It’s not only the journey, it’s also the destination.
I had to spend last Saturday in České Budějovice. The city has two airports. The commercial one, LKCS, is large, modern, friendly and very affordable, but unfortunately closing in early afternoons. My choice was Hosín, LKHS, airport operated by a local aeroclub. Grass as well as tarmac, and much, much busier than the previous one :-)
Sceneries that I saw during my flight were beautiful as always, but that is not what I want to tell you today:
At LKHS, unpacking. The electric unicycle will carry me and my bags to the city, some 15km to go:
And now, the three dimensions that I enjoyed during my flight will be used as a donkey bridge to talk about my destination.
I flew in to join the Czech Open League in Underwater Rugby.
Never heard of it? It looks like this:
Referee blowed the horn, the match has started and we all go to grab the ball:
The ball has to be won in a person to person battle:
… and protected against your opponents:
Then there is an opportunity to score, by wrestling with the goalkeeper:
Often defenders win the ball and initiate a break:
They precisely pass the ball to a striker at a full speed:
Forwards win the fight against defenders:
And finally, they score a goal. We yell only at the surface, for obvious reasons:
That was my destination. The only three-dimensional game with a ball.
Then my electric unicycle brought me back to LKHS and my bird to my homebase. There I had a long friendly chat with a local instructor about the importance of turning off the Rotax when practicing emergency landings (“to hear the silence howling”) and drove home.
A pretty good 3D day.
That must keep you incredibly fit @ Pavel.
I didn’t realise the Europa had flip up canopy/doors? I always thought it was a forward sliding full perspex cover.
I may have asked this before, but is the unicycle difficult to master and how does it cope with kerbs and potholes?
Well, that’s something that I never heard of before! 
Looks like great fun.
How does the referee “blow” his whistle?
The only three-dimensional game with a ball.
What about the quidditch?
Wow
That must be really physically tiring. Mentally too, having to think vertically and keeping track of who has how much air left?
How violent is it? Also, is everything in slow motion because of water resistance?
@gallois, as to the physical fitness, well, I have already dropped to the second league years ago, I cannot keep pace with the young sharks anymore.
As to the mental fitness, I go to play full of job generated stresses, and leave the pool with a wide smile.
To learn to drive the electric unicycle is easy. I spent an hour or two riding in our kitchen, bar at left hand side, kitchen desk at right, to gain some confidence. Next day I went out to an unused road, the day after I started my commuting to work. After a short while it feels just natural.
My commuting requires speed and endurance, and that comes with weight of the engine and batteries. That also makes it stable when riding. The built-in suspension can absorb curbs, potholes, as well as tree roots in the forest paths, but legs have to do some suspension job, too (similar to, say, light skiing).
Thanks Pavel. I really like the idea of a unicycle but am nervous to try. I tried a unicycle ( pedal power) many years ago when I was much younger and sportier. It was a disaster. The wheel kept going backwards when I wanted it to go forward and forwards.when I wanted it.to go backwards. I was.lucky to.get away without broken limbs.😄
You are braver than me, I never tried the pedal unicycle. The electric one is much simpler, the balance in direction of movement is maintained by the electronics. Well, and this is similar to flying – you have to trust the technology.
@dublinpilot, yes it is fun. Two referees can be seen on the first underwater picture. They have a scuba gear. Main referee is out of the pool. Each of these three holds a button, that can blow electric horns, underwater and above.
@Emir, re: quidditch, I even purchased a broom to try. Pavla saw me and challenged the broom as well as myself with different goals. Underwater rugby is easier.
@Capitaine, most of the players are divers or ex-swimmers, and feel under water at home. As to violence, it can be compared to rugby. Contactful, tough, assertive (one really wants to win, compared to aggressive – one wants to hurt), but gentlemans’ no foul sport.
And pretty fast, too. Much faster than soccer. Players move slower, ball flies slower, but we all are much closer to each other, so combinations actually are faster.
Pavel wrote:
re: quidditch, I even purchased a broom to try.
Now would a broom not be the ultimate UL? I’d get one. Today.
