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Extreme Mountain Unicycling: Safer, or More Dangerous?

By Rain Noe - February 13, 2013

in Cars

My first thought when I saw this was, Jeez--regular mountain biking not dangerous enough, you had to go and do this? But paradoxically, "extreme mountain unicycling" actually appears safer, at least at first blush. Eating it on a bicycle of any kind isn't pretty, but as you can see here, when he wipes he's able to land on his feet and quickly regain stasis:

That's Lutz Eichholz and Stephanie Dietze, whose skillz are impressive enough that Adidas has sponsored them and commissioned a cameraman to record the above video.

According to the Times, the sport was invented in the '90s on America's west coast; I'd never heard of it before since I let my subscription to Unicycle Monthly expire. But even after reading about the sport's origin story, I'm no more clear on whether it's more or less dangerous than on two wheels.

Falls are an inevitable part of mountain unicycling. But riders insist the sport is no more dangerous than mountain biking, perhaps even safer.

"We fall more often than mountain bikers, but we're going slower so it's not as bad," [rider Hans] Van Koppen said. "The same cliffs are out there."

Any thoughts, and can any of you with actual unicycling experience weigh in?

Via Oddity Central

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sbrock

11 years ago

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I have ridden unicycles for 5 years now, and have never come close to serious injury. Most of the time, as the article points out, you can land on your feet. You learn to see falls coming, and just step off. What unicycles do tend to do is hit you in the shin with a pedal when your foot slips off. Because of this, many Uni trials riders wear shin guards. Some unicycles do have handle bars mounted on the frame, though they are usually commuters with really big wheels that would be harder to turn by torso movement alone. It's a great, fun sport, give it a shot if you are inclined!
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dino4

11 years ago

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Unicycle + mountain = future darwin award
Nuff said.
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powers

11 years ago

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Germans.
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Pmurf

11 years ago

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SFPaul, the front lip the saddle has a grip area specifically for hand support, as an upward pull is often needed to keep the cycle "connected" to the rider for hops and difficult sections. Unlike bicycling, the unicycle rider typically has to be seated for pedaling (which is constant), or have at least a strong hand bracing the saddle. You can also see in the video one of the cycles has a hydraulic disc brake with the lever being actuated right under the saddle, presumably to slow steeper descents. The reason there's no additional features to grab onto lies at the core of the unicycle composition itself. As s133p said, the upper body is constantly twisting and shifting to maintain balance - an auxiliary hard component to the device itself would most likely hamper the balancing act, and become obstrusive. Since the saddle is already there, it's nose is the most natural place for the hand to provide support.
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Eric

11 years ago

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That is just dumb....and they look silly too!
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M4RK

11 years ago

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SFPaul, i have some unicycling experience. The whole concept is to loose your balance then correct it.

You need your arms free so u can balance better, like a tightrope walker. Having something to hold on to neglects this.
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SFPaul

11 years ago

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I'm not talking about it attaching to the wheel but some sort of minimal handlebar that attaches to the seat. In the video they're holding onto to the seat and if they're doing that then it must mean they need an additional means of support?
I'm no ID'er by the way...a photographer.
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goodmaei

11 years ago

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For some more insane-looking-but-safe-ish cycle sports, search for videos of "unicycle trials" or "bike trials"
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s133p

11 years ago

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I have ridden unicycles for years and while I have not done any terrain like this, in general they are much safer to fall off of than a bike. It is nearly impossible to get entangled in them when you fall, so for the most part your feel are right there. And you really cant get going fast enough for it to be bad.

And in response to SFPaul, not at all, most of the ability to balance and turn on a unicycle comes from pivoting the upper body and core, so having that connected to the wheel would make turning much more difficult/impossible.
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nym

11 years ago

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SFPaul, and maybe a second wheel? ;)
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SFPaul

11 years ago

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Looks like some handlebars would help?
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bob

11 years ago

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I am a chav and I say unicycle is SAFE
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