The NYC Unicycle Festival is August 30 to September 1, 2013
The third annual NYC Unicycle Festival is rolling across New York City this Summer. The three day festival offers one wheeling spectacles and events of many types.
[Friday] [Saturday] [Sunday]
Friday, August 30, 2013 - Brooklyn Unicycle Day (proclaimed by borough president Marty Markowitz) features a long-distance ride organized by Unicycle NYC Bridge Tour. The long distance ride starts at City Hall in Manhattan, crosses the Brooklyn Bridge, and continues to Coney Island. The total distance of the ride is approximately 13 miles. [map] This long-distance unicycle ride is being organized by the Unicycle NYC Bridge Tour (unibridgetour.info).
The Long Distance Ride organizers suggest that unicycle riders be experienced in riding with traffic and be on nothing smaller than a 26" tire. There are segments of the ride that smaller tires and less experienced riders can participate, these include Brooklyn Bridge and Prospect Park. All riders are invited to join us at Deno's Wonder Wheel for a final spin before the fireworks on Coney Island.
Helmets are strongly encouraged.
Brooklyn Unicycle Day schedule
- 2 pm Meet Up on Manhattan side of Brooklyn Bridge. Meet on the East Side of City Hall Park (on Park Row) in front of the subway entrance for the Brooklyn Bridge/City Hall Station 4,5,6, (across the street from the Brooklyn Bridge pedestrian entrance).
- 3 pm Cross Brooklyn Bridge (all wheel sizes are encourage to join in on the Brooklyn Bridge crossing)
- 4 pm Pass through Grand Army Plaza into Prospect Park.
- 5 pm Enter the Ocean Parkway Bicycle Path
- 6:30 pm Arrive at Coney Island
- 7 pm Dinner break. Buy your own food and meet by Nathan's Famous (Stillwell & Surf)
- 8 pm Coney Island Unicycle Jam by Deno's Wonder Wheel
- 9:30 pm Fireworks
Take time to visit the Sideshow, enjoy clam strips, eat a hot dog at Nathan's…
Saturday and Sunday, August 31 & September 1, 2013 – The festival's main events takes place on Governors Island from 12pm-5pm on Saturday and Sunday. Activities include races, competitions, exhibitions, and a variety of unicycle sports including unicycle basketball and hockey. For fans of extreme riding, the Hell on Wheel trials course will challenge riders throughout the day. World-famous riders will display their skills, and members of the public will have the opportunity to try one-wheel riding.
Schedule coming soon.
Festival Partners
Governors Island is the oldest European settlement in New York and formerly served as a US Army military base and US Coast Guard station. During the summer and early fall months, the island's 92-acre historic district is open, free for the public to enjoy. The island is accessed by a free seven-minute ferry ride from the Battery Maritime Building in Lower Manhattan (at South and Whitehall Streets). Approximately 4,000 to 5,000 people visit the island each day of its season), with 10,000 to 13,000 people visiting on any particular weekend.
Bindlestiff Family Variety Arts, Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)3 organizaztion, prides itself on being the heir to New York's outstanding traditions of circus, sideshow, vaudeville, and burlesque. BFVA presented its first Bindlestiff Family Cirkus Winter Cabaret in 1995 in Brooklyn, New York. In fifteen years, that weekly variety show has grown into a year-round public exhibitions for variety artists: musicians, comedians, actors, clowns, dancers, novelty acts, circus performers, and sideshow acts. Over 400 artists have taken part in Bindlestiff productions. Bindlestiff continues to tour the nation introducing the public to the traditions of live entertainment at street festivals, in theaters, and in clubs. Besides its public performances, Bindlestiff has a growing commitment to providing education and enrichment programs to support variety arts. For more information, please visit bindlestiff.org.
The New York Unicycle Club is a casually organized group dedicated to the sport of recreational unicycling. Formed in 2001, members include people of all ages and all skill levels, from beginner to expert. The club always invites the public to come ride and provides unicycles for those who cannot “BYOU.” Meetings are at Grant's Tomb twice a month all year round (first Sunday, third Saturday) from 1pm until 5pm. Grant's Tomb is located on Riverside drive at West 122nd Street. There is free street parking available.
Unicycle New York City Bridge Tour There are over 2,000 bridges in the five boroughs of New York City. Since October 14, 2009, Keith Nelson (Bindlestiff Family Cirkus co-founder), Rob Hickman, and a growing group of riders have been making treks around the city to cross every one of them… on unicycles. Taking advantage of cycle lanes throughout the city, the one-wheel mission is organizing the Friday, September 2 long distance ride.