Bike!Bike! 2019

Never Two Tyred: The early days of a dedicated unicycle coop

This presentation describes the joys and pains of starting Never Two Tyred, a dedicated unicycle community shop in Atlanta, GA, US. NTT came about after a generous individual donated a considerable amount of unicycle hardware to a bicycle coop in Atlanta. Rather than dispose of the parts, we have used them in conjuction with support from local unicyclists to provide a space where people can fix and build unicycles. While these one-wheel devices are mechanically simple, they can involve tools that are not commonly found in traditional bike shops. Moreover, despite their reputation of being little more than circus props, unicycles have some distinct advantages over bikes, including low-cost, ease of maintenance, versatility, smaller size, and separate legal status. Thus, beyond being solely a place to keep unicycles rolling, Never Two Tyred has been built around the idea that unicycles, like bikes and trikes, can serve as practical tools in complex, modern urban settings.