Did You Know These Famous Unicyclists?

Unicycling is not just a skill adopted by those outside the mainstream, unique as it might prove to be. As it turns out, there are a lot of famous celebrities that have learned to ride single wheel cycles, and some of them are A-listers. Check yourself against this list to see if you knew. 

Celebrities That Have Conquered the Unicycle 

Let’s take a closer look at some famous folk that have mastered the art of unicycle riding. 

• Ewan McGregor: The Daily Mail hailed him as “Uni-Wan Kenobi” for this unique skill, and believe it or not, Ewan McGregor is actually a longtime fan of unicycle riding. He’s better known for his love of motorcycles, but he’s also a dedicated adherent of the one-wheeler. 

• Patrick Demspey: You might know him from Grey’s Anatomy, but Patrick Dempsey actually learned how to unicycle at a young age. It’s actually quite a story; he sold seeds door to door as a child to afford his first unicycle, then taught himself to ride and juggle because he thought it would help him achieve his dream of becoming an Olympic slalom skier. 

• Bode Miller: Better known for his status as an Olympic skier, Bode Miller actually has mastered the unicycle as well, and in fact because it is a crossover activity. He learned to unicycle as a training tool for the summer months because it helped him improve his balance, strength and endurance. 

• Mark Ruffalo (and James McAvoy): Mark Ruffalo is famous for his ability to take on a giraffe unicycle. He and James McAvoy actually exhibited these skills live on the Graham Norton Show. You can see it at the previous link!

• Claude Shannon: Claude Shannon was an electrical engineer, computer scientist, mathematician, and a whole lot more. He actually helped develop Boolean algebra and has been hailed as the “Father of Information Theory,” but what he was also well known for were the fact that he could ride a unicycle and juggle, and at the same time, at that. 

• Jamie Lissow: Jamie Lissow is better known as a stand-up comic, but what you might not have known was that he is also an accomplished mountain unicycle rider. 

• Adam Savage: Adam Savage doesn’t just bust myths, he’s also an experienced unicyclist. He actually taught himself to ride a giraffe unicycle at a young age while living in New York, where he used to ride up and down the steps of the fountain at Washington Square Park. 

• Chris Martin: Coldplay fans will know this one, because this skill was on full display in the music video for Paradise. Don’t believe it? Just watch for yourself. Yes, that’s actually him under the elephant costume. 

• Rupert Grint: No, it’s not a Harry Potter-esque magic trick, or a stunt. Rupert Grint actually knows how to ride a unicycle. Although, interestingly enough, he apparently taught himself to ride a unicycle while on the set filming the series for that franchise.

This is of course just a short list, but rest assured all of the celebrities here know how to ride a unicycle, though some of them are certainly more proficient with the skill than others. Look them up on the internet; there are videos and pictures of some of these celebrities riding out there that aren’t covered here.

And do your own research meanwhile, because there are other celebrities besides these who also ride single wheel cycles. 

Perhaps It Could Be for the Benefits of Single Wheel Cycles

It may not be such a coincidence that these celebrities have taught themselves to ride single wheel cycles. It could be that they’re aware of these benefits (that you could also reap if you learn to ride!).

• It’s a pretty good exercise. Riding a unicycle at a brisk pace is roughly equivalent to a light jog, making it excellent if not particularly accessible as a form of exercise that’s great for cardio. 

• It’s low impact. While it’s similar in caloric outputs to jogging, riding a unicycle is much easier on your joints, making it great for those that have concerns about their hips and knees. 

• It hones balance. Balance is just like a muscle. The less you use it, the worse it gets, but unicycling is one of the single best exercises out there to hone balance, for which should be fairly obvious reasons. 

• It can keep you flexible. Just as learning to ride a unicycle will help you hone your balance, it can also help improve your flexibility, which is big since flexibility is one of the most oft-neglected aspects of personal fitness. 

• It’s good crossover training. Take a page out of Bode Miller’s book. There are lots of other sports that will be benefited by learning to ride a unicycle. Specifically, snowboarding and windsurfing and skiing are the big ones, but realistically anything that requires a strong core will be benefited, and that’s basically any physical activity.

• It rewires the opposite brain. Unicycling is an exercise in neuroplasticity that will exercise your brain in ways that few other physical activities will. You will create new neural circuits and might reap benefits we can’t even conceive of covering here. 

• It can improve your cognitive ability. Lastly, unicycling is a mental-intensive exercise that will have you thinking both creatively and critically since you need to respond to things differently when you’re trying to balance in the saddle of a machine that has only one wheel. 

Explore Single Wheel Cycles, Odd Bikes, Safety Gear, Tools and More Here 

Hopefully you learned a thing or two and have come away with a new perspective on some of these celebrities. 

Otherwise, if you landed here because you need new unicycle parts or tools, we have you covered. 

And, if you’re inspired to learn how to ride a unicycle for yourself after realizing just how common the skill actually is, take a look through our collection of beginner unicycles. There’s one on our website for you, and if you need help picking it out, we can help with that as well. Just give us a call.