A decade ago, Nathan Hoover had no idea that teaching his 6-year-old son to ride a unicycle would be one of the best decisions he has made as a father.

"What I got is one of the best possible riding partners," Nathan said, standing shoulder to shoulder with his now 16-year-old Beau.

The two from California are in town this week for the National American Unicycling Championships and Convention, alongside what many call the best unicyclers in the world.

Unicycling has produced a lot of quality father-son time for the Hoovers, including a recent trip to Nova Scotia to participate in the Ride the Lobster competition. In between rides Sunday in Rapid City, the two are still matched in their Ride the Lobster riding gear and enthusiasm for travel and cycling.

"I have no plan of stopping," Beau said, grinning.

It's the sentiment many of the cyclers at the event expressed.

Dave White of Ohio rested on the tailgate of his truck after competing in the Expert Uphill and Downhill races on M Hill's Mountain Biking Trails. The 52-year-old started riding when he was 11, and sticks with it for the challenge, and the camaraderie.

"It's a whole new group of friends," he said. "It's a common bond."

The sport itself has come a long way, he said. When he started, it was a fad.

"Then, it became something we could do and others couldn't and we became in demand," he said, including being asked to cycle at events and parades, like New York's Macy's Day parade.

He's a lot smarter than his old daredevil-no helmet days, he added.

The tallest unicycle he has ridden was 23 feet tall and his worst accident was on a 12-foot bike with a person on his shoulders - the chain broke and they came tumbling down.

"That was a long time ago," he said, shaking his head and smiling.

Staff members at the Rapid City event say this week is about safety and they reminded riders to eat and drink plenty of water before the 9-mile ride Sunday evening.

"You have to have a camelback (of water)," Andy Cotter told participants before the group headed to Bull Dog Gulch. Riders were warned that the last two miles of the race would be through open, treeless prairie, and they wouldn't have any shade in the hot weather.

The race was being held away from the city to give riders new terrain, Cotter said.

"It's better that way; you never know what's over the next hill."

John Foss of California was one of the more famous faces in the crowd for the 9-mile ride. Foss has been unicycling since 1980 and is the only person in the world to have competed in every world championship.

"Unicycling has been very good to me," he said.

It has been good enough that Foss owns about 30 unicycles and formerly competed for a living.

Just like regular biking, not all unicyclers ride on mountainous terrain. Unicycling, Foss said, is actually safer on a mountain than a two-wheeled bike.

"The speeds are very slow," he said. "When you're out of control, you just jump off. You're not tangled up and you're not falling on your head. The vast majority of the time, you land on your feet."

And despite being "saddle-seat sore," as White likes to put it, as well as back aches and leg soreness, unicycling is a really easy sport to get hooked to, White said.

Nathan agreed and said he hopes to be doing this for another 50 years. He and Foss have made a deal about it.

"We're both going to ride on our 100th birthdays," he said.

Contact Kayla Gahagan at 394-8410 or kayla.gahagan@rapidcityjournal.com