4 ms·

True .. I got a boosted board when I moved to San Francisco. Well, reason number one is that the public transportation system is a joke in this city compared

True .. I got a boosted board when I moved to San Francisco. Well, reason number one is that the public transportation system is a joke in this city compared to the European cities I am used to. The price still felt steep but I can afford an 1k skateboard with a tech salary. Especially if I can recoup part of its cost by avoiding lyft rides.

brianbreslin 7y ago
I've long contemplated a boosted board, but am hesitant to spend $1k on a skateboard that I can't use when it rains.
- on_and_off 7y ago
  That's a valid concern. I live 25 minutes from work by foot, 10 by boosted. When it rains, I just don't bother using my boosted, I go for a nice walk instead. It is possible to use it when it rains but : - most important point : your adherence will be way worse. With slick wheels, the board slides a lot when it rains. Your braking distance becomes way too long. - you also get your pants and shoes wet. Not as important as point one of course, but still annoying. I live in SF so I don't expect to see any rain in the next 6 months.
  - milkytron 7y ago
    > I live in SF so I don't expect to see any rain in the next 6 months. Really? My perception of SF was that they get frequent rain is generally one of the wetter places in California
    - on_and_off 7y ago
      I don't know the city and its weather very well yet (I have been there for less than 2 years). My perception is that the weather of the past few years has been widely out of what is expected in all the places I have resided in. Last year SF has been very dry https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2018/10/01/approaching-front-san-franciscos-long-dry-spell-rain/ https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2018/10/01/approaching-fro... one article on the topic .. 159 consecutive days (or maybe more) without rain. Which was great for skating :) The weather was not that hot either .. mostly between 13 and 21 °C.
  - brianbreslin 7y ago
    I live in Miami so I have rain (heavy rain) 4 months of the year.
- Scoundreller 7y ago
  Or in a city that snows. Obviously you won’t ride it when it snows, but the cognitive effort of watching out for a pothole that will eat your wheel(s) is incredibly high.
- fit2rule 7y ago
  I am in the same boat .. I searched long and hard for an electric scooter or a skateboard that I could use in my regular commute (Vienna, Austria) and after trying everything I could get my feet on, I settled on an electric moped (UNU), which is just about the best possible transportation system I've experienced - apart from feeling underpowered compared to combustion engines. I get amazing transportation for pennies (its very cheap to recharge the batteries), its fast enough once you get into the city, and it'll survive a bit of rain here and there. Alas, until the skateboard/scooters catch up with the nearly-all-weather requirement, I don't see mopeds being replaced in this market any time soon.
  - on_and_off 7y ago
    for what it is worth, I think that a moped is probably safer than an e-skate. I love riding one, but you need to stay extremely vigilant and even though, hardware failures, bad roads or cars can still spell trouble.
m463 7y ago
I've tried a lot of electric boards and I will say the boosted board is a better board than all the rest. If they spent more developing it and sell it for more, who cares. They got the controller design and the acceleration and deceleration curves right. You can accelerate with your thumb and the motion or grip of your hand doesn't affect your acceleration. The acceleration and deceleration are gradual and dampened, so you won't pitch yourself off the board when you accelerate or slow. You have brakes. You can even slow, stop and then go backwards. It's a safer board. And anyway, the price is coming down. (ok, off my soapbox)

brianbreslin 7y ago

I've long contemplated a boosted board, but am hesitant to spend $1k on a skateboard that I can't use when it rains.

on_and_off 7y ago
That's a valid concern. I live 25 minutes from work by foot, 10 by boosted. When it rains, I just don't bother using my boosted, I go for a nice walk instead. It is possible to use it when it rains but : - most important point : your adherence will be way worse. With slick wheels, the board slides a lot when it rains. Your braking distance becomes way too long. - you also get your pants and shoes wet. Not as important as point one of course, but still annoying. I live in SF so I don't expect to see any rain in the next 6 months.
- milkytron 7y ago
  > I live in SF so I don't expect to see any rain in the next 6 months. Really? My perception of SF was that they get frequent rain is generally one of the wetter places in California
  - on_and_off 7y ago
    I don't know the city and its weather very well yet (I have been there for less than 2 years). My perception is that the weather of the past few years has been widely out of what is expected in all the places I have resided in. Last year SF has been very dry https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2018/10/01/approaching-front-san-franciscos-long-dry-spell-rain/ https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2018/10/01/approaching-fro... one article on the topic .. 159 consecutive days (or maybe more) without rain. Which was great for skating :) The weather was not that hot either .. mostly between 13 and 21 °C.
- brianbreslin 7y ago
  I live in Miami so I have rain (heavy rain) 4 months of the year.
Scoundreller 7y ago
Or in a city that snows. Obviously you won’t ride it when it snows, but the cognitive effort of watching out for a pothole that will eat your wheel(s) is incredibly high.
fit2rule 7y ago
I am in the same boat .. I searched long and hard for an electric scooter or a skateboard that I could use in my regular commute (Vienna, Austria) and after trying everything I could get my feet on, I settled on an electric moped (UNU), which is just about the best possible transportation system I've experienced - apart from feeling underpowered compared to combustion engines. I get amazing transportation for pennies (its very cheap to recharge the batteries), its fast enough once you get into the city, and it'll survive a bit of rain here and there. Alas, until the skateboard/scooters catch up with the nearly-all-weather requirement, I don't see mopeds being replaced in this market any time soon.
- on_and_off 7y ago
  for what it is worth, I think that a moped is probably safer than an e-skate. I love riding one, but you need to stay extremely vigilant and even though, hardware failures, bad roads or cars can still spell trouble.

m463 7y ago

I've tried a lot of electric boards and I will say the boosted board is a better board than all the rest. If they spent more developing it and sell it for more, who cares. They got the controller design and the acceleration and deceleration curves right. You can accelerate with your thumb and the motion or grip of your hand doesn't affect your acceleration. The acceleration and deceleration are gradual and dampened, so you won't pitch yourself off the board when you accelerate or slow. You have brakes. You can even slow, stop and then go backwards. It's a safer board. And anyway, the price is coming down. (ok, off my soapbox)