My First Unicycle Club

Joe Merrill and I started the NYUC in early 2001 after we realized that New York needed a unicycle club. Later we found out that there had been one back in the mid-1980s. I believe that John Foss (he's one of my links) started it. But as it turns out, I actually started two unicycle clubs in New York before that. The current NYUC is my third unicycle club!

My second club was not too interesting except for my partner. It was at Fieldston High, and I decided to ask my school for $100 to pay for a unicycle and some juggling equipment. My partner, Cindy Friedman, was the juggler, and I taught kids to unicycle. We never had too many people join us, so we hung out with those who did and worked on our respective hobbies. Cindy went on to change her name to Cindy Marvel after college and became one of the best jugglers in the world, earning honors for being the only woman ever chosen as Juggler of the Year by the International Juggler's Association.

But my first club started a few years earlier still. I had started riding in 1980 at the age of 13 1/2. Within a few years, I had influenced many of my friends to get unicycles. My brother started riding in late 1980 at the age of 10. His friends joined in, too. By 1982 or 1983, there were at least 7 members of the group. We bought tee shirts and had them fashioned with iron-on letters that read HELL ON WHEEL. I'd love to find an old photo of our gang, but I'm not sure one exists. The group consisted of me and John as well as my good friends Russell, Paul, and Ben, and John's friends Jean-Christophe and at least one other. In addition to our shirts (blue, with red letters), we wore white shorts and white sneakers. We all had Schwinn 20" unicycles, many of them bought at Angelo's Bikes or Bicycle Renaissance, both of which were then located on 83rd Street off Columbus.

We used to get together of a Saturday and ride from my mom's apartment (81st and CPW) into the park. Often we'd spend time watching and getting to know the performers who put out a hat at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (just across town). Occasionally we'd knock over a bank.

No, that's a lie. We didn't even pretend to be cool. We just liked hanging out and being a bit geeky together.