Unicycle Day 8

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 6 Comments

The second weekend of September's Challenge and an opportunity for some dedicated practice. It was a lovely afternoon and it was spent on the floor unicycle. Although before any practice was possible the unicycle needed some running repairs. It has taken a fair bit of battering, that I don't really think it was designed for, resulting in a cracked seat and various screw issues. But nothing that a block of wood and some gaffer tape couldn't sort out….

As for the practice, I'm definitely getting better. The video may not actually show this, but I think my balance has improved and falling off the unicycle is definitely more graceful. I'm beginning to shift my weight more to enable me to have a more controlled ride, that doesn't mean I'm riding much further but I feel I'm on the verge of a big breakthrough.

Looking forward to tomorrow!

Unicycle Day 7

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 1 Comment

This week has been a difficult week in the September Challenge. First full week at school full of teaching, meetings and information overload has had a negative effect on the unicycling.

There has been far too much of this….

And not enough of this….

The forecast for the weekend is dry, warm and sunny so my plan is to practice, practice, practice! I desperately need to lose the fear and get back on track.

So here's to a successful weekend of unicycling!

 

Unicycling Day 5

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 2 Comments

September’s Challenge was indeed a challenge today, I seemed to have regressed slightly. Brought on maybe by a heavy fall early on in today’s practice. Upto this point I was going ok, I think ‘the fear’ has returned.

So in an attempt to stay positive I awarded myself a gold medal for a number of reasons:

  • Recovering from a ‘heavy’ fall
  • Effort
  • Fighting ‘the fear’
  • I was wearing my Team GB t-shirt

You can also see I have watched far too much of the Olympics…kissing the medal and biting medal to check for gold content.

This sums up how I am feeling about unicycling at the moment….

Unicycling Day 2

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 7 Comments

After the second day of the challenge, I'm definitely improving. I've had various comments that suggest riding on the grass is not the best plan of action. Initially this was purely done to avoid breaking limbs, but I think I am now ready to move to level hard ground, God help me!!!!

I didn't really intend on blogging every day, and I especially didn't intend on posting a video every day, but progress has been made so I feel I must tell the world…..

 

Unicycling Day 1

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 3 Comments

The start of a new month brings another monthly challenge: learning to ride a unicycle.

This is by far the most difficult challenge of the year, I wasn't too confident of success, and after viewing various YouTube video clips I was even less so. Even the 'experts' look as though they will fall off at any minute. Unicycle was ordered from Amazon for the bargain price of £45.

The first 5 mins of the challenge didn't go very well with various heavy falls, including ankle and elbow injuries. I was actually having trouble even getting on the bloody thing. So back to YouTube for some advice, and thanks to 'Coach Bob' I found a successful way to get on the unicycle. After another 10 mins I had discovered how to avoid hitting the deck, even if it meant letting the unicycle go flying through the air.

So with a new found confidence AND 2 hours of practice I am happy to report some success. The video below may not actually show said success but I'm feeling a lot more confident that this challenge is actually possible.

Although the video doesn't show it I was able to complete around four full pedals before stacking it.

I'm actually quite looking forward to day 2!

 

Swimming #9

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 2 Comments

Deepings Leisure Centre was the destination for today's swimming trip. This is the second attempt to swim here, first time I got slightly confused about the opening hours. It was well worth the wait, this pool is a great place for a swim: local, clean and quiet.

In fact, today it was eerily quiet, at one point the swimmers in the pool were nearly outnumbered by lifeguards. We were slightly worried on arrival that it was closed as there were so few cars in the car park.

Admission is £3.95, and overall it is probably the best pool we have been to this month:

  • Very clean throughout.
  • Nice and local, only a 15 min drive.
  • Very quiet – great for swimming lengths (whether or not this is the norm I'm unsure).
  • Great water – eyes were slightly tender but I put this down to the Peterborough pool plus the amount of times we've been swimming lately.
  • Fantastic showers, hot and powerful. No need to cling to the pipe in an effort to get wet at this place.

As for the swimming, because it was quiet, we were able to do a lot of swimming and the time passed really quickly. Swimming continues to go well, my technique has improved no end since the start of the month. Marie, who I dragged with joined me again for today's session, has also seen a big improvement in her technique.

That makes nine swimming trips this month and three trips in the last three days, hence….

I think maybe a day off tomorrow.