Tuesday, June 30, 2009

The Unicycles


All of the sudden, I feel like I'm at a French circus. There are copious numbers of unicycles and unicycle related events popping up all over town. The momentum seems to be coming from a sketchy group of enthusiasts called The Unicycle Bastards. Last week, intrigued, I attended the World Championship Unicycle Polo Tournament. They are tying to build a movement here, people, so if the same 16 men women and children are switching jerseys and standing in for North Korea, Russia, Mexico, India, etc, that's fine because maybe actual unicyclists from those countries will show up to play polo on the tennis court of a Portland public park next year. For now, the Unicycle Bastards are their proxies. As a spectator, I found it very suspenseful to watch and see if the athletic, somewhat aggressive men on the court would hurt or maim any of the 12 year olds who were also playing. No one went to the emergency room while I was there.

Not to stop with the polo, I have also been seeing stuff around about unicycle mountain biking. Seriously. I am glad they wear helmets.


Bill Fox - Portland Town



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