Good Beginner Unicycle for a 4YO



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Jayne ZA

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My 4 year old daughter has been watching my attempts to ride the coker
and wants to learn to ride a unicycle herself. I have convinced her
that both the coker and the 24 are too big for her and am looking for a
more suitable wheel for her to learn on. The choice of unicycles in
South Africa is currently nonexistant, and the ones we DO get are pretty
terrible quality so I'm thinking of buying her one online. I won't be
able to test drive it and sending it back if there are any problems will
be difficult so I'm asking for your help.

She is about 41 inches tall (104 cm) and her inseam is 17 inches (43 cm)
with shoes. She weighs about 34 pounds (15.5kg). When I punch these
into the "what unicycle do you need" option at unicycle.com I get the
following suggestions : The Sun 12-inch chrome (US$55) or the Miyata
14-inch standard (US$190).

If I go and look at their 16 inch unicycles I have the choice of The
Jugglebug in red (US$84), the Miyata standard (US$193), the Sun in red
or chrome (US$55), the Torker Unistar CX (US$65) and the United in
chrome (US$64.95).

What do you recommend? What unicycle did your kids learn on? Would she
be big enough for a 16 inch wheel (which will probably last her longer)?
I'd also like suggestions on a good (and comfortable) seat for her. I
have spent a lot of time taking care of this little bottom and WILL be
called on to kiss it better if it gets hurt.

Thanks

Jayne (and Jacqueline)


--
Jayne ZA - Learning to ride on a Coker

Being a statistician means never having to say you're certain


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i learned on a savage 12" when i was 4 or 5. cheap, but pretty hard to
break when you're that young. im guessing your daughter wont be doing
any 6 foot drops yet...

-Grant


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tennisgh22 - Learning to muni

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Jayne, are you sure you want to start limiting her social options at
such an early age?

Raphael Lasar
Matawan, NJ


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tennisgh22 wrote:
> *im guessing your daughter wont be doing any 6 foot drops yet...*

Don't count on it - she is quite the little daredevil! I was exactly
the same at her age, sadly I seem to have grown out of it. :(

JJuggle wrote:
> *Jayne, are you sure you want to start limiting her social options at
> such an early age? *

Limiting? Since when does unicycling LIMIT one's social options? I've
met some of the most interesting people I know through unicycling.

SO - any USEFUL suggestions - like what UNICYCLE I should be buying her?
I could get comments like this from the guys at work. They all want to
know why I'm not teaching her to ride a bike first! :rolleyes:

Jayne


--
Jayne ZA - Learning to ride on a Coker

Being a statistician means never having to say you're certain


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Based on no knowledge at all, I would suggest a jugglebug. They are
plastic and I'm guessing that it weighs less than the other options.
The shipping should be less if you're shipping all the way from the U.S.
and at 4, she could probably do the 6 foot drops without damaging the
unicycle.

Then again, I'm waiting to be proven wrong.


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I'm having trouble thinking cognitively.
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I'd suggest getting the Torker as it comes with a 36 spoke wheel for
only $10 more. Then once YOU master the Coker, you'll have a light duty
freestyle/trials uni for yourself :D ;)


--
Krashin'Kenny - Crash Tested

If you ain't crashing, you ain't going fast enough!!!!!!!!!!!

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I got the 12" Sun for my 3 year old daughter. They make the neck tube
the same length as the larger wheel Sun Uni's. So I had to remove the
seat post from the seat tube and cut it down. It has a permanently
mounted seat post clamp so I had to replace it. I also drilled a hole
in the seat tube about the same distance down the seat tube as the
original pinch gap(don't know what it is really called) was. It allows
the seat clamp to pinch the seat tube against the seat post. I then
used a piece of masking tape and drew a line as a guide for the split.
I used a dremmel tool to create the new pinch gap. I also cut down the
seat post so it would go down short enough to allow her little legs to
reach the pedals.

To cut the seat tube and seat post I used a cheap pipe cutter. I think
it was about $3-4 dollars. THis whole process took about 20 minutes.


The sun 12" is plenty strong for any kid that could ride it. I have
ridden it and am plenty happy with the quality. I can't believe anyone
would buy the Miata for $190 for a 3-4 Year old. I am sure someone has,
but it seems a little pricey. If you have any questions or need
pictures, I could snap some. I was supposed to have done that already
for someone else as I recall. So I may do that tonight anyway, and post
them in my gallery.


--
bugman - Survivor 2004 Wolfman Duathalon
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I'm not sure if this is uselessly vague, but when I was in Johanasburg
last September I saw a basic 16" uni in stock in a bike shop, in a large
mall out side of town. I don't know if there are several such malls,
but this one was pretty big. So you may be able to find one
locally...

Hope that helps!

- Sam


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redwelly - Panhead
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May I suggest the Torker Unistar CX (US$65) because it looks like the
seat would go down the farthest. The red Jugglebug's seat post tube is
longer. You might have to modify it just as bugman had to do for his
daughter. (Hey bugman, is she riding yet?)

A small unicyle is not useless when a child grows out of it. You can
always put a longer seat post on it and even an adult can ride it. The
red plastic mag wheel on the Jugglebug might not stand up to that. As
long as you're spending the money, get something that will last.

My son did learn on the little red 16" when he was five but moved up
very quickly to a 20".

During beginner class at our club, we end up putting the littlest kids
on the two 16" XL Semcycles we have and the kids a little taller on the
red ones just because the seat will not go down as far.

Good Luck,
Kathy


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KathySusanka - Michigan Unicyclist

It's never too late to have a happy childhood.
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redwelly wrote:
> *So you may be able to find one locally...*

Just so you know I'm not addicted to internet shopping, I have been
trying to source a wheel locally since about December last year. It's
one of the reasons I'm learning on the coker. None of the local shops
have any in stock (I've called them ALL). A guy at the club managed to
pick up a 20 in Pretoria, the last one they had, and last week he
regaled us with the story of just how much work he'd had to put into the
wheel within one week or so of purchase due to component failure.

My little girl is very precious. I'd rather spend a bit more (not
necessarily Miyata prices) and be confident that what she's riding won't
self-destruct before she's learned how to ride. I'd like it to be able
to grow with her, and was already thinking of adding a longer seatpost
later so I can get to ride it too.

Thanks for all the suggestions - keep em coming. Once I have a nice
selection I'm going to contact ALL the unicycle.com branches to see
which one works out cheapest once shipping is added in.

Jayne


--
Jayne ZA - Learning to ride on a Coker

Being a statistician means never having to say you're certain


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redwelly wrote:
> *... when I was in Johanasburg last September I saw a basic 16" uni in
> stock in a bike shop *
u were in johannesburg in september and u didn't let me buy u a beer?
what kind of antisocial unicyclist are u anyway?!?:mad:

coming out again anytime soon?
:)


jayne, u know i know as much about these uni's as u do
i've just read so much good stuff about the Torkers as solid, beginners
unicycles, i can't help but think that must also apply to the 16


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GILD - Waffle-****** (ocfopgm)

-ORIGINALLY POSTED BY A FELLOW UNICYCLIST IN A MOMENT OF SUBLIME
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Namaste!
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GILD wrote:
> *jayne, u know i know as much about these uni's as u do
> i've just read so much good stuff about the Torkers as solid,
> beginners unicycles, i can't help but think that must also apply to
> the 16 *

I know. I just wanted a bit of input from people who've actually put
their kids on the things. At least if the wheel is sound I can put a
really long seat post on and ride it myself when I want a break from the
coker. Now I need to decide if the seat it comes with is OK or if I
should get a better one. Any bets on which of us will be riding
first?

redwelly wrote:
> *I just found out, it was Eastgate Shopping Centre... *

I go past Eastgate all the time. I don't think I've ever seen a bike
shop there. Are you sure you're not thinking about the Park Meadows
Shopping Centre, it's just across the road and has a pretty nice bike
shop (Cajee's Cycle Corner if memory serves me correctly).

Jayne


--
Jayne ZA - Learning to ride on a Coker

Being a statistician means never having to say you're certain


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The seat that comes on the Torker should do well since there won't ge
any "distance" riding on it immediately. Since you are going to have to
pay shipping charges anyway, I would suggest ordering a KH saddle to go
along with it. That way you'll have a quality saddle to use on your
Coker when you start racking up the miles :D


--
Krashin'Kenny - Crash Tested

If you ain't crashing, you ain't going fast enough!!!!!!!!!!!

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Rayden wrote:
> *Getting pink is more important than the quality probably. *


Why not have both?


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rather than just a proton. Oxygen, common to both D2O and H2O molecules,
has an atomic mass of 16. The total atomic mass within a D2O molecule is
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Krashin'Kenny wrote:
> *The seat that comes on the Torker should do well since there won't ge
> any "distance" riding on it immediately. Since you are going to have
> to pay shipping charges anyway, I would suggest ordering a KH saddle
> to go along with it. That way you'll have a quality saddle to use on
> your Coker when you start racking up the miles :D *

AAAH - but I ALREADY HAVE a KH saddle on the Coker (I know this because
I called the previous owner and asked him as everybody LOVES the
saddle). The guy I bought it from did the Argus cycle race on it and it
has already racked up a good few miles. Ignore what everybody says
about using a disposable saddle while learning. A nice comfy seat makes
learning that little bit less painful. ;)

I'm actually waiting on a quote from the local Coker dealers for a
replacement tyre and tube. If it comes out more expensive than the
unicycle.com price I might just include them in with the unicycle order.
I'll also ask round the club in case anybody wants to include a few
"small" items in the box. Why waste international postage if you don't
have to?

Jayne


--
Jayne ZA - Learning to ride on a Coker

Being a statistician means never having to say you're certain


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Jayne ZA wrote:
> *AAAH - but I ALREADY HAVE a KH saddle on the Coker *
no, u dont
u have a homemade airseat
a very comfy homemade airseat (and much neater than my ducttape special)
but it's not a KHJayne ZA wrote:*I'll also ask round the club in case
> anybody wants to include a few "small" items in the box*
good call, i'm in for a new seat post and may just get a decent seat if
there's a 'big brown truck' flying over


--
GILD - Waffle-****** (ocfopgm)

-ORIGINALLY POSTED BY A FELLOW UNICYCLIST IN A MOMENT OF SUBLIME
INSIGHT-

"On the subject of 'significant others' it is a matter of timing and
topic whether 'significant' or 'other' is the defining word in that
phrase."
'[image: http://www.addis-welt.de/smilie/smilie/sp/84255.gif]'
(http://tinyurl.com/ywxgb)
Namaste!
Dave
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