Safety Tips: Before You Get Started
Before you step onto your hoverboard, it’s crucial to follow all the guidelines on how to ride a hoverboard to keep yourself safe. Not only is it essential to have all of the required safety gear ready to go, but there are a few basic rules for use that you will need to follow.
Regardless of the age of the hoverboard rider, both kids and adults should be fully kitted out with safety gear. Helmets are essential, and knee pads, elbow pads, wrist guards, and even a tailbone protector are good, particularly when you are just starting out. Even traveling at low speeds, a fall involving hitting an unprotected head can cause serious damage.
Once you’ve got all of your safety gear on, the next thing to do is choose a safe place to practice riding. Never try to ride a hoverboard on a road until you’re confident you have mastered all skills discussed in this article, from climbing to turning to dismounting.
Choose a clear, flat, paved surface with few obstacles as a practice area. Try finding an empty tennis or basketball court, a driveway with no incline, or even a vacant parking lot (just stay alert if a car comes in!). When you’re learning how to ride a hoverboard, whether you’re a kid or adult, make sure someone is with you to spot you and be there to offer assistance in case of a fall.
After you’ve mastered the basics, you might become a little more adventurous and want to try riding your hoverboard on nearby roads. Check the local laws before you do this, as some towns or cities have regulations around this – for example, you might need to wear a helmet, be over a certain age, and stick to designated bike lanes. If you plan to ride after dark, wear reflective clothing such as a cycling vest to be visible to everyone.
Getting Started: Stepping Onto Your Hoverboard
Some hoverboards have a fantastic feature for those learning how to ride a hoverboard – a ‘beginner’ mode you can select, where the board will only move at a portion of its full speed. For example, if the hoverboard’s maximum speed is six miles per hour, selecting beginner mode will put the speed limit at three miles per hour so that if falls occur, the rider will be traveling at a slower speed. Check your user manual for details if your hoverboard has beginner mode and how to engage it.
Before you step on your hoverboard, make sure it’s fully charged. Once you’ve selected your beginner mode (if you have it), the next thing to do is stand on your hoverboard. You can’t jump on the board with both feet simultaneously, so choose your dominant foot to step on first. Whichever foot you decide to start with, place it as close to the wheel as possible.
The wider your feet are, the lower your center of gravity will be, and it will be more comfortable to ride. You may also want to consider standing next to a wall or a railing the first time you try stepping onto your hoverboard so you can hold on to something for support.
Keep in mind that as soon as the hoverboard registers the pressure from your foot, it will begin to move, so you’ll have to act quickly to bring that second foot on board. Your initial reaction might be to tense up and overthink picking up that second foot, but it’s best to look straight ahead, not down at your feet as it might feel instinctive, and relax. Think of it as stepping up a stair. You may feel awkward at first, as the stance might feel unnatural, so keeping your body from tensing up is important. If you tense up, this can cause you to wobble back and forth.
Going Faster: How to Make Your Hoverboard Move
So you’ve managed to stand up on your hoverboard – way to go! Now the next step in learning how to ride a hoverboard is to make it move. Luckily, hoverboards are pretty savvy and equipped with a gyroscope sensor. These sensors can detect through the subtle motions of your ankles what your intended direction is. It might take a few tries to figure out exactly how much pressure you will need to move on your hoverboard.
When you’re just starting, it’s best to err on the side of caution and make your motions smaller. Leaning deeply to one side can cause your hoverboard to turn upside down and throw you to the ground. You don’t want to start your hoverboard experience by falling straight away!
To move forward, you need to use your ankles to let the hoverboard know where you want to go. Lean slightly forward to cue the hoverboard that you want to start moving. To turn your hoverboard to the right, you need to press on the hoverboard with your left toes to pivot very slightly in the direction you want to go.
Similarly, press slightly on the hoverboard with your right toes to turn to the left. Again, it’s best to start with a very gentle touch and see if you need to apply more pressure to get where you want to go. Pressing down lightly will give you turns with a wide radius, so make sure you practice in a wide-open space such as an empty basketball court or a large driveway. Sharper movements will result in sharper turns.
Once you have the basic movements figured out, you’re ready to take your hoverboard for a bit of spin. Make sure that you are practicing on a flat, paved surface in an area free of cars. Try to experiment with using different amounts of pressure in your movements to make the hoverboard go faster or turn sharper.
For the sharpest turns, you may even want to press down with the toes of one foot and the other foot’s heel. If you hold down this position, you can try spinning, too, or experiment with transferring your weight quickly from side to side to travel in a wave-like path. Have fun, and don’t be discouraged if you take a few tumbles as you figure it out. It’s all a part of the process when learning how to ride a hoverboard!
Stopping: How to Safely Stop and Dismount Your Hoverboard
After you’ve figured out how to get on your hoverboard and make it go, the next step is, naturally, making it stop! Since leaning forward at a slight angle tells the hoverboard you want to go forward, you need to do the reverse to make it stop. Lean back very slightly to let the hoverboard know that you want to stop moving.
You mustn’t lean back too sharply because the hoverboard could interpret that as wanting to move backward, and you could fall. A slow and gradual change in the direction you are tilting your body will result in your hoverboard slowing down and coming to a gradual stop.
Getting off the hoverboard might seem like it should be the easiest part of riding one, but be cautious because this is the number one way most hoverboard accidents happen. It might seem instinctive to step forward off the board as it stops moving and you begin to lose your balance, but fight the urge!
Remember that leaning forward will cue the hoverboard to move forward, too, just as you try to get off.
You must remember to jump or step backward off your hoverboard when you’re finished riding. Once your hoverboard has stopped, take your non-dominant foot (the one you did not use first when mounting your hoverboard) and step down to the ground or floor, then your other foot.
Once again, for emphasis: always step backward to dismount your hoverboard!
Maintenance Tip:
Keep your hoverboard clean.
After you’ve dismounted from your hoverboard, there are a couple of final steps to take before you can put it away for the day. Keeping your hoverboard well maintained will prolong its longevity, giving you many years of two-wheeling fun.
Check your wheels for any dirt or debris stuck in them, clean them off with a gentle brush if necessary, and wipe the board down with a damp cloth. It’s important to keep debris off as it can interfere with the motor or sensors. This is especially true if you try out your hoverboard on off-road terrain.
After you’ve cleaned it, let the battery cool down completely before putting your board away. Pay attention to how much charge is left in the battery because you should not let it run down entirely. If you’ve just ridden your hoverboard until the charge ran down and would like to take it out again on the same day, ensure that the battery has completely cooled before you plug it back in to charge.
Most stories of exploding hoverboards come from owners not taking proper care of the battery. If you’re not planning to take your hoverboard out again for a few days, make sure you store it properly. Keep it in a dry, well-ventilated space like a garage or indoor storage area to ensure that the battery and motherboard remain moisture-free.