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Boosted Boards (YC S12) Unveils Its Magical Electric Skateboard

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Re: Boosted Boards (YC S12) Unveils Its Magical Electric Skateboard

#171
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Earlier quoted context omitted.

Motorcycle>bicycle>skateboard. There is simply more inertial mass on a Moto, which allows you do use the front brake to its full potentail without pitching a faceplant. That and the suspension absorbs some energy. Also, the rider position is usually COG to the rear. On a bike, your body position on drop bars puts you more COG forward, steeper head angle, more levered over the front friction patch (tire/road). The bik…

I think the problem here is that people are conflating an enforced stop - hitting a rock - with a normal braking stop, and even then with an emergency stop. If the issue is - is an electric skateboard more dangerous than a bike? well, then of course it is. You're less visible, less stable, and have less braking ability and much smaller wheels. But that's not to say you can't safely brake a skateboard without throwing…

I totally agree. If you run into something on either vehicle it's going to hurt. If you aren't wearing a helmet, you could really get hurt. It is pretty apparent with the behavior of typical commuter boarders vs. bicyclists that they know which is safer. Most cyclists on streets actually don't wear helmets. Most boarders do.

With regards to breaking when you don't have a rock, curb, door in your face...You can program anti-lock braking into an electronically controlled breaking system. If you have enough understanding of the friction of the rider to the board and the boarder is experienced enough to know how position themselves during braking, that system should win as it can avoid skidding. Regarding experience level: on a bike it takes some experience not to just use the front brake only and drop your head on the pavement.

Until we see some stats about which group actually sustains more serious injuries, commuter bicyclists or commuter boosted boarders, the jury is still out.

Re: Boosted Boards (YC S12) Unveils Its Magical Electric Skateboard

#172

These contraptions are illegal to use in public and if they become popular the laws against them will be enforced immediately, because they're incredibly dangerous. It is impossible to provide effective braking on a skateboard. The rider has absolutely no means of impeding their forward movement, so even if the board has effective brakes it's just going to throw them off. This is a minor problem if you're rolling aro…

I'd like to address all of your bombastic remarks, but everyone else has picked you apart pretty well, so I'll just address the comment about short range urban transportation being a "solved" problem.

I disagree. The bicycle is not the complete solution. compared to a board. Their actually huge. you rarely see a cubical that you could fit a bike in and most businesses don't have showers after your sweating bike ride to work. I think a board/public transit solution is a huge step.

1) Choosing your house or apartment: If you could board a couple miles to any type of public transit stop this decision really opens up. I emphasize ANY public transit stop. Some buses can only hold 2 bikes, and have you ever lugged your bike onto Caltrain. They really haven't learned anything from Europe about ergonomics of a train stop. Sometimes you have to lug your bike up 4 feet of stairs onto one of those trains. The board is light and small and EVERYONE on the bus or train could have one. And think how it open your transit schedule planing to choose from stops in a couple mile radius. The rent you can save from this decision will pay for your board. 2) Cubical space: How sweet is it that you could park your board next to your desk? I'm totally getting one of those hooks from the kickstarter video. 3) No sweat: Sure, I guess you could get a (massive) electric bike, but frankly who wants an electric bike? Not cool. The zero sweat solution to your commute would be one of these boards. I'm sure you and your colleagues would prefer if your didn't sit in meetings covered in and smelling of sweat from your morning ride. You'll have to get the exercise somewhere else.

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