One Wheelin' Muni-ac

I have a confession.  I am a middle aged muni-ac.  "Muni" is short for mountain unicycle.  A mountain unicycle is to a regular unicycle what a mountain bike is to a street bike.  A muni has a big, knobby tire; a heavy duty frame; durable cranks; and metal studded pedals.  In other words, a muni is tough enough to tackle mountain trails, go down stairs and do tricks.

We recently added three munis to our collection that now totals seven unicycles hanging on the garage wall.  The others include two 6-foot giraffes, a 20-inch unicycle and my old 24-inch Schwinn, which suffered a bent hub after an untimely "incident" involving my teenage son.  I ride a yellow and black 24-inch Onza which Jace found on Craigslist in Madison, Wisconsin, after the "incident."  Jace then purchased a new, orange and black 24-inch Nimbus online.  Then last Christmas, I found a red and black Torker muni on Craiglist in Spokane for my daughter Hallie.    

The Holyoak Collection

What makes unicycling so appealing to me, other than its unique head-turning nature, is that it can be a family affair.  And that's certainly the case for me.  I first started riding when I was about 12 or 13 years old.  My brother had a Schwinn with a 20-inch wheel.  He outgrew it so he started riding a 24-inch Schwinn and passed the little one down to me.  When I outgrew it, I got a 24-incher and passed the little one down to my sister. 

With the kids on Kootenai Creek Trail

Cooling off on the trail

One generation later, I find myself trying to keep up with my son and daughter.  I can ride as well as ever, but they are more advanced in trick riding--riding without a seat, riding one-footed, wheel walking (putting both feet on the tire and moving the unicycle forward without touching the pedals), bouncing and jumping over obstacles, etc.  But what we really enjoy is trail riding.  There's nothing like heading into the mountains and facing the challenges of rugged trails, steep drop-offs, and seeing occasional wildlife along the way.  We were a ways up a rugged trail in the Bitterroot Mountains a year ago when we came across some hikers.  They looked at us like "What in the heck are you guys doing up here?"  It's such a workout, such great bonding time, and such a blast.          

But it's not just all Holyoak family, all the time either.  Earlier this month, we put out the word in an effort to draw more unicyclists to the Bike for Shelter--a popular bicycling fundraiser for the Watson Children's Shelter in Missoula.  It worked.  We ended up taking along two friends and met three new friends who also ride.  Now we look forward to getting together for some group trail rides this summer.

The Big Sky Muni-acs

I guess what I really enjoy is the adrenaline.  Jace and I experienced the ultimate in adrenaline last summer when we took our munis up to the chairlift at Snowbowl Ski Resort above Missoula and rode them five miles to the bottom (see video below).   We later paid the price because we were e-x-t-r-e-m-e-l-y sore for four days to follow, but what a great memory.  We plan on making a return trip this summer, but this time with Hallie and perhaps with some of our new one-wheelin' friends too.  As for other endeavors this summer--more trail riding and possibly a backpacking trip on one wheel into the back-country.  After all, that's what being a muni-ac is all about, right?