nathan said:*What I meant was that a "standard racing unicycle" is not what you
want for a 10km race. *
Oh I knew what you mean. What I was pointing out was just how fast some
of those riders can go on a 24" with 125 cranks. In Japan, hardly
anybody is riding anything bigger, and they're not particularly
available, so there won't be a great incentive *there* for people to go
to a bigger size. The fact that the JUA is in the business of marketing
unicycling is a factor in this. They might need to get interested in a
need for bigger wheels for things to change there.
Quoted message said:*Come to think of it, I don't think you want that for any races -
possibly 100m where you need the acceleration?*
It's great for the obstacle course too, as well as other events like
wheel walk. But I don't necessarily want to advocate multiple wheel
sizes just for racing. Having just one (or two) sizes keeps life a lot
simpler for riders.
Quoted message said:*Unfortunately (I heard), your 700c racing demo was not a success due
to "timing" or other factors non-related to the merits of that wheel
size. Since I never heard the real story, maybe you could elaborate?*
The only part of the 700c events that was not a success was the fact
that they were "demonstration" events, and they ended up being held so
late that hardly anyone was there to see. That made it a little cooler
for us that raced though! I enjoyed those races even more than I thought
I would. I wish more people could have been there to see how fast those
wheels go, even when the people on them were not the fastest riders
around. Yes, the 100m times weren't very impressive compared to 24"
wheels, but it's a new event, so it would need time to develop. I
confess to not having actually timed myself over either distance before
that night.
Quoted message said:* Another option would be to keep the wheel size 24" but allow down to
say 3" cranks.*
No please! They have done this for some races in Japan, but the idea is
to move to a wheel size that's more sensible for going places. 24" was
sensible in its day, because that's what was available. Now we have more
choices. In 700c we can choose from literally hundreds of tires and
rims. I like it a lot better! I can use my 700c wheel for commuting,
MUni, and track, either by changing tires and cranks, or having separate
wheels. Just like everything else.
--
johnfoss - Walkin' on the edge
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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