“Are you from the future?” passersby call out as Kevin Grandon glides along San Francisco streets on a $2,000 electric unicycle, his primary mode of transportation.

Grandon, 34, is among a small but dedicated group of enthusiasts who ride battery-powered, one-wheel devices that resemble props from Cirque du Soleil.

“You can ride up the steepest hill in San Francisco, where people on bikes are struggling, like California Street or Lombard Street, no problem,” said Grandon, a software engineer who doesn’t own a car and runs a YouTube channel called Alien Rides to document the activity. “It’s an extremely practical, compact, super fun way to get around. It’s been life-changing for me.”

San Francisco’s early adopter culture has been on full display with the electric scooter craze. But more niche electric transport modes like electric unicycles have also gotten a hearty welcome, since anything that beats traffic and glides up hills has automatic appeal.

It’s not easy. Perching upright on footpads attached to a single wheel requires a leap of faith, good coordination and hours of practice.

“They are unlikely to ever become part of dockless fleets parked on the sidewalks to be ridden by anyone with a smartphone app,” said Jim McPherson, a Benicia attorney and mobility expert.

Still, “if we care about congestion, emissions and mobility, there is no reason not to embrace these with open arms — even if we aren’t able to ride them ourselves,” he said.

Professor Jesse Garnier, 48, uses his Gotway MSuperX daily to ride the 6 miles from his Mission District home to his job at San Francisco State University. It takes him 19 minutes, he said, compared with 30 in a car.

“In an urban area like ours, (an electric unicycle) is almost like a magic time machine,” he said. “You know exactly how long it will take to get from one place to another; you don’t have to constantly check your phone for traffic conditions.”

Injuries, of course, are an issue.

Garnier broke both wrists last year in two separate incidents, one time by falling, the other when a car hit him.

“Injury risks are real,” he said. “Streets are dangerous; cars are the No. 1 killer.”

Serious riders wear serious protective gear — hard-shell kneepads, elbow pads, wrist braces and a helmet.

No injury statistics are available, but face plants are common for newbies. Still, riders say it’s easy to simply leap off the wheel, noting that their feet are just inches above the ground.

Under California laws, electric unicycles can be ridden anywhere a bike can be ridden, generally meaning bike lanes or roads, not sidewalks.

Garnier persuaded his wife, Miles Garnier, to become a rider, too — and founded the Personal Electric Vehicle Riders Association to advocate for all types of one-person electric transportation.

In an electric version of the Critical Mass bike rides, fans of motorized unicycles, skateboards, hoverboards and scooters do a group jaunt along the Embarcadero to the Presidio and through Golden Gate Park most Saturday afternoons. It’s organized by enthusiast group Bay Area Esk8.

“Let’s roll!” a rider called out at a recent outing as 30 or so people, mostly men in their 30s and 40s, sprang onto their devices and zoomed off, leaving an observer on a pedal-powered bike in the dust.

Cotati resident Philip Robinson, 42, said he grew up as a “thrill seeker” doing extreme sports. Now he uses unicycles for almost all his errands — even grocery shopping (with a backpack) — and to get to and from public transit. He rode over 3,000 miles last year.

“Things that were annoying like ‘Hey, we’re out of milk or need to return something to Target across town,’ now become an adventure riding on so many paths and little side streets,” he said.

Most devices go about 15 to 25 mph, but some companies make souped-up ones that top 40 mph, said Rose Song Wong, CEO of InMotion USA, a San Diego company that sells versions of Solowheel, which is credited as the first electric unicycle, patented by a Seattle inventor in 2010. Other major brands, all Chinese, are King Song, Gotway and Ninebot (which owns Segway).

“Our competitors try to feed the speed-demon desires of enthusiasts, which could result in backlash from the public,” Wong said. “When people ride like maniacs, it doesn’t leave a good impression.”

InMotion’s products start at $539 and go up to $1,799. Batteries can last up to 60 miles between charges, depending on the model.

Devices weigh from 25 to 50 pounds, and most have telescoping handles so owners can wheel them like suitcases in stores or on BART, for instance.

Some electric unicycles have seats.

“You’re basically sitting on a giant tire, which gives you a suspension feeling,” said Eli Grey, who sells one brand called Uniscoot Hovercycles. “Your back is the throttle and your hips are the steering wheel. Twist left or right and the whole vehicles moves smoothly in that direction.”

Electric unicycles have built-in self-balancing mechanisms using gyroscopes and accelerometers, and fans say they are easier to master than pedal-powered circus-style ones.

“It seemed impossible at first but now is almost second nature,” said Anthony Vano, who’s been riding for two and a half years.

“It’s like I transplanted my feet for a wheel.”

Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid