When slowing down to stop however I was leaning to the left(a no-no) and fell, this time I had enough presence of mind to twist and land on my left butt cheek. Rather embarassing but at least I didn't hurt myself.
Things to work on;
1. The seat twists underneath me, The quick-release does not tighten enough.
2. Trusting my left leg to hold me up as I swing my right leg over the seat needs work.
3. The left foot migrates on the pedal from the ball to the heel and eventually completely off. While on the heel the toe points down from spasticity. I think I will need to get toe clips, but that will make it even harder to get my left foot on the ground in a hurry.
4. Looking anywhere but straight ahead is going to take a lot of practice, I'll probably have to get some kind of mirror.
5. The left arm does not lock straight, I'm hoping with enough practice it will.
6. No turn signals will be possible. I couldn't get my left hand to release while falling so it will never release when I need it to, after that I wouldn't be able to get my left hand into position on the handlebar anyway.
7. Will not be able to get any speed up at all since the rear brake doesn't slow the bike down very well. No emergency stops except for crashing.
8. Standing to pedal up a hill may not occur, my left arm will not allow it to relax and straighten out,.
None of this is going to stop me from trying some more.
Read my other posts on this before you decide you want to follow my stupidity.
http://oc1dean.blogspot.com/2012/09/baby-steps-in-biking-stroke-rehab.html
http://oc1dean.blogspot.com/2011/08/epic-failure-at-bike-stroke-therapy.html
http://oc1dean.blogspot.com/2010/09/analysis-to-riding-two-wheeled-bike.html
I don't think I'll ever get this good at it to have these problems;
I wouldn't call you stupid - just crazy. I'm impressed by your persistence in this effort to ride again. Can you get a splint made that you can pop onto the left handle and yank off when you need to in a hurry? The idea of a toeclip on your left pedal terrifies me; unless perhaps you wear leather to protect your skin.
ReplyDeleteI love your approach, having your progress follow the development of the bicycle, walking along sitting on the seat, like an early bike. Of course, you being Dean, you'd continue to the evolution of the unicycle!