The Michigan Daily-Friday, July 17, 1981-Page 15
On one wheel
Unicyclists seek club sports status
By RON POLLACK
Daily sports writer
The cycling experience begins with a
tricycle. In time, the three-wheeler is
outgrown, and a bicycle takes its place.
For most people, this is as far as it will
advance. But for others, the final
progression of man's mastery over the
wheel is reached with the unicycle.
For the average person, "it takes 20
hours, about two hours a day to become
somewhat adept at it," said Brian Bar-
vier, a student at Michigan and a
unicycling enthusiast. "At that point,
you are in good shape, you've got the
basic skills-mount it by yourself, ride
100 yards, and dismount gracefully. Af-
ter a few hours, you finally find your
balance point. Once you can go 20 feet,
it's a matter of falling down and getting
back up."
ACCORDING TO Barnier, most
unicyclists originally become involved
in the activity as a result of seeing
someone else riding a one-wheeler.
"It's usually a pickup type of thing
where you see a friend doing it, and you
try it," said Barnier. "People on their
own don't have a lot of incentive, since
you fall down a lot at first.
"My cousins rode and got my little
brotherto try it, and when he could ride
a five-foot unicycle, I decided it was
time to try. Then he taught one of his
friends from around the corner how to
do it. It spread through their family.
Then my cousins on the other side of
my family started. It just spreads."
At the present time, Barnier is trying
Barnier, "every year somebody has in-
vented a new trick." There is a two-
minute time limit, and all of the tricks
are given difficulty ratings."
In the other type of trick-riding,
props, music, costumes, and lighting
are used, in addition to the unicycle,
Barnier says that this category is
1968 - Year of the Tiger
It doesn't matter if you side with the players or the owners in the
current baseball strike, there is one thing that everyone agrees on-it is
an unfortunate situation. So in order to partially relieve the misery of
any baseball junkies going through withdrawal, throughout the
duration of the strike the Daily is providing a look back to a more
pleasant time-1968. There was no free agent compensation, no
NLRB, no court injunctions-and no strike. And for those of you
who don't remember, in 1968 the Tigers were winners, World Series
winners, in fact. Each day the Daily relates the results of the previous
evening's Tiger game-minus 13 years.
July 16-Tigers 4, A's 0
OAKLAND, Calif. (UPI) - Denny
McLain notched his 18th victory last
night to keep the Detroit Tigers on top
of the American League race as they
attempt to capture their first pennant
since 1945.
McLain ended a three-game Tiger
losing streak by pitching an eight-hitter
to give Detroit a 4-0 victory over the
Oakland A's. The triumph enabled
McLain to become the first 18-game
winner in the majors this season with
an 18-2 mark.
It also maintained Detroit's 61/2-game
lead over the Baltimore Orioles, who
chalked up their seventh straight -vic-
tory by downing the Chicago White Sox,
4-2.
McLain struck out eight and didn't
walk a batter in posting his ninth
straight win. The Tigers backed him
with nine hits off of loser Chuck Dobson
and two relievers, with Al Kaline
stroking a solo homer.
The Tigers picked up an unearned
run in the first inning when Mickey
Stanley doubled home Dick McAuliffe.
Tom Matchick's single scored Willie
Horton with a second tally in the next
frame after the Detroit outfielder had
singled and Bill Freehan walked.
Kaline opened the fourth with his fifth
homer of the season over the left field
fence. Freehan sent Dobson to the
showers in the sixth by singling home
Jim Northrup, who had doubled.
Oakland's biggest threat came in the
first inning when the A's got men on fir-
st and second with one down. But
McLain made Sal Bando bounce into a
double play to douse the fire.
Last year McLain had compiled 17
victories when he dislocated his toes on
Sept. 17 in a mishap at his home. He
didn't pitch again until the final game
of the season, Oct. 1, when the Tigers
needed a victory over California to tie
Boston and force a pennant playoff.
McLain lost that game, but finally
achieved Number 18 in the '68 cam-
paign with yesterday's victory.
Elsewhere in the American League,
Minnesota's Dean Chance went the
distance as the Twins blasted the
Boston Red Sox, 12-3. Boston's Gary
Bell took the loss.
Detroit
AB R H
McAuife, 2b. 4 1 0
Stanley. ci ...... 5 0 2
Northrup, rf ........... 2 1 1
Kaline, lb ............. 4 1 1
Horton, if .............. 3 1 2
ComeIf...... 5 0 5
Freehan c..... 2 0 1
Matchick,ss........... 4 0 2
Oyler, ss .............. 50 0
Wert, 3b......... 3 5 0
McLain, p ............. 4 0 5
TOTALS 31 4 9
Oakland
AB R H
Donaldson, 2b ......... 4 5 0
Caterlb.......... 4 5 2
Monday cf ........... 4 05 2
Band, 3b ...... 4 0 2
Jackson, rf. .. 4 05 1
Rudi, if............ 4 50 0
Duncan, c............. 3 5 0
Kubiak, ss ............. 3 5 0
Dobnn, p ....... 2 0 1
Segui, p .. .. .0 a0
Gosger,-ph ............1 5 0 0
sanders, p............. S 0 0
TOTALS 33 8
Detroait. ........... .... 110 Ot
Oakland......... .. 000 000
RBI
0
1
0
1
0
0
4
RBI
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0o-o
Daily Photo by PAULEtTnOA
UNICYCLIST BRIAN BARNIER demonstrates trick-riding of the sort that
will be seen at the National Unicycle Meet to be held at the Track and Tennis
Building August '7-9. Unicycling, though not an overly popular sport, has
been growing in the Ann Arbor area, to the point where a unicyclist is not an
uncommon sight on the Diag.
to get enough people interested at the
University to start a club. He says that
he knows of three other people who
have expressed an interest in forming
such a group. Barnier adds that for a
successful club, "an ideal number
would be seven people."
Another of Barnier's objectives is to
eliminate a misconception about
unicycling. "We want to try to raise
consciousness of unicycling so that
people know that unicycles aren't just
in circuses," he said.
AN OPPORTUNITY for unicyclists
to do just that will occur on August 7-9
when the National Unicycle Meet is
held at the Track and Tennis Building.
Events in this meet include races from
10 yards to one mile, relays and an ob-
stacle course. In addition to races,
there will bea trick-riding competition.
In the trick-riding events, there are
two major categories. The first
category is one in which the unicyclist
uses only his one-wheeler and attempts
as many tricks as he can: According- o
"either the traditional circus-type act
or something representing ice skating.
For this class, people can use different-
sized unicycles."
THE LAST category in the meet will
be the parade competition. The parade
routines are judged for creativity,
technical difficulty and general ap-
pearance.
Barnier says that at least two Guin-
ness Records will be challenged, they
being the unicycle long jump and 100-
yard dash.
The meet is sponsored by the Redford
Township Unicycling Club and san-
ctioned by the Unicycling Society of
America. In addition to a contingent
from Michigan, clubs from South
Carolina, Washington D.C., Ohio, New
York, Illinois, Indiana, Washington,
California, Texas, Puerto Rico,
Sweden, and Japan will compete. Bar-
nier adds that Ann Arbor's mayor, Lou
Belcher, has proclaimed August .7-9
- nicyeling Days." - - -
E-Kubiak, Bando. DP-Detroit 1, Oakland 3.
LOB-Detroit 7. Oakland 6. 2B-Stanley,
Jackson, Northrup, Monday. HR-Kaline (5).
IP H R ER BB SO
McLain (W, 18-2) .. 5 8 0 0 0 8
Dobson(L7-9). . 5 5 4 3 3 4
Segui.......... 2, 5 3 0 3 3
sanders ......... ... 1 0 0 0 1 1
WP-Segni. T--2:28:.A-15,587.