Butler Wobble

Mike Briggs' photo It's that time of the year again.  The  Month of Mud  is just over 2 weeks out!  Last year was the first year we had an official unicycle class- with cash prizes at each race and trophies for the series!  This is one of the very few series races in the United States with an official uni class.  If you'd like to join the fun, we encourage you to do so.  Cyclocross is for almost everyone who can ride a uni and freemount and ride through grass.  The other races are not short lap races and require the ability to ride through the woods for 5-10 miles (you can get off and walk or run as needed), so you should be an Advanced or Expert level rider. After each race we usually find a nearby spot to grab a bite to eat and hang out together for a bit to recap all the fun.   If you'd like to join in the fun you can pre-register here .  Our start times are usually similar to the bikes so likely there will be some 2 wheele...

Saturday, April 11th will be our last YMCA session of the 2014-2015 season. It's been a great indoor season at the Y!  We've seen a number of you go from timid riders or learners to shooting hoops, playing games, and learning new more advanced skills.  We've had a number of newbies pick it up, or at least give it a try - and all ages too!  But the Winter weather seems to be a thing of the past - which means it's time for us to go outside and ride.  And after being cooped up all Winter, we know that you want to be outside more too. We don't disappear in the warmer months - quite the opposite.  Many of us live to ride in the great outdoors.  Racing season has started. Many of the local series and single mountain bike races offer a uni class.  We are also looking forward to Dirt Fest in May, the upcoming Muni Weekend with the Butler Wobble in June (June 26 - 28) as well as NAUCC (North American Unicycling Convention and Championships) in Madison WI in...

Thanks Liz Wilson for the photo! It's been a bit since you've seen some news here.  Rest assured, that's NOT because we've been inactive.  Quite the contrary, we've been too busy riding to keep the virtual end of things up to date. The picture above is from the  6 Hours of Brady's Run  race on May 10th.  We're all smiling because this was before it went all down.  Yes, we had a unicycle class with 8 total entries.  It was definitely a FANTASTIC experience.  Not only because we had a great group of riders- including Liz and James from out of state, but because the organizers do an amazing job of putting on an event that welcomes all levels of riders.  6 Hours is a long time to ride a unicycle, but it's much easier when you're sharing the experience with other cycling brothers and sisters- even if they have 2x as many wheels. The weekend immediately after Brady's Run we went to Dirt Rag's Dirt Fest .  We've been there in some ...

No joke: this Friday- April 4th, is the Wheel Mill Uni Skinny Contest (part deux).  Showtime is 8:30 pm and entry is FREE with your paid park admission (it's Family and Uni Night so there's a discount from regular price too!) There will be multiple categories.  Last time G-Form generously sponsored the event with pads for the male and female winners! If you're not interested in The Wheel Mill riding, then don't forget we're at the YMCA in Butler on Saturdays- for a few more weeks.  We plan to end the winter indoor season on April 19th.  We'll resume Y time in the Fall. Until then there's a growing list of fun on one to check out.  Expect to see some more group rides- and general tomfoolery.  We've also got events on the calendar- 6 Hours of Brady's Run, Dirt Rag's Dirt Fest, the Fat Tire Challenge, NAUCC 2014 (in MN), and UNICON 17 in Montreal! Don't miss out!

What's wrong with this picture? Hopefully we're heading out of Winter soon.  Very soon.  If you're not looking forward to it being over, you might want to see a doctor. With Spring come a few changes to the routine.  We'll be heading back outside a whole lot more.  That means our YMCA indoor time will taper off (typically in April) and we'll hopefully have more group rides outside.  Until then, it's business as usual- Friday Nights we're at The Wheel Mill , and Saturday afternoons from 4:30 to 6:30 we'll be in the gym.  Thanks to the many new riders who joined us and learned to ride this Winter.  It's our hope you'll continue to ride unicycles throughout the snow-less months and join us for some other rides. If you've enjoyed unicycling with us at the Butler YMCA, please consider giving back.  The YMCA has been gracious to keep unicycling absolutely FREE to those in the community.  In appreciation, as the unicyclists, we...

I'm pretty sure we did save the best for last.  The Friday night Wheel Mill session was excellent and the Saturday session at the YMCA was AMAZING to say the least. It's not the unicycles, it's the unicyclists that make it that. The only thing better than last Saturday will be this Saturday.  Happy 2014!

First up, the schedule: we'll be at The Wheel Mill tonight and every Friday night (unless the weather gets too dicey to make the drive) from 7pm to close.  You are welcome to start earlier as unicycles are welcome when the doors are open.  If you only have one uni, you may also want to note that we have loaners available for FREE while you're there.  Ask at the desk.  There are two Trials unis and two 24" mUnis in stock at all times. As far as the Butler YMCA time goes on Saturdays- we'll be there every Saturday through at least early April from 4:30-6:30pm.  It's free to ride.  A waiver needs signed and a helmet needs worn.  We have extra loaner unis there too. That brings us to the next point: the Y time has been extremely popular the last few weeks- so much so that we've had almost all of our dozen loaner unis in use!  That's AWESOME!  However, please be patient with us as sometimes we have to share the loaner unis.  We'...

NAUCC 2013 is coming soon.  Really soon.  Even the roads agree.  We had nothing to do with this pic.  This is an actual utility marking on Sunset Drive.  No joke. The fun starts Sunday the 21st and goes through Saturday the 27th. www.uninationals2013.com Even if you don't ride a unicycle, you should show up to watch.  Check the schedule for dates and times.  Some really spectator friendly events are in the evenings. After all, it's FREE to watch.  Where else are you going to see World Champions perform for FREE!

The video above is an answer to the question:  "What do unicycling and roller derby have in common?" Last night was another promo stop for NAUCC 2013.  If you haven't found the site yet, it's  www.uninationals2013.com .  We love these chances to interact with our communities.  We're roller derby fans anyways (visit  www.steelcityderbydemons.com  for more info) so it makes sense to promote unicycling at derby nights.  From our overwhelmingly positive experience last night derby girls and fans think so too. Last night we had a fun time not only with the home team, but with the visiting team, the Fort Wayne Derby Girls from (you probably guessed it) Fort Wayne, Indiana.  See their site too:  http://www.fwderbygirls.com/ . Roller Derby and NAUCC are both great events for spectators.  Check out the schedules on the sites for when to catch some flat track derby action.  You won't regret it.  While you're at it, make plan...

As has been the tradition the past several years the YMCA invited us to man (and woman) a booth at Healthy Kids Day.  It's always a fun day for us.  This year was no exception.  Actually, it may have been more fun overall this year as we had more help than ever before: Harper keeping the boys in line. We had more help this year from our regular YMCA riders.  This was good as we had also had more interest in unicycling than ever before. We did find a few prospective riders in the crowd.  We also got to witness some boys who were sure they could hop on and ride away humbled when they found that it wasn't as easy as they thought. Darian rocking the matching tattoo.  Don't worry, Mom.  It will come off when she washes her hand- in 5 years. As usual, the whole experience was a great time for us.  Many thanks to Adam, Christian, Darian, Dylan, Harper, Nate, Rick, and Steve for helping make it another successful public appearance ...

Thanks to Jesse for driving us to do the Harlem Shake. He believed we could do it. He then directed, filmed, edited and posted the project. Nice work for sure. Feel free to share it! One of the greatest things about the project is how quickly it came together. Last weekend it was an end of the night concept, and Jesse had it organized with minimal outside help. We just rode like it was a normal practice and he worked his creative magic. Just another Saturday of riding at the Butler YMCA! Next week's session (March 9th) we will be ending at 6pm instead of 6:30. It's roller derby night in Pittsburgh and some of us are heading to Etna for the evening. Find the details here . If you plan on joining us you should buy your tickets in advance, it's been known to sell out. NAUCC 2013 is only a few months away! We've got a Registration tab on the site uninationals2013.com . We haven't made the "official" announcement for registration just yet as...

One of the best aspects about the unicycling comm"uni"ty is the willingness to share. The above video is the first in a series from here . The MUni Tutorial series is being made by Jacob Spera and Ryan Kremaster for the betterment of the sport. They've been making MUni videos for some time, but have recently felt the need to make some instructional videos targeted towards beginning MUni riders. This is a fabulous idea. Mountain unicycling is hard- or not. Once you can ride a uni, and almost everyone reading this probably can, you can ride off road. You probably won't want to step up to big drops, rock gardens, steep uphills, or skinny balance lines right away (unless you're fearless Steve with the singing pockets who starts with Moraine and tackles a 36er with short cranks in 10 minutes), but you can ride through the grass in your yard (watch for doggie land mines). If you're doing anything outside of the gym and off the pavement, you're off roa...

Here's how a few of us started 2013: It's no secret we like to ride unicycles. We also hope it's not a secret that we think you should try it too. Unicycling is a great is great for core strength and balance- something almost every human needs. As always, this is the plug: Join us (indoors!) at the Y on Saturdays from 4:30-6:30pm to try unicycling for yourself. It's totally free- no charge to get into the YMCA and no fee for the class. Caution: many who try unicycling find that they like it. We're REALLY pushing it this year as there are a few up and coming events that are really exciting in 2013. First, THE unicycling national convention, NAUCC 2013 , IS IN BUTLER COUNTY THIS JULY! Yes, those are capital letters for emphasis. If you miss it, even as a spectator, you will regret it. If you can ride a uni, you should register (when the time comes) and attend. We expect 300+ people and a lot of WORLD Champions to be in attendance. Can you imagine s...

Just a reminder, we're still meeting at the Y on Saturdays over the Holidays. We're on for both the 22nd and 29th. That should anyone who got unis for Christmas, time to show off their new unis. The video at the top was from last week's practice. If you have a wheel size in mind that you'd like to try, chances are we've got it. We can bring it if you let us know- we're not psycho- er, psychic.

Yesterday was the 48th Annual Spirit of Christmas Parade here in Butler. It was the first one that was moved to Saturday to coincide with Light Up Night. It was also the first night parade in Butler with unicycles! We had a fantastic turnout- so much so that we all didn't fit in the group picture Rob took! Thanks to the Wonders Unicycle Club for joining us and bringing our number of riders into the high teens. (We were over 20 participants including walkers!) Thanks to Jeff Rapp of Rapp's Bicycle Center for providing us with extra lights (as well as supporting us from the start). Jeff also rides a uni with us! A HUGE thanks to the Butler Media Group for organizing the parade and welcoming us. Also, a massive thanks to the Butler Y ! Without their support we wouldn't be trying to ride unicycles on Main Street during a parade in the dark. They have supported us from day 1. Their community support is amazing to say the least. Please stop by and check out uni...

Note: There will be NO indoor practice at the YMCA next Saturday. We'll be meeting at the same time nearby for the parade. Spirit of Christmas Parade details: We will meet in the Forcht parking lot (it's on the corner of E. Penn St. and Main St.) at 4:30 pm. The parade starts at 5:30. The theme is "Lights" so bring a blinky light (or more) so we can buzz around like a bunch of holiday lightning bugs. We'll also have some extras courtesy of Jeff Rapp. Dress for the weather- rain or shine or snow or whatever else PA throws at us in November! We need riders and walkers, so if you can't ride yet, but would like to be a post to help someone remount, or carry the banner, or hand out flyers for us and the Y, we can use you! Speaking of the Y, we should have T-shirts to borrow (XL mostly) to put over a hoodie so we can represent the Y. Without them, we wouldn't be where we're at today! We hope that they're Holiday green or red, but we do...

It's that time of year again. Racing season's about over. The days are getting shorter. The day to day weather is getting colder and wetter. Time to head inside and unicycle! We start next Saturday (the 27th) with our weekly indoor Y sessions. Same time as usual: 4:30-6:30. We'll be there almost every week except November 10th. You don't have to be able to ride. You don't even need a uni- we have extras. You don't need to bring money- as it's free, but you will need to wear closed toe shoes and a helmet. You'll need to sign a standard release waiver if you're over 18 or have a Parent or Guardian sign if you're under. If you're under 12, you'll need to check with us for approval although it's generally not a problem. Why ride a unicycle? It's fun for all ages (our ages range into the 60s). Almost anyone can learn, but many people won't try. It's relatively safe (about as safe as walking down the stairs). ...

Hey all! We're welcomed at the Month of Mud Cyclocross Race this Sunday (they didn't say HOW many wheels you must have!) We'll ride with the first group at 10am. No preregistration, we can register on site and we pay by the wheel. If you're reading this, you should go. Cyclocross racing involves riding, running, and hopping off or on between the two. It's a hoot. The race will be about 1/2hr long and a 24" or larger wheel is recommended. Maybe a knobby tire too, but maybe not if we don't get much rain. We've already got approximately 9 riders- join us to make it the first off the road race in PA to break double digits! Also, don't forget- indoor riding season starts at the Y the 27th!

First, a video (It's a bit long so if you don't need the information, skip it): Next: MUni Mondays @ Ritts. 7pm. Let us know a day or two in advance if you need us to bring something extra. Finally: If you didn't get the email for some reason, but check here, we have a business meeting Tuesday (the 12th) at Panera. Topics include NAUCC 2012- and beyond. We need to sort details for the trip and discuss future plans- they're pretty big. Be there.

This weekend is Memorial Day. Give thanks. There will be no Muni Monday due to the holiday. We'll resume next week. There's still some video to be entered from the last two wildly successful uni weekends, but here's some of what we got at Dirt Rag's Dirt Fest: Don't forget to register for NAUCC 2012 ! See you at the first Muni Monday in June!