Riding a hoverboard is very simple, and very difficult. How to ride a hoverboard – it is all about on how you approach it.
If you are thinking of getting on to a hoverboard and checking it out for a few minutes to see whether you can ride it or not, then there’s a good chance you won’t be able to master it.
If you’re thinking of learning how to ride a hoverboard over as long a period of time as it takes, then you will master it.
To ride a hoverboard, you need to move your feet backwards or forwards, either together or alternatively, and though for a lucky few it comes naturally, for most of you it will have to be learnt.
Have you ever learnt how to ride a cycle?
If you have, then you will know that you cannot learn it on your first try, or even on your tenth. It takes time for the body to figure out how to balance on the bike, pedal, steer the handles and go with the flow at the same time.
Learning how to ride a hoverboard is much easier, but the principle is the same. You have to learn to balance your body, learn to move your feet and go with the flow at the same time. For some it takes one try and about ten or fifteen minutes, and for some it takes about a dozen tries and a day or two.
There are two ways to move the hoverboard, by leaning and shifting our weight or by using your ankles to move your feet. We think using the ankles to move your feet forward or backward is the best way, and also much more intuitive.
In this guide we will show you with simple diagrams just what you need to do to ride the hoverboard. It is actually quite simple, but you need to go in with the mindset that you will learn it over several attempts and over a period of time. Don’t go in thinking that you will either learn to ride it on your first try or you will stay away from it.
BEFORE RIDING THE HOVERBOARD FOR THE FIRST TIME
Here are things to definitely do before you ride the hoverboard for the first time, and also for the first week that you ride the hoverboard.
- If your hoverboard has a ‘Learning/Beginner Mode’, put it on – this limits the top speed of the hoverboard to about 3 miles per hour, which means that it will move slowly and be much easier to control.
- Check your hoverboard is charged and make sure that it is not low on charge – while moving if the battery dies, you can gets thrown off forward. This problem does not exist in good quality hoverboards as they have a built-in mechanism that shows low battery indicator lights, beeps and also reduces the speed automatically when the battery charge becomes low.
- Get a protective helmet and wear it – mostly people fall off a hoverboard backwards, and there are chances that your head will hit the ground. If you wear a skateboarding helmet, you’re going to be protecting your head, which is extremely important. This is even more important if there are tables or other objects with sharp edges around.
- Get knee and elbow pads and wear them – If you fall forwards, then you will falls on your knees and hurt them. Knee guards will keep you protected from that. If you fall backwards, then your elbows will take the weight of your fall, and can get injured. Elbow gards will prevent that injury.
- Choose a softer surface like a carpet or short-cut grass – Though the hoverboard will not move as smoothly as on a perfectly smooth surface, it is better to start off on a carpet or grass. The softer surface will break your fall and prevent injuries.
- Get someone to stand near you when you get on to the hoverboard the first few times – When you are getting on to the hoverboard, it is quite difficult to keep it still, that’s when a person near you can lend you a shoulder or a hand for support to help you can get on to it.
- Try to get the support of a wall or a pillar when you start out – this will help you to stay stable as you figure out how the hoverboard moves.
HOW TO RIDE A HOVERBOARD
Getting on for the first time.
To get on to the hoverboard, place your dominant foot on to the footpad, and keep it level and steady. Keeping it level is important as it will not trigger the motor on the wheel and move the hoverboard forward or back.
Now lightly step up on to the overboard with your other foot, while keeping yourself steady. The movement of getting your other foot on to the hoverboard foot pad should be gentle and not sudden. Imagine you are getting on to a rope bridge.
For the first few minutes, try and keep yourself as steady as possible. Do not let your body wobble if you can help it. Slowly you will start to figure out how to press your feet forward and move the hoverboard. Do everything slowly, at a low speed.
How to move the hoverboard.
To move the hoverboard forward, you need to press down the front part of your feet. This will press the front part of the hoverboard’s foot pads, and make the motors in the wheels move the hoverboard forward.
Take a look at this image to get a better idea of what needs to be done.
To move the hoverboard backward, you need to press down the heel of your feet. This will press the back part of the hoverboard’s foot pads, and make the motors in the wheels move the hoverboard backward.
Take a look at this image to get a better idea of what needs to be done.
To turn the hoverboard, the basic principle is that when one wheel moves faster then the other, the hovebroard will move faster on one side and slower on the other. The faster side will get ahead of the slower side, thereby turning the hoverboard towards the slower side.
Thus if you press down your left foot, then the left wheel of the hoverboard will rotate faster. Meanwhile your right foot is not pressing the footpad, so that wheel will move slowly or even stop. The result will be that the left side of the hoverboard will move ahead, while the right side slows down. This will cause the hoverboard to turn to the right.
This same principle applies when you need to spin on the hoverboard.
Take a look at this diagram to understand how to rotate the hoverboard in a clockwise direction.
This diagram explains how to rotate the hoverboard in an anti-clockwise direction.
These are the basic of controlling your hoverboard. We hope it has helped you. If you still need to figure out something more, leave a comment and we will try and help you out.
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