It’s New Year’s eve and I have been meaning to compile this album all year.  

I started this blog 20 years ago, with a vague idea of having some fun and adventures on one wheel.  I never imagined it would take me around the world, let alone groups of unicyclists alongside.  I never expected to compete in multiple world championships, nor host one in my hometown.  Break world records and unicycle the length of New Zealand?  Not in my wildest dreams. 

In 2004, I met Jason Williams, who was tour leader working for Intrepid Travel, on our 500km Vietnam to Cambodia Oxfam charity challenge.  It was a life changing experience.  Being the only unicyclist among a group of 30 bicyclists, I was swamped by curious locals whenever I stopped.  Kids lined the streets waving as we rode past. It made me take this unicycling thing more seriously. 

The next year, I took part in Andy Cotter’s Alps Unicycle Tour through the Swiss Alps, which inspired me to run my own unitour.   Jason had set up a cycle tour business, Grasshopper Adventures, so we were ready to organise an Asia tour.  In 2006, we took a group of riders to Laos, becoming the first AU unicycle tour. Unfortunately I had to leave half way through after breaking my leg, but it didn’t stop us!  We have taken groups of unicyclists through New Zealand (2007), Vietnam (2008), India (2009), Mongolia (2010), Yunnan/China (2011), Uzbekistan (2013), Nepal (2015), New Zealand again (2017), and Cambodia (2019). Our next tour will be to Thailand in 2025.

Here is a selection of photos from around the world.  I hope this brings back memories for those who participated, and inspires more unicycle adventures!

20th Anniversary Album

I’ll add more photos as I tidy up my collection, but have left out the competition stuff for a separate album. 

Some coverage of my 12hr and 24hr World Record attempt:

https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/360489606/doctor-day-now-world-record-holder-unicycle

Print version:

The big day arrived. I was all set to break the 12 Hour and 24 Hour unicycle distance records. We had been watching the weather closely, and decided in the end to proceed. The forecast was for cloud, with light showers and ‘fresh Southerlies’. It turns out that ‘fresh’ means South/SE Winds at 30km/hr. Not ideal, but we thought it was doable.

We had a great support crew, with Arthur and Lynne Klap setting up, my mum turning up to help with the kids, and Anna taking the gazebos and supplies down to the Newlands Intermediate field.

Bruce from Barefootsports set up the timing mats and timing chips on the unicycle. He placed two mats and two chips to be doubly sure.

It was cold and breezy, but it wasn’t until I started riding that I realised just how windy it was. I had, in practice, ridden in 20+km/hr NW winds, which was ok. The SE wind was a different beast altogether, as it hit the least sheltered parts of the course. A unicycle is about as aerodynamic as a flying brick wall, but the problem is neither headwind nor tailwind, but the side wind. The SE kept pushing me off course, with 50km/hr gusts.

My game plan was to spin gently at 24-26km/hr for the first 4-6hrs, while using as little energy as possible. This would build a ‘safety buffer’ over the old record. My legs felt great, much better than during my 12 hour practice ride. What transpired was quite different. The first few hours were spent wrestling my unicycle at 22-24km/hr, while expending far more energy than I wanted to.

I considered abandoning and rescheduling at that point, but we had organised support crew, tents, portaloo and the timing to be there on the day. I’ll just ride on….

Here are the lap times for the 12hrs (slightly undercounts as multiplied by 390m instead of 390.76m):

https://events.barefootsport.co.nz/event/701/results/296321

Normally, on distance unicycle, little balance is required. All the effort is in propelling you forward while tucked into the aerobars. With the SE wind gusts, I had to take my hands off the aerobars, flail around like a beginner unicyclist, then re-accelerate once I regain control. I was blown off multiple times on the bottom corner of the circuit.

I held it together until 12hrs, when I crossed the line to beat the Guinness mark of 250km by a very skinny 2km margin. Yay! One world record down!

I still had my safety buffer- 12hrs remaining to do 202km. That vanished pretty quick. My average speed kept dropping. I stopped for dinner and to put on lights, but the night laps proved even more challenging. In practice, my lights were adequate. Not so if you are trying to keep in a straight line.

The forecast had been for the wind to die down to 20km/hr by 7pm. That extended to midnight, then 2am, and finally it wasn’t until late the next morning the wind finally slowed.

When I saw my average speed drop below 18.9km/hr (Sam’s average speed), I knew it wasn’t practical to push for the record. I had done 315km, and had over 7hrs left to ride past my old mark of 378.7km. After a half hour break, I got back on and did a painfully slow lap before calling it a day. It was blowing like crazy. We’ll do battle again next time!

Thank you to my wonderful support crew, all the people who came out to spectate (some of whom turned into support crew!), Newlands Intermediate School, Cuttriss Surveyors, Bruce from Barefootsports, and all my friends who helped or encouraged me. Most of all, thanks to my family for putting up with all this!

I’ve been asked this many times now, but have only just finalised my setup for my 24 Hour and 12 Hour world records.  The original plan had been to use a V-frame time trial unicycle, custom built by C3 cycles. Unfortunately, when I received the instructions from Guinness, it seems that will not be acceptable: 

“The unicycle must be a commercially available, unmodified model. Full details of the unicycle used must be submitted”

“The same unicycle must be used throughout the attempt. Repairs may be made, but the unicycle must remain the same.”

So much for that. 

Wheel

I decided pretty early on to ride my carbon Braus 36″ wheel with the nightrider lite tyre and TPU inner tube. It’s a very light and fast rolling setup.  I also ordered a Mad4One unicorn carbon 36 wheel with the T-monster tyre to try.  In testing, the Mad4One wheel is very strong, and probably better suited to gravel/off road riding, but has higher rolling resistance on concrete than the Nightrider/Braus rim.  The speed and rolling resistance improved as the knobs wore down, but is still slower than the Braus rim.  It is comforting to have a spare wheel though- I interpret the Guinness guideline to allow a wheel change when they state ‘repairs may be made’.
The problem with my Braus 36″ wheelset is that it is inherently weak. With 32 spokes, and built on a disc hub, the flanges are close together, which is not great for strength.  The spokes loosened up after just 300km riding. Like…wiggly loose.  I was very worried about this wheel, and even considered rebuilding it with a wide hub.  Time was ticking, it was a month out from my record.  I took my unicycle to the top wheelbuilder in town- Wheelworks.  They suggested rebuilding the wheel with locking nipples.  So that’s what we did.   I’ve ridden over 100km on this….so far so good.

Seat/handlebar
The next most important component is the cockpit.  I have been a fan of the KH T-bar/flatfish combo, but this year I rode almost exclusively on the Mad4One handle-saddle.  They are both great setups, but I felt the stiffer Mad4One saddle is a better fit for a 24hr attempt.   With this combination, my unicycle weighs just 5.1kg!
After my 12hr practice ride, I realised the saddle, despite being as long as the KH T-bar, just isn’t long enough. I was over reaching and wishing the bar extended another 30cm.  Luckily, Marco Vitale from Mad4One had a great solution, which is an extension bar that attaches to the Mad4One handle saddle.  It attaches with a special glue and tape, but I found a time trial handlebar attachment that bolts it all together, with some cable ties to secure it fully.  Not the most elegant looking cockpit, but I left out the bar tape to allow easy bolt access.  
Riding aerobars is quite different to riding a regular unicycle.   It changes the balance axis and technique,  and I was too scared to go fast on this initially.  After a few practice rides, my top speed is the same as before aerobars. The main advantage is that my upper body is supported, which helps with fatigue.  You rely more on the upper body for steering, which allows the legs to dedicate themselves to propelling you forward, instead of controlling the unicycle.  

Electronics

I will use a Lezyne Mega XL computer to keep track of the overall time, as well as my trusty old Garmin edge 200 for lap speeds.  The Garmin is a small unit, which I can hold like a stopwatch. I normally count 12 laps to get a roughly 4.8km short distance check of my average speed.  The Lezyne will keep track of my overall average speed and distance for 24hs.  I chose the MegaXL due to its battery life….it lasts over 48hrs, whereas even the most expensive Garmin units are borderline for a 24hr attempt. 

Lights

Keeping with the Lezyne theme, my main light will be a Lezyne macro-drive 1400.  It was a toss up between getting this light or a Magicshine Ray 1600. They both have the same capacity battery, but I felt the (claimed) 450 Lumen setting on the Lezyne which lasts 12 1/2hrs is preferable to the (claimed) 400L 8hrs setting on the Magicshine. The Lezyne is quicker to mount and remove- with a rubber attachment rather than a Garmin clip, so there is no attachment in my way when the lights are not in use. Normally I’m dubious about rubber band attachments as they have a tendency to rattle loose on the handlebar, but Lezyne’s is robust and very secure.

Specs
The entire unicycle is built from commercially available parts, so should satisfy Guinness for the record attempt.  Weight (including computer) is 5.73kg.

Triton 36″ titanium frame
Alchemist Braus 36″ carbon rim
Pollici 36″ TPU inner tube
Nightrider Lite 36 tyre
Nimbus ISIS Disc 32H hub
Quax 100mm cranks
AEST Ti pedals
KH seatpost
Mad4One long handle saddle
URSLI bar extension

When you’re a kid with dreams of saving the world, it’s worth a revisit even when life takes you down a different path. These days, I do my best for the person in front of me as a family doctor, but back in my youth, I spent a year in a cell signaling laboratory doing a BMedSci research degree.

I never became a scientist, but I can support their work vicariously. The Malaghan Institute is a Wellington research institute studying immunology and immune therapy, and applying this to allergy/inflammatory disease, cancer and infectious disease. Their research is world class and covers the spectrum from basic science to clinical trials.

This is the charity I will be raising money for with my 24 Hour Unicycle World Record Challenge. Please sponsor me and help our clever scientists come up with solutions and understanding of life’s most challenging problems.

My target is to raise $5000. That’s $10/km for 500km!

https://donate.malaghan.org.nz/fundraisers/kenlooi/12-24hr-unicycle-world-record

For my 24hr record attempt, I spent considerable time searching for a suitable venue. The Basin Reserve Cricket Ground which I used for my 2005 record has a fantastic 465m circular track, but is much busier these days, both with weekend events and general traffic. I was given one option in early November with no backup for inclement weather, so it was risky proposition.

The ideal venue would be flat, at least 400m in diameter, with no hard corners/turns. I contacted the Newtown athletic stadium, but they do not allow cycling on their running track. There is a concrete path around the athletic field, but with a couple of right angle turns it isn’t really suitable. Then I visited the Hataitai velodrome after seeing photos of their refurbished track. The steep banking was out of the question (I knew this from 2005), but there is a flat concrete track on the infield. Well, it looked good in the pictures. Turns out there are a whole lot of wooden planks across the track- not ideal to change riding surface every few meters. The 333m velodrome is also a bit small to be circling for 24hrs. I looked further afield to Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt and even Masterton. The further I went, the harder it would be to organise support crew and logistics.

I had pretty much settled on the Basin Reserve until I went for a run and came across a concrete track at my old school, Newlands Intermediate. I walked past this field every school day as an 11/12yr old, but it was a looooonng time ago. They have built a 400m concrete track around the bottom field since, and it was a gem of find! The track is smooth, has little traffic, and seemed pretty fast. I was so excited I contacted the principal the next day, who was very happy to help. They’ve been very supportive, and will allow me access to the track and school hall for the attempt. A group of Newlands Intermediate students also came and interviewed me for their newsletter.

One cannot attempt a Guinness and IUF world record without making sure the track is measured accurately. I contacted Cuttriss, a surveying/engineering/planning company, who were involved in measuring the Basin Reserve which I used for my 2005 record. They sent a couple of surveyors, Brett and Ollie, to help me measure the track. I can’t thank you guys enough!

The track came out slightly shorter than expected, at 390.76m on the inner circumference. Not the worst outcome, but does mean a few extra laps to hit my goal.

photo credit: Brett Horne

It must be the worst kept secret, but many of you will know that I am having another go at the 24 Hour Unicycle Distance World Record. I set the world record on Feb 5th/6th 2005, riding 378.7km in a 24hr period. It was one of the toughest things I’d ever done, and probably something I never thought I’d do again. Well, fast forward almost 20yrs and I’m itching to have another crack.

My record stood for 2 1/2yrs, before Sam Wakeling (UK) smashed it with an incredible 453.8km ride in 2007. It was an amazing feat considering the technology of the time. Enough to put many off the pain and process of attempting the world record.

So what’s changed? The body is 20yrs older, but I’m going faster than ever. At Unicon, our world championships, I came 2nd in the 54km road race and 2nd in the 10km road race. That was for the overall, not my age group. Although I did not ride standard class in 2006, my times are equivalent or better than the year I was the road racing world champion.

The other major change is the technology. While geared hubs have been on the scene for a while now, I never felt they were suited for a long distance challenge. They are good for going fast for a short distance, but I don’t have the power to keep that pace for 24 hours. I will be using a standard ungeared 36″ unicycle, but the wheel is now 2kg (that’s right!) lighter than the wheel I used for my 2005 world record. Where the Coker Airfoil rim and TA tyre was the standard in 2005, now we’re on carbon rims with tyres that are 800g lighter, inflated with TPU tubes that weigh a fraction of butyl inners.

Add in 20yrs of experience pushing my body to the limit, some better handlebars and a comfortable seat, and I think I’m ready for the challenge!

I will be attempting the world record on the 16th/17th November 2024, 0800hrs-0800hrs, at Newlands Intermediate School, Wellington, New Zealand. Keep an eye on the 24hr Record Page for updates.