Cars, Motorcycles, Bicycles, Snowboards, Skateboards I fail to see how this is more dangerous without real statistics.
The issue is that a product defect/failure causes preventable accidents.
It's just like the GM ignition key thing.
CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
321–330 of 415 posts
Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#322I'd be sad about this, but OneWheel is a godawful company and they absolutely deserve to go out of business.
Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#323onewheels suffer from a problem known as nosediving in which the board shuts off when it can't supply enough power to support the rider, as the board is self balancing this is a problem intrinsic to the board's form factor. The board works in a similar fashion to balancing something like an umbrella on your hand, as the rider leans forward it creates an imbalance that requires the board to accelerate in order to keep…
Good summary. I would just add that "can't supply enough power" is a state the board can enter into either in lower battery levels or (more often) when a rider has put their center of mass too far forward, causing the board to work harder to stay under them, while also moving at a higher rate of speed or accelerating - the board can't give enough power to maintain this. Pushback is to be respected, but the user can a…
I think I ran into this "can't supply enough power" state last week. I was coming to the end of my ride, battery was around 15%. I was trying to slow down for a light that was turning red. I just couldn't make it slow down, and ended up hanging a right turn at 8mph then continued to speed up until 19mph. (in the mode I ride in, it's supposed to be limited to 12mph). It was terrifying. I was actively trying my best to slow down the entire time, but the board was going fast. After 15 or so seconds of this I bailed and walked away with a bit of road rash.
Totally different scenario from the CPSC complaint. But, yes, another way these machines are dangerous.
Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#324One issue I've noticed with these new forms of electric wheeled transport (longboard, transverse and longitudinal one-wheelers) is that the people riding them often don't come from a sports background. They aren't "safe" devices exactly - it takes skill to pilot them, and when things inevitably go awry, it takes good reflexes to avoid damage. Novices to action sports often throw their arms out to catch themselves whe…
Agree. Near a building under construction I was on my Boosted board riding along probably around 6-8 mph and couldn't see a water hose that was strung across the road, and went flying off. I was in protective gear and probably would have otherwise had some kind of head trauma. I've skiied and bicycle regularly so those played in to me not breaking anything.
I wasn't brave enough to turn the speed maximum up beyond the regular setting.
Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#325Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's considered bad form to lean weight onto the front. You should have most of the weight on your back leg and push down with your front foot to accelerate. At least among the people I road with. If most of your weight is leaned backwards it's easier to just fall flat to the ground if you need to stop. Had the front of my board clipped by a car turning into a parking lot and this saved me.
indeed you should use your hips instead of head/shoulders to weight the board, but it doesn't actually move more weight to the back (think about it, to go forward, the board needs to feel more weight on the front, for which it compensates by accelerating = increase speed + levels the board) the weight distribution doesn't change, but your body had much more control over the distribution.
That's a better way to put it. I tend to phrase it like I do because ideally your natural reaction should always be to lean back on the one wheel which for me in position ends up feeling like I'm standing one footed and pushing down with the other.
Steering with your backfoot takes some getting used to if you've never board sported before. I've not snowboarded but I've been told it's like that?
Also skid plates are a life saver. You're going to have to do a drag stop at some point, might as well do it on a something easily removable.
Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#326Earlier quoted context omitted.
Knowing how to fall is such an incredibly important life skill, it's baffling to watch people who never learned it. As a ski instructor, you could instantly tell from their first fall the kids who would get it and stick with it from the ones who would be sitting in the lodge pouting after an hour.
I know how to fall (intellectually). How do I translate that into the real world? I took a nasty fall on my MTB this summer, broke my shoulder. Everything was instinctual and a blur. Can we somehow retrain our innate responses?
Drive a car.
Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#327Earlier quoted context omitted.
My partner was hospitalized for nearly a week and had to have facial reconstructive surgery and nearly lost all her teeth after she got hit by someone on a scooter going 25mph while we were walking Be careful out there if you combine speed + unprotected mode of transportation
Created a new account to warn everyone to be more aware around street corners. I once tried to catch a train so I rode a scooter on the sidewalk which I normally don't. Seeing no cars, I didn't slow too much at a street corner, and ran into someone. Luckily the top speed on the scooter was 15mph and I slowed to probably 13mph, but still, the force was too much and the person failed pretty hard. I swear to never do th…
Of course the type of person to ride a scooter on the sidewalk and hit someone will spin it as a lesson to others. It’s too bad you weren’t sued so you could learn to accept so e responsibility.
Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#328Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#329Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Is there a bug with onewheels that are causing this injury/death? Or is it just rider error doing a dangerous activity? The article describes the scooter suddenly stopping operation and throwing riders off. It's not just scooting being dangerous generally, but a specific product flaw.
I don't think this is what's happening, at all. Here's a deep dive into what's actually happening, which is people ignoring built in safety, overpowering the motors ability to keep them upright: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGn7iPN07XI The motor is at maximum power and speed when this happens.
i own a one wheel and it will occasionally just stop, and not at full speed and power.
i love riding it. but it has happened a few times, and only takes once for you to not trust it
if an e-bike shuts off, you slow down. when a single wheel dies, you fall down
Re: CPSC calls for full recall of all Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards
#330Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Is there a bug with onewheels that are causing this injury/death? Or is it just rider error doing a dangerous activity? The article describes the scooter suddenly stopping operation and throwing riders off. It's not just scooting being dangerous generally, but a specific product flaw.
I am absolutely no fan of Future Motion, and I ditched my OneWheel in protest. This isn't entirely a product flaw and comes down to physics: the board pushes you back (by lifting the front) to indicate that you are exceeding it's capacity to balance (all balancing products have a limit, with no exceptions). It will also push back when the battery is low. Either way, ignoring pushback is how people "suddenly have the…
The pushback is entirely inadequate as if you’re leaning forward enough you won’t have time to even feel it. It happened to me - I was using it to search for my dog that ran away for the first time ever. Because I was in a tizzy I wasn’t wearing my helmet, for the first time ever. Someone told me where she was - I floored it to get around a slow bicyclist. I nosedived.
Luckily I had “fangs” on it that are a set of small wheels you can add to the front. That bought me the time to fall correctly and all I ended up with was a severely skinned arm.
It should always have enough power to go “whoa, you’re trying to go too fast” and gradually slow you down while keeping the front up.
Mine’s been collecting dust and I’ve been meaning to sell it. I’m assuming that’ll be pretty difficult now.