NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — The NBA season starts next week, but the Knicks and Nets aren’t the only game in town.
Up in the Bronx, spectators can get a free seat to see basketball on wheels – one wheel that is.
Fairly regularly a group of players on unicycles will take to the court to put on a show, and it’s an incredibly unique talent that has many people wondering how you pick it up.
“I have undiagnosed ADHD. So, I needed something to do with my all my nervous and unfocused energy,” said player Lucy Eden.
She mastered the talent after a while and now, can play the sport on one wheel just as she could on her feet.
Fellow player Greg Rone told WCBS 880 it can be quite difficult to learn, but it is possible.
“It takes stamina, balance and hand-ball coordination,” he said.
After a lot of practice, it gets easier, said David Reid of the King Charles Troupe.
“The same things we can do on feet, we can do on bikes – alley-oops, dunks and everything,” he said.
Reid explained that basketball on unicycles began at the New York City Unicycle Festival in Crotona Park in the Bronx.
“Mr. Jerry King started with his son, Charles, and he used it to influence the kids in the neighborhood to prevent them from being involved in the social evils and other activity of the community,” he said.
Reid was actually one of the children who learned from King.
His troupe eventually became so popular that they became the first African American act to join Ringling Brothers Barnham and Bailey Circus.
“It was kind of weird at first, living with clowns and waking up with different people with different talents. But, once you get used to it it’s like something you can’t get out of your blood,” said Rone, who has been with the troupe for 43 years.
But not everyone at the court is always a pro – in fact, the troupe keeps the tradition alive of teaching children, like 13-year-old Josh Geyer, the unique sport.
“It’s really fun – scary but fun,” he said.
While they encourage all those who are interested to join the fun, the pros warn that it can be a little dangerous – with some saying they’ve broken ankles, torn their Achilles tendon, suffered fractured elbows and plenty of scrapes and bruises.
Still, many people enjoy the unicycling fun, with one man telling WCBS 880, “It’s addictive. Once your start, it’s so much fun.”
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