With one hand grasped on his mailbox, senior Michael Kuhl steadies his balance. He swings his leg over and mounts his unicycle. He begins a slow pedal down the street and starts tossing the clubs.

Red, blue, yellow.

Red, blue, yellow.

Red, blue, yellow.

Above him, there are three brightly colored juggling clubs cutting through the air.

“He’s definitely unique, that’s for sure,” Mike’s brother Scott Kuhl, who introduced him to unicycling, said. “His ability to juggle and unicycle just goes to show how unique he is and how much fun he likes to have and just do things no one else really does.”

Scott was introduced to unicycling through a friend involved in a cycling club during his senior year at North. This sparked Mike’s interest in unicycling. He began learning to ride this past spring after receiving his unicycle from his parents last Christmas.

“I wanted one, and I didn’t expect to get one really, and I was just so excited that I got it,” Mike said. “I just thought it’s such a cliche for a kid to get a bicycle for Christmas. I just thought it’s so awesome that I’m 16 and getting a unicycle.”

Unicycling alone is a challenge. Mike took it one step further: he threw juggling into the mix. He uses tennis balls and juggling clubs when he unicycles for a special show of his talents.

“I was quite impressed and a little bit jealous my brother took something that I was decent at and became 10 times better at it,” Scott said. “So, like any brother, it kind of makes me want to beat him at it now.”

The longest distance that Mike has ever gone on his unicycle is from his house across the street from FHN to Henderson and back.

“I was very proud of him for keeping up with it and continuing to try,” Brenda Kuhl, Mike’s mother, said. “The time that he rode around Henderson I couldn’t believe he went that far.”

Mike tries to ride four times a week for 30-45 minutes around his neighborhood to practice and better his skills.

“If he’s interested in something he tries it until he perfects it,” Brenda said. “I guess that’s what I like about him. He doesn’t give up.”