I have never seen someone exercising on a unicycle. But I did today, on our Riverwalk. By the time I got to roughly the 8-mile mark, I met up with this group of cyclists from Alabama; and they told me they'd met a woman on a unicycle who'd ridden 15 miles already. A few minutes later, she came by and was headed back toward town, another 8 miles. I'm thinking, If you exercise on a unicycle a) your legs are in great shape and b) so are your abs.
So I did some checking. Here's some info, according to our friends over at Wikipedia.com:
Unicycles are composed of a few key parts: the wheel (which includes the tire, tube, rim, spokes, hub and axle), the cranks, pedals, fork-style frame, seatpost, and saddle (the seat of the unicycle). The wheel is usually similar to a bicycle wheel with a special hub designed so the axle is a fixed part of the hub. This means the rotation of the cranks directly controls the rotation of the wheel (called direct drive). The frame sits on top of the axle bearings, while the cranks attach to the ends of the axle. The seatpost links the frame to the saddle.
There are many different types of unicycles, which can include (but are not limited to): freestyle unicycles, trial unicycles, MUnis, giraffes, and long distance unicycles, which all have special components unique to that type of unicycle.
The unicycle's history began with the invention of the bicycle. Comte De Sivrac first developed bicycles during the late 18th century. His device, called a celerifere, was a wooden horse that had two wheels joined by a wooden beam. Germany’s Baron von Drais improved the design by adding a steering mechanism and introduce his Draisienne or Hobby Horse in 1818. Kirkpatrick Macmillan, a Scottish blacksmith, added cranks and pedals to the front wheel in 1839, and called it the Velocipede. The first mass-produced riding machine, the Michaux Velocipede, was designed in 1863. In 1866, James Stanley invented a unique bicycle called the Penny Farthing with a very large front wheel and a small rear wheel. It is this vehicle that is thought to be the inspiration for the unicycle.
P.S. And wouldn't it just be a tad unfortunate if your name were Penny Farthing?
1 comment:
This could be a real trend, but just think how fast you'd hit the pavement if you got something stuck in the spokes!
(We know we are a littel demented, but at our low vantage point, it would be fun to watch.)
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