When I was hiking in Joaquin Miller park in Oakland, I saw a man on a dirt bike version of a unicycle. He had just finished a route that I wouldn’t do as a novice mountain biker.
Learning that unicycles don’t have suspension has made that memory even more surprising. I want to understand the motivations, which were not addressed in this FAQ.
> Suspension would also allow the wheel to move upward relative to the frame and pedals when hitting a bump.
Perhaps I'm being dim, but I don't get why this would be bad; it just sounds like the definition of what suspension is!
Edit: I was briefly confused by the "relative ... to the pedals" bit here as well, but only 'cos I was thinking of the type where the pedals are directly attached to the wheel.
Electric unicycles (EUC) are an entirely different beast far out of my wheelhouse. I've never ridden one and only once had a fleeting discussion with an EUC rider. I've not previously been asked about them and wouldn't have anything to say. They're pretty different in form factor.
Do self-balancing electric unicycles count? They are a lot like self-balancing electric scooters, but with one larger wheel between your legs. The big advantage of them is better transportability: when you fold the footrests, they are compact enough that you can treat them like a chunky hardshell briefcase.
Author here. You really don't want any disconnect between the rider and the uni. You're making tons of constant micro-adjustments, and any lag or reduced feedback would make riding really difficult. Suspension would also allow the wheel to move upward relative to the frame and pedals when hitting a bump.
As well as this, it'd waste energy, which would tire the rider faster and eat hops. There is also the case that most suspension solutions aren't really designed to handle the sort of aggressive lateral torsional stresses of the entire weight of the rider and their movement in the way that unicycles dish it out.
As someone who goes along gravel paths with relative frequency on their unicycle, it isn't too bad. I'm not sure if the dirt bike-style unicycle you're referring to was an electric one, but most municycles (mountain unicycles) have decently thick tyres to handle some of the jolts. Take the model I have as an example: https://www.krisholm.com/en/gear/unicycle/kh27.5
Thanks for the comment. I'll make an update to provide a tad more information on suspension.