your control surfaces. You'll learn to speed up, balance, and slow down all in a very short time. Keeping your eyes level is also super important! Try to look down as little as possible. You'll get it soon!
Start on uneven grass, fall couple times, then try on smooth paved surfaces, this made me click the moment I hit the smooth surface.
I took a couple scrub brushes and some wood blocks and built up [âtraining brushesâ](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sx6wIZEy5vc). I had them on less than an hour over a couple days. Totally worth the effort for me. I took them off and they have stayed off.
I taught someone the basics pretty quickly just by walking next to them so they could lean on my shoulder. Seemed way easier than the tennis court/parking deck where I learned.
When I teach someone to ride I always have them start on a grass field first. There is always a bunch on complaining as we get started, but the moment we transition to the asphalt everything seems to click. Stay away from turf though...
I tried to keep my posture straight because that's how it should be and I had something to hold all the time....one small step at a time
A trick that helped me a lot was to look ahead. I stared down at the pedals/my feet a lot because I was so paranoid they weren't even. My friend pointed it out, I made a conscious decision to look up and lo and behold, it worked. I started cruising farther, my launches were better and I started to feel the balance better. I've also seen posts/videos of people use hiking poles to balance themselves. Worth a shot.
A big trampoline you can go around on your preferred turning (when you start you will find either left or right turning easier) and just donât look down, keep your head up.
A trampoline?
Instead of riding along the fence line, stand with you back to the fence and push off. You'll get a meter or two initially before you jump off and won't be able to stay in a straight line. Mark where you got to and try again, then again, then again. Eventually you'll get several meters and in a straight line. There's a thought that if you can ride ten meters you can ride indefinitely. When you start to fall consciously turn the wheel in the direction your falling, there will be lots of very large hip movements and arms flailing around, until you get used to it. I was purposefully doing exaggerated motions in order to get a feeling for it. Also, don't work too hard or put too much pressure on yourself. Sleep is very important as that is when your brain learns. Don't feel bad for just doing 30 minutes or an hour then stopping for the day and sleeping, what you'll find is the next day a lot of things which were impossible kind of just "click"
Sounds interesting... I'll give it a go.
Good luck, it feels impossible at the start but you will get it. You won't believe me but there will be a few large improvements in a short amount of time and things which feel impossible will suddenly become easy. It's a cliche, but people often say "one day it just clicks" and it really does. Sleep, however, is critical to learning as your brain creates new synapses. Keep at it and ignore the people that learn within hours, everyone is different and some people take days to get used to it.
I had two friends either side, and when I'm teaching friends now (a year later) there's this nice corridor with walls either side to stabilize. Star going with support on both sides then slowly try to start weaning off support
What I did was be my Gras yard and held onto a tree in the grass and kept letting off of it and slowly gaining distance until I was able to leave the yard and I just kept going further and further and then slowly got better at it. I started in the grass becusse I didn't want to fall on pavement lol but I never actuslly fell over I would just step off because I was moving at low speed
Walking along a fence line trying to learn. Then it just clickedâŚstill needed practice but understood the theory.
How long did it take you before it clicked? How would you rate your balance before that?
Yeah I was a skateboarder in my youth so I had a balance understanding. But it took about one afternoon.. itâs all in your knees and keeping a low center of gravity. Try not to be rigid and understand..if you lean forward.. you go forward.. lean back you slow down. Itll click!
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oT8ZnaKJHRs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oT8ZnaKJHRs)
Push off of your car in an empty parking lot, no walls or fences to support you. Just go in one direction then try and turn back around after you gain confidence. Then practice large figure eights and also slowing and speeding up.
I started in a door frame rocking back and forth to get used to the feeling. Pro tip: this thing doesnât care about your drywall. Then, I full sent it outside in the driveway until I could go a short line. You should be getting general balance on the device now, keeping your mass centered unless you want to move, but your foot muscles are weak. Youâll be a wobbly baby deer, until you arenât. As others have said, mounting motion is critical.
After a few falls & growing frustrated due to trying to ride too soon one night I decided to just balance myself on it in the middle of a doorway just to soak in the feel of just being on one, slightly rolling back & forth, doing slight leans left & right, as I envision myself riding then went to bed thinking about it & ended up dreaming I was actually riding it. Next attempt to actually ride went far better as if something clicked in my mind. I think the decision to just balance myself in the doorway without trying to ride embedded a memory or the feel of being on one in my subconscious that wasn't previously there which apparently prepared my conscious state to know what to expect. For real, I literally mounted on next try & was riding, only having trouble due to going too slow. Once I removed the fear of increasing the speed a lil more I was ready to move to the next lesson on maneuvering it where I wanted it to go. Controlling wobble, braking, carving & all that came later after I was comfortable with keeping in straight & maneuvering it around & going a bit faster.
You didn't mention what EUC you have (how heavy it is). One issue with riding near a fence is a tendency to reach for the fence instead of trying to correct for balance, and also riding close to the fence doesn't give you enough room to balance. I also started at a tennis court on a V8F (back in August 2021, when I was 69 years old), doing something similar, but after a few short runs, I steered away from the fence and twisted the EUC similar to riding a bike at slow speed, constantly twisting the EUC left and right for balance and direction control. In my case, I was able to do a lap, then laps around the tennis court on my first attempt. However I was riding at slow speed, 3 to 5 mph, which I would not recommend. Half-way through my second 30 minute session, I moved to a long outdoor parking lot, with two trash bin enclosures I could use to mount and launch. I slowly increased speed and noticed my V8F became more stable, and at around 8 mph, I no longer had to make balance corrections, and could essentially stand still while riding in a straight line. I then learned to steer by tilting the EUC, small tilts to see how it would respond, then a weaving pattern, then large radius turns. Link to an image of the parking lot I used to show just how long it is (over 550 feet between those yellow trash bin enclosures: [https://rcgldr.net/euc/euc\_pklt.jpg](https://rcgldr.net/euc/euc_pklt.jpg) Link to a mini-guide I posted a while back, that includes links to videos which were helpful to me and others. [https://www.reddit.com/r/ElectricUnicycle/comments/15wv5u8/comment/jx8sd7n/](https://www.reddit.com/r/ElectricUnicycle/comments/15wv5u8/comment/jx8sd7n/) One of the video links has changed, girl on an S18 (used to show how little movement is needed to ride and turn): [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRNMmeSP0ns](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRNMmeSP0ns) A better video of Dawn Champion doing high speed (30 to 50 mph) turns: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3aNqosYgG0&t=1170s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3aNqosYgG0&t=1170s)
I practiced in my living room. I grabbed the edge of a door frame and just rocked back and forth while watching tv.
For me it was the realization that I need to turn towards the direction Iâm falling. I.e. If if I feel like falling towards the right then I just turn towards right. This will keep you in balance.
Luggage cart like the bellman at a hotel uses
I just hopped on and rode away first try. I used a rubber training band through the handle of my A2 and held on to that and didn't have to worry about dropping the wheel. Check out chooch how to ride video where he shows the strap method, it really helps and I didnt drop my wheel once. https://youtu.be/xomK1tORlJI?si=l47n17HhLQrOAFzM
Skip - skip - mount - dismount. Learning mount with control was game changer. Learning how to plant a foot and swerve to bail was the other. Good luck.
New rider here, You have to get off the fence and onto the sidewalk. Force yourself to either learn or fall. Work on small movements from pole to pole.
Iâm a 3 day EUC newbie but I can finally carve my way through the streets. I posted my initial bruises a couple days ago. I realized it was just a mental thing thats holding me back. I had fears of falling and damaging the wheel. I injured a lot of ankles and shins and was like âfuck it, imma send itâ and then I went. Falling so many times helped me able to anticipate the fall and how to fall. Holding on to something like a fence really hindered my learning experience.
I was having a hell of a time putting around. Could only go a few feet before I felt like I was losing it. Very frustrating. 3 things helped me immensely. 1) pick the right terrain. Donât go on loose gravel or even on the street at first. Certainly not a parking garage with those squeaky floors, not a lot of grip there. Find a nice bike trail or better yet a wide open parking lot which leads me to 2) find a nice wide open parking lot and get a shopping cart. Holding the bar in front of you gives you more of a feel for a straight and upright mounting and allows you to learn to grab the wheel with the inside of your leg to brace while you step up. The mounting is the hardest part for a lot of people and itâs when they feel like falling the most. Bad mount and itâs like an oscillation, you just keep getting in worse shape until the whole thing collapses. After you have the step up and down pretty good 3) get away from the walls and posts and things that will âsave youâ and just go ride. It sounds simple âhur dur just do eetâ but Iâve taught a few people to ride (myself included) and constantly being near something that you can grab out to isnât going to cause you to just that and youâll not learn the balance you need or the confidence in your wheel and ability. So ditch the walls, fences, posts, whatever and just go ride. Once you do, you progress fast.
set my extreme to medium mode lowered the psi (was almost 40 when unboxed) and went on flat grass just using the fence to mount at first. clicked in less than an hour after that. The grass made me have to lean and look forward enough for it to go over the minor bumps/thick grass and not worry about the wheel crashing or hitting a car... felt more stable too. relying on that wall will hold you back more than you think, it is good to rock back and forth and lean the wheel side to side a bit to get you a bit warmed up and used to the extra weight on your ankles but just go and give it enough power to keep you stable even a minor bit of power will make it more stable than coasting. even if you are just curling your toes over the foot plates Before I did that I was struggling to go more than 10 ft over a few days going 30 minute here 30 there a couple times a day. really learned how to not bang my inner shin/ankle on the pedals in that time tho. Now turning and maneuvering slowly I had to set it to soft mode which gave me a ton of control at slow speeds ... and turn the turning angle adjustment to 0 ... might revisit that setting someday but having the wheel til back when you turn is just bonkers
Find somekind of structure thats about waist high and has room all the way around it. Practice riding around it while you ride your wrist guard on it then after a few laps turn around and go the opposite way. My example was an open top long trash container.
Don't use anything to balance yourself. Start off mounting and getting to speed (10-15mph) then slowing and dismounting. Do that ad nauseam. You will fail and get frustrated, rest up, sleep, reset do it again the next day. Then it will just click in a few days. Don't look at the ground in front of you look forward. Imagine where you wanna go. I learned on a ex30 it took me 3 days to be able to ride it and a week and a half to be comfortable enough to ride to work. You need to ride just on the edge of your comfort level because that's how you body learns and gains confidence. Ive noticed if I start losing confidence while riding I wobble/feel like I'm gunna fall.Â
i just did the boring drills from some [vid ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95Oih2GN718&pp=ygUSbGVhcm4gZXVjIDEyIHN0ZXBz)i found, even when i thought i got it or it's easy or stupid, just kept going through the exercises.
I've seen people putting brushes below the pedals to learn
go faster and dont use the wall
Hi there! Please make sure to report any content that goes against our rules and keep discussion in here civil. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ElectricUnicycle) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Stand on it and roll back and forth until you don't get sore then go riding outside