Lexus has made a functional hoverboard and has given us a 2 minute video of skaters actually riding the thing, even on water. Supposedly the water riding would only last for a very small amount of time each try, but it’s still pretty cool.
Pro skater Ross McGouran gives it a go in this video in Barcelona, Spain. Ross hits rails, rides bowls, and rides on water.
“I’ve spent 20 years skateboarding, but without friction it feels like I’ve had to learn a whole new skill, particularly in the stance and balance in order to ride the hoverboard. It’s a whole new experience,” Ross McGouran
HOW THE HOVERBOARD WORKS:
“Superconductors made of yttrium barium copper oxide are inlaid into the body of the board. Placed into two reservoirs within, this compound is cooled down to below a chilly –181oC (–294oF) in liquid nitrogen, which is the mysterious gas emanating out of the hoverboard. Once cooled, the superconductors store a magnetic field, generated from the 200 meters of magnetic track built into the skatepark. And so the hoverboard hovers.” – ifuckinglovescience.com
This same technique has been thought of for train transport. Trains on rails that don’t actually even touch the rails. This technology has been known of for a long time and it’s very unsustainable and expensive, but very cool to see in hoverboard form.
Lexus also made a mini documentary about how they created the hoverboard and it’s below: