Unicycles are almost a metaphor for balance.
You see your hand stretched out, but really it's coming from your core, knowing how to
position your body, but it goes beyond that.
It's also a focus, a mental balance, where you must focus.
You're balanced in your mind and you're balanced with your body.
My name's Chris Holm, I'm 38 years old and I'm a mountain unicyclist from Vancouver,
Canada.
I got into unicycling when I was 12 years old.
I was downtown in my hometown of Victoria, Canada and I saw a street performer.
They were playing a violin on a unicycle.
I thought that was pretty cool because I actually happened to play the violin and so I asked
for one for my 12th birthday.
It took me about a day to ride and then once I could ride down the street I started experimenting
with grass, rocks and logs.
I was really aggressive, I really went for it and I did do a lot of riding where if you
fell you would die.
I really do love urban riding too just because it changes my perspective.
If I'm walking even down the street and I see a bench or a railing, I don't just necessarily
see a bench or a railing, it's a rideable line possibly.
It totally changes the way you might look at the urban landscape.
The really compelling aspect to a unicycle to me is its simplicity.
You've just got this one beautiful basic thing, a wheel, that's it and the taking away of
the rest of the components that you'd normally have on a bike isn't a limiting factor for
me.
It adds to the experience.
You don't have suspension, you can't just plow over things, you have to react.
Really that connection is what draws me to it, the lack of forgiveness, the fact that
if you make a mistake you're down.
Mountain and Troll is unicycling, it's really a control sport.
It's not about taking risks as much as it is about controlling them.
You have to just think about what you're doing and just be in control and just focus
on that line, whatever it is that you're doing.
One thing about unicycles is that you do fall a lot.
If you're not falling, you're probably not trying.
So you take some of what look like spectacular bails, but the injury rate amongst mountain
unicycles is actually pretty low.
I'm just about to have a child my first and I think that's going to be another big change
for sure because it's really not going to be about the sport anymore, it's going to
be about my kid and so I'm sure I'll make different decisions in that way.
It doesn't mean I won't stop riding.
I hope to be riding when I'm 70.
