Hoop Dreams

HOOP DREAMS

S ome of us choose to occasionally ride on one wheel, but Kerry Mclean considers it his calling. The Michigan resident is monowheeling's pioneer/evangelist, and in addition to building a V-Eight-powered Bonneville salt flat version of a big, sit-in hoop, he also manufactures and sells this smaller Monowheel for $8500.

Construction is straightforward. The inner wheel with seat and engine is linked to the outer, 50-inch-diameter, rubber-covered aluminum rim by brackets with plastic rollers, drive from the 5-horsepower Briggs & Stratton engine transmitted through a centrifugal clutch and onto a friction wheel to spin the outer rim. Steering of the 133-pound machine is by lean only (handlebars bolt directly to the engine's cylinder head), and the rider is free to swing back and forth like a human pendulum depending on brake or throttle application. CW neighbor Casey Moir let us try his Monowheel, and riding was quite a balancing act, with smoothness the key to success. Visit www.cycleworld.com for the action-packed onboard video of my ride! -Mark Cernicky