question 4 skateboarders?

[blackwidow]

have any of yall ever heard of or ridden the o board? w/b i need some opinions!

[Zach]

Never heard of it. I Googled it and found a you tube video for an electric powered board and also a strange looking board with one swivel wheel in front. Not sure which one you are talking about.

[blackwidow]

Thanks, I never thought about looking on you tube. When I did I found a video for it. Here's the link: YouTube - The OBoard
But, I would still like to hear from someone that has actually ridden one before. Any opinions are welcome.

[Fanatix]

Never riden one, but know of a kid who suffered major head trauma after falling off one. Use a helmut.

[pointsurfbaja]

Originally Posted by Fanatix

Never riden one, but know of a kid who suffered major head trauma after falling off one. Use a helmut.

I remember back in the early '90's' some guys came by the surf shop where I worked and had a similar concept. It was a skateboard deck with just two rollerblade wheels right in the middle. It was very difficult. It was not functional. The wheel in the middle of a skateboard only decrease the amount of control and generation of speed and power that a skaterboarder can exert on the board. Skateboarding, as in all board sports, requires control over the rail. Think of the foot as a horizontal weight bearing plane intersected just forward of the heel with a vertical weight bearing column(leg). When you exert pressure to move the board the application of that pressure is translated to the toe or the heel. The toe or the heel are over either of the rails. This is the reason for two wheels in front and two wheels in back parallel to the rails of the board. When pressure is applied to either rail it is transferred to the wheel below that rail. The resistance created along with other factors such as inclination of the board cause the board to turn with stability. In snowboarding the same rail control is true. Since the whole of the board is in contact with the snow it is not as evident. Ask yourself, "Why don't I see any snowboards with a ski attached down the middle. In Surfing you have the fins that provide stability and often just one fin right in the middle. This serves a different purpose since the medium is liquid and is penetrated by the fin. In this case the stability provided by a center fin is against sliding sideways. Still the overwhelming majority of the control of turning is executed over the rails. Evidenced by guys surfing boards with no fins. These boards with there "gimmick" of a wheel in the center are just a ploy to do something different with no understanding of the dynamics of board riding and only a desire to cash in quickly on what some beginners may think is a stale market. As Public Enemy says "Don't believe the Hype"


Guy riding surfboard with no fin last two waves of video

Skating with four wheels under the rails