Masters of the Wheel

I learned to ride a unicycle
As a teenager
On the streets of Las Vegas.
It was a fad
Almost like skateboarding
Is today.
Most neighborhood boys
In my area
Owned one.
Groups of us
Would often be seen
Riding up and down
The curbs
And along the streets.
A number years later
I rode a one-wheeler
Around campus
While a student
At Michigan State University.
Apparently the fad
Had been localized
Or never reached the Midwest.
Very few other students
Knew how to ride
Although many tried.
Riding was a sport
For people like me
Who liked to make
A spectacle of themselves.
There are few things
More exhilarating than
Spring riding season
On the university campus,
The time when
The flowers and coeds
Were in full bloom.
Twenty or more years later
My oldest daughter, Becky,
Decided to follow
In my footsteps,
And took up the wheel as well.
It took her several weeks
Of determined effort
To get the hang of it,
To learn to avoid
The invisible boulders,
And to master the curb.
Once she did,
We enjoyed riding together
Around the neighborhood,
Watching all the young children
Run out to see us ride by.
You don’t see
Too many riders these days,
And many people,
Particularly younger ones,
Have never seen
Anyone ride
A one-wheeled bike before.
Our days as a riding team
Were numbered, however.
When Becky met Sal,
He picked up the sport as well.
After that,
She seemed to prefer
Cycling with him
More than me
For some reason!