Newb questions: type of uni for riding around college/beach and how to prep

[Narniacat]

Hi,

My name is Claire and I am new to Unicycling and to the forums.

I am looking for a uni to ride around campus and possibly along the
beach. I am 170-180lbs and will be carrying a backpack with textbooks
(which can get heavy). I am looking to spend around 100 - 300 dollars.
From what I have read on the forums and talking with some people a
"Torker Unistar DX 24-inch" seems like my best choice. Are there other
unis I should look into?

I have never used a uni before in my life and I want to work on the
muscle groups necessary for riding. I know I need to work on basic
cardio, back, abs (Essentially all the "core" muscles), posture, and
legs (specifically quads). Is there anything else I can do to help my
riding besides riding, practice, keeping my weight in the seat,
pedaling equally with both legs, etc? Any balance exercises etc?

Thank you very much,
Claire


--
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[Jerrick]

Narniacat wrote:
> Hi,
>
> My name is Claire and I am new to Unicycling and to the forums.
>
> I am looking for a uni to ride around campus and possibly along the
> beach. I am 170-180lbs and will be carrying a backpack with textbooks
> (which can get heavy). I am looking to spend around 100 - 300 dollars.
> From what I have read on the forums and talking with some people a
> "Torker Unistar DX 24-inch" seems like my best choice. Are there other
> unis I should look into?
>
> I have never used a uni before in my life and I want to work on the
> muscle groups necessary for riding. I know I need to work on basic
> cardio, back, abs (Essentially all the "core" muscles), posture, and
> legs (specifically quads). Is there anything else I can do to help my
> riding besides riding, practice, keeping my weight in the seat,
> pedaling equally with both legs, etc? Any balance exercises etc?
>
> Thank you very much,
> Claire



DX would be overkill. It is a heavy splined uni.

Sounds like you just want to easily commute. A basic 24" or a 29" would
be great for this.

Torker makes a 24" LX unicycle, and is a great one to learn on, and
will be able to get you places rather quickly.

I would recommend you get the 24" LX, to learn on, and see how you like
it, if you feel you need to go faster, the 29" or 36" unicycles can be
the next step up.

For unicycling, you just gotta get on and do it. I really dont know any
balance exercises either lol.

Welcome to the forums!


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[gagtape]

I agree with what Jerrick said except a 29" may be too big for you fi
you are just startin, however for what you are using it for a 24" may
be too small, i have a pashley 26" er when i got it, it cost me £100 i
don't know how much that is in dollars but it would be better for the
beach because its a Muni (Mountain uni) so maybe you should try that,
it would also be a little faster than a 24" er

cheers

bye


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[Jerrick]

Forgot about the 26" and 28" sizes lol.

Yeah, I was jsut saying, learn with a 24", then if you still need more
speed, go for a bigger size.


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[gagtape]

thats a good idea, i mustr admit after riding a 20" for 2 years i found
26" challenging for the first 5 mins then i adjusted.


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[thejdw]

you'd only want a splined uni if you planed to stat jumping off and on
stuff


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[Chexjc]

I agree with everyone above. My only thoughts are that something like
the torker lx would be horrible on sand, unless you upgrade the tire.

Here is a picture of my brothers LX with a Kenda Kinetics 2.6" tire
upgrade:

[image: http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i47/chexjc/IMG_0957.jpg]

You could buy the 'LX'
(http://www.unicycle.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=675) for $100 and then
upgrade the crappy tire it comes with to something like 'this'
(http://www.unicycle.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=286).

That is a 2.1" wide..you could fit up to 2.6 on the LX. It seems likes
UDC doesn't sell the Kinetics tire separately, but it comes on the DX
model. Perhaps if you called you could special order that tire for
around $20.

In total it wouldn't cost you over $125 for a perfect learning unicycle
with offroad capabilities.


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[feel the light]

And learn by finding a long wall with smooth pavement. If you can't find
a cheapo 20 and you are gonna buy new, consider a 24. They are way
cooler for riding any distance, but maybe a bit harder to learn on, but
doable.
After that, the only real answer is to have several unis. A 36 is the
only thing for distance street riding (and really fun), a trials 20
rules for jumping around your yard. If I could only have 1 :eek:
(shudder), thankfully life is not so cruel, the KH24 IMHO can do
everything. But if I post the link how to get a good deal on a KH one
more time......from AE Bike.....
Anyways, all uni riders can use a really cheap 20. After you learn,
you can teach your friends with it. If you get it used you can sell it
for what you paid for it. I won't recommend torkers anymore because
they use a rip off unique bearing that costs 30 $/ set to replace. Sun
is much better for a learner uni IMHO.


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[hobo_chuck]

feel the light wrote:
> And learn by finding a long wall with smooth pavement. If you can't find
> a cheapo 20 and you are gonna buy new, consider a 24. They are way
> cooler for riding any distance, but maybe a bit harder to learn on, but
> doable.
> After that, the only real answer is to have several unis. A 36 is the
> only thing for distance street riding (and really fun), a trials 20
> rules for jumping around your yard. If I could only have 1 :eek:
> (shudder), thankfully life is not so cruel, the KH24 IMHO can do
> everything. But if I post the link how to get a good deal on a KH one
> more time......from AE Bike.....
> Anyways, all uni riders can use a really cheap 20. After you learn,
> you can teach your friends with it. If you get it used you can sell it
> for what you paid for it. I won't recommend torkers anymore because
> they use a rip off unique bearing that costs 30 $/ set to replace. Sun
> is much better for a learner uni IMHO.


about right.


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[Brian O.]

The only problem with the Torker LX is its seat, it's terribly
uncomfortable.


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[Narniacat]

Thanks bunches for your replies.

My college is right on the beach/near the ocean so even if I don't ride
on the beach I can't get away from the sand. So the upgraded tire idea
makes sense for me. Any other options?

Also, I will be near an ocean and I know that that can make certain
metals corrode faster. Any ideas to help with the corrosion and do
you guys recommend getting a 100+ starter and then upgrading? I really
will only be using it to get around campus and possibly ride along the
beach. I have never been one for tricks and I don't for see jumping in
the near future.

thanks again,
Claire


--
Narniacat

“When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new b*cycle. Then I
realised that the Lord doesn't work that way so I stole one and asked
Him to forgive me.” ~Emo Philips
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[puresyn]

Narniacat wrote:
> Thanks bunches for your replies.
>
> My college is right on the beach/near the ocean so even if I don't ride
> on the beach I can't get away from the sand. So the upgraded tire idea
> makes sense for me. Any other options?
>
> Also, I will be near an ocean and I know that that can make certain
> metals corrode faster. Any ideas to help with the corrosion and do
> you guys recommend getting a 100+ starter and then upgrading? I really
> will only be using it to get around campus and possibly ride along the
> beach. I have never been one for tricks and I don't for see jumping in
> the near future.
>
> thanks again,
> Claire



I ride 20" at the beach. I am not much for riding insanely far (less
than 6 miles) because of the people traffic on the boardwalk and
sidewalks. Stop and go, and lots of swerving around people make easy
mobility on a 20. The big wheels are MUCH tougher to go up a hill and
it might turn you off completely if you start with something bigger
than 24. Stopping takes a more effort on a big wheel as well. I think
the 24 has the best compromise of maneuverability and distance for
crowded areas. You might be able to find a cheap LX on craigslist for
under $100 but you might hate the stock seating. Unless you know you
are going to love it, thats a strong commitment to spend up to $300
piece of hardware that you just might hate.

Good luck on whatever you choose. I hope you love it.

Sean


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[Jerrick]

The Miyata/LX seat is very easy to turn to an air seat or modify the
foam in it as well. The cover is held on by metal clips, pry those back
about a cm, and the cover comes right off, well, after taking the
handle and bumper off too. lol

From there, you can make it an airseat, or modify the foam to a better
shape, put a grove it.

Search around for what people have on seats, and youll see tons of
possibilities for you to try once/if you ever need to.


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[Brian O.]

Jerrick wrote:
> The Miyata/LX seat is very easy to turn to an air seat or modify the
> foam in it as well. The cover is held on by metal clips, pry those back
> about a cm, and the cover comes right off, well, after taking the
> handle and bumper off too. lol
>
> From there, you can make it an airseat, or modify the foam to a better
> shape, put a grove it.
>
> Search around for what people have on seats, and youll see tons of
> possibilities for you to try once/if you ever need to.


The issue with that is that there isnt much room in the torker cover to
convert it to air, you would need a new saddle cover. Also, the foam is
so thin already that you can't really modify it to be a better shape


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[Jerrick]

Brian O. wrote:
> The issue with that is that there isnt much room in the torker cover to
> convert it to air, you would need a new saddle cover. Also, the foam is
> so thin already that you can't really modify it to be a better shape




Ive done 4 LX seats to air seat just fine. You use a 12" tube for the
Miyata/LX seats, the fit perfectly.


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[Brian O.]

Jerrick wrote:
> Ive done 4 LX seats to air seat just fine. You use a 12" tube for the
> Miyata/LX seats, the fit perfectly.


Oh? I've tried adding/modifying the foam and I've found that its a
really tight fit. Maybe ill give that another shot.


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[Narniacat]

Thanks everybody : )

I think I will go with the torker lx 24-inch because it seems to be a
good learning uni. Once I figure out what I really want to use the uni
for (Muni/trials/etc etc etc) I can then get an appropriate uni.

Thanks again,
Claire

p.s. I will definitely look into changing the seat


--
Narniacat

When I was a kid I used to pray every night for a new b*cycle. Then I
realised that the Lord doesn't work that way so I stole one and asked
Him to forgive me. ~Emo Philips

Give a man fire and he is warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he is
warm for the rest of his life.
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