A unicycle is a vehicle that touches the ground with only one wheel. The most common variation has a frame with a saddle, and has a pedal-driven direct-drive. A two speed hub is commercially available for faster unicycling. Unicycling is practiced professionally in circuses, by street performers, in festivals, and as a hobby. Unicycles have also been used to create new sports such as unicycle hockey. In recent years, unicycles have also been used in mountain unicycling, an activity similar to mountain biking or trials.
Mountain unicycling is an adventure sport that consists of traversing rough terrain on a unicycle. Mountain unicycling (muni) is undertaken on similar terrain to mountain biking. However, muni requires much more attention to the microfeatures of the short distance in front of the wheel. Unicycles' lack of a freewheel means that descents must be controlled all the way, and the typical lack of a gear system prevents the rider from reaching high speeds. Muni usually takes place on specially designed unicycles, which are equipped with strong hubs, large, knobbly tires, high-grip pedals and rugged frames. Some are also equipped with rim or disc brakes, having the lever mounted under the nose of the saddle. The brake primarily helps to compensate the downhill-slope force, while more expert riders also use it to decelerate or stop.
The crankset or chainset, is the component of a bicycle drivetrain that converts the reciprocating motion of the rider's legs into rotational motion used to drive the chain or belt, which in turn drives the rear wheel. It consists of one or more sprockets, also called chainrings or chainwheels attached to the cranks, arms, or crankarms to which the pedals attach. It is connected to the rider by the pedals, to the bicycle frame by the bottom bracket, and to the rear sprocket, cassette or freewheel via the chain.
Unicycle hockey is a team sport, similar to rink hockey where players try to hit the ball with their sticks into the other team's goal, except that each player must be mounted on a unicycle to play the ball. A team is composed of five players, but there is no dedicated goalkeeper role.
Jukka Vastaranta is a Finnish professional cyclist from Tampere. From 2003 to 2006 he rode for the Dutch team Rabobank but in 2007 he switched to the Belgian continental team Jartazi–Promo Fashion. In 2008 he rode for the mountain bike team Brink-Ten Tusscher, but after a good start had to retire again due to prolonged health problems.
Circus Smirkus is a non-profit, award-winning, international youth circus founded in 1987 by Rob Mermin. Based in Greensboro, Vermont, the mission of Circus Smirkus is to promote the skills, culture and traditions of the traveling circus and to inspire youth to engage in the circus arts.
Evrard Wendenbaum is a French outdoor photographer, filmmaker, geologist and explorer.
Scott Leslie Schwartz, also known as The Ultimate Bad Guy, is an American film and television actor and stuntman, and former professional wrestler. His size and agility at 6'8" and 303 pounds (137 kg) have allowed him many roles as thug or villain for film and television.
Taylor Wright-Sanson is an American unicyclist best known for bringing trials and street style unicycling to the circus ring.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to bicycles:
The Great Divide Mountain Bike Route (GDMBR) is a 3,083.8 mi (4,962.9 km), off-road bicycle touring route between Jasper, Alberta, Canada and Antelope Wells, New Mexico, USA. Completed in 1997, the GDMBR was developed by Adventure Cycling Association, who continue to maintain highly detailed route maps and a guidebook.
The Guinness World Record (GWR) for fastest circumnavigation of the globe by bicycle is awarded for completing a continuous journey around the globe by bicycle and other means, consisting of a minimum 29,000 km in total distance cycled.
Steve Mills was an American juggler and unicyclist from Morristown, New Jersey. He was the inventor of the "Mills' Mess" juggling pattern. Mills was taught to juggle by Ron Graham, a juggler and mathematician.
A fatbike is an off-road bicycle built to accommodate oversized tyres, typically 3.8 in (97 mm) or larger and rims 2.16 in (55 mm) or wider, designed for low ground pressure to allow riding on soft, unstable terrain, such as snow, sand, bogs and mud. Fatbikes are built around frames with wide forks and stays to accommodate the space required to fit these wide rims and tires. The wide tires can be used with inflation pressures as low as 34 kPa; 0.34 bar (5 psi) to allow for a smooth ride over rough obstacles. A rating of 55–69 kPa; 0.55–0.69 bar (8–10 psi) is suitable for most riders. Fatbikes were developed for use in snow or sand, but are capable of traversing diverse terrain types including snow, sand, desert, bogs, mud, pavement, or traditional mountain biking trails.
One Crazy Ride is a 2009 Indian documentary film based on a 2002 route-charting expedition in India. It is directed by Gaurav Jani and produced by Dirt Track Productions. The film follows five biking enthusiasts as they journey across the Himalayas via an untried route. It was commercially released in Indian cinemas in February 2009.
Dustin Kelm is a professional world champion and world record setting unicyclist, performing the UniShow around the world. He has performed and competed throughout North, South and Central America, Europe, Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. Dustin is a three time Unicycling Society of America expert freestyle national champion, a Unicycling Society of America mountain unicycling national champion and a UNICON freestyle World Champion.
Rebecca Rusch is an American endurance professional athlete, seven-time World Champion, author, entrepreneur, Emmy Award winner, and motivational speaker. Rusch's career has spanned adventure sports including rock climbing, adventure racing, whitewater rafting, cross-country skiing and mountain biking.
Edward Pratt is a British unicyclist and YouTuber best known for circumnavigating the globe on a unicycle.
Unicycle time trial records are performances that are not set in unicycle competitions. They require a separate organization. The unicycles used for these records generally belong to the "unlimited" category. In other words, there are no limits on wheel size, crank length or frame shape. The only rule is that they must have a single wheel and no motorized assistance.
