As you might guess from the title this is about 'Wobbles'. There are 2 forms.
Speed Wobble
A speed wobble is a wobble you get when riding, its usually when you are going up to the area where you are not used to going that quickly.
Most often this occurs with new riders, or even riders who have been riding years but get on a faster machine than they are used to.
The best way of solving this issue is to ride up to a speed where the wobble starts, then back off a little, then, build back up to the speed again, and repeat the process; through this practice you will eliminate the wobble.
Also an important part to the process is being relaxed (which is what practice does - it makes you more relaxed as you get acustomed to the feel of the wheel). Breathing deeply is a good way of smoothing out the wobble.
Braking Wobble
Now there is a wobble under heavy braking AKA a 'Braking Wobble'. This is usually because under these conditions your body is much more ridged. But it can also be foot positioning; if one foot is slightly more forward it can cause uneven pressure when harshly leaning backwards. NOTE: foot positioning rarely applies to a 'Speed Wobble'
I can overcome the braking-wobble by "sitting down" like in a bus. It immediately moves the center of your mass somewhere else and the wobble disappears.
As for the speed wobbles - they make me scared (not terrified anymore). I slightly slow down, try to keep my feet relaxed or sometimes catch the wheel with my knees. So far, so good.
just watched Marty's rough wobble crash (YT ElectricUnicycles). maybe he could of tried to slowly back off right at the beginning of the wobble, but I certainly understand him trying to ride it out. I've actually read about a few MSP wobble crashes lately
Wobbling comes as a result of unevenly distributed forces. Our legs are designed to withstand forces in forward direction. We are not very good at receiving forces from the sides and the legs become weaker with age.
A study of how a sprinter or a basketball player uses his legs helps us find the right position on the unicycle. An athlete constantly changes the position of his or her legs as he or she advances towards goals. This can be almost impossible to realize on a unicycle. Usually we stand in a fixed position. However, I have found two methods to prevent wobbling on my KingSong 16C.
1) First I took a few steps forward and then looked down at my feet to see in what position they left in. The feet remained in a v-position with the forefoot further out to the sides than the hindfoot. If I keep the same position on the wheel pedals, my riding will be more stable. But this is not enough.
2) The center of gravity must also be in the right place on the pedal. If your entire weight is felt on the heel as you accelerate and ride, the center of gravity is in the wrong place. Stand on the pedal so that you feel some of your weight shift from your hindfoot to your forefoot as you increase speed. In this way, you get the whole foot and all the muscles in your legs involved in the work to resist wobbling.
You have to try out what suits you best. I was able to eliminate the wobbling on my wheel with this method. With the heavier and larger wheels, I think I do not succeed as well with my current weight and body shape.
Do not try to reach the limit of what you can handle. Reduce speed and take others's and your own safety into account when riding.
I made this text with Google Translate so I hope it is understandable :-)
This is so true, the wobble can come form so many things. Went out on the S18 and for some reason I just did not get my feet in the right spots. This is weird as the previous day I was riding with a nice flow and everything is spot on. For me its very much getting use to your wheel and also know your limits. This applies to surfing, onewheel riding and anything where you need to get into a feel for what you riding.
Guys,
Good news is that as you get more experienced and acquainted with the wheel the wobble stops being scary. Your legs develop better muscles and your brain knows exactly what to do in order to stop the wobble.
You stop caring about the position of the feet because you change it a lot to adjust.
Now, I get the heaviest wobbles when I try to reposition my right foot too fast. Still, it's just a little nuisance - nothing that you would be scared of for real.
I'm riding the Z10.