For Brock and Drewation:
Who cares about scraping down railings? Even if we don't, we might like
to watch it or read about people who can. Clearly these levels apply
more to Freestyle skills and less to everything else. Nobody considers
them the be-all, end-all, and most riders aren't that interested in
passing levels. But some people are.
TonyMelton said:*John Foss could probably tell us about the old vs new IUF skill
levels.*
Tuna covered that pretty well. Originally there was no requirement to
ride into and out of the side ride. Back when the original 10 levels
were written (as a collaborative effort led by Sem Abrahams), Sem was
probably the only person known who could do that.
The IUF levels haven't changed much beyond that, and making the 10 x 10
obstacle instructions more clear. A couple of things were shifted around
between levels 5 and 6 or so, but I don't know if anything else changed
in the higher levels.
The USA levels, though they contain the same list of skills, are far
more detailed in their instruction set. Especially they have more
detailed requirements on mounts. But mounts are generally easier than
the skills in the higher levels, so that wouldn't be a concern for a
rider at that level.
Since the record-keeping system was developed and is mostly used by
TCUC, that's where most of the listed riders seem to be. People may be
testing all over the world, but most may be unaware of the requirements
for being added to that database. Do you have to be a USA member? Do you
have to include this information when you register or renew a
membership?
And as Tom mentioned, what if a member is lapsed? Once a level 10,
always a level 10, even if you become old and grey. Same as being an
Olympic champion (without the Wheaties box). In other words, if someone
really wants to keep track of how many people are at a certain level, it
should be tracked separately from the member database.
To TCUC's credit, that's also where most of the USA's top Freestylers
are, and where my arch enemy trick, the hand wheel walk, is commonly
practiced. TCUC likes freestyle, and has had tons of awesome riders over
the years.
Sem Abrahams was one of the very top Freestyle riders in the world when
the 10 levels were developed. Though he may never have actually tested
through all the levels, he certainly could have learned any skills he
needed. And who's to say he didn't test, and pass them all? Though the
levels have always mentioned the requirement, there was no known method
to become a tester for many years. Certainly he was qualified, as well
as Teresa, who was also a top rider, and also involved in the process.
But if I had to guess, I'd lean toward him just saying he was a level 10
without actually testing. Back in the 80s he also used to tell reporters
he was the world champion, which he wasn't. He was a silver medalist at
Unicon I, and did not compete after that. Teresa was the women's
Freestyle champion at Unicon I. Sem has the much more outrageous record
of the world's tallest unicycle; something he will likely hold onto for
many, many years.
For everyone else, there is no substitute for being tested. Saying you
can do all the skills is miles away from getting through all of them
within the constraints of the level tests, especially with a strict
tester, like they have at TCUC.
People above spoke of the backwards pirouette. I remember once showing
mine to Dana Schneider (first-ever to pass level 10 in the database),
and over and over she kept saying "Nope, that wasn't three revolutions
on the spot." Ouch! I remain forever at level 7 because I'm not
interested in learning the hand wheel walk. But I did demonstrate level
9 in the video, albeit with many, many tries on the seat drags.
--
johnfoss - The wilder Wilder
John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone
"jfoss" at "unicycling.com" -- www.unicycling.com
"Read the rules!" -- 'IUF Rulebook'
(http://www.unicycling.org/iuf/rulebook/) -- 'USA Rulebook'
(http://www.unicycling.org/usa/competition/)
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