See Tony Hawk Ride a Real Hoverboard: He’s No Marty McFly [Video]
Of course, Tony Hawk got to ride the first real hoverboard.
The skateboarding legend lived out every Marty McFly wannabe’s fantasy by hopping on a Hendo Hover hoverboard and taking it for a spin. His ride was way shorter than Michael J. Fox’s epic, futuristic chase scene in Back to the Future Part II, and the Hendo hoverboard is much bulkier than the Barbie-pink Mattel toy that Marty steals in the movie. You can check out Tony Hawk trying to do a few tricks in the video below.
At least, someone finally managed to produce a hoverboard just in time for the Back to the Future Part II‘s 2015 setting.
Obviously, it will be quite some time before real hoverboards make an appearance in the X Games — if Tony Hawk can’t stay on top of a hoverboard while going back and forth on a tiny ramp, then it’s highly unlikely that any other pro skaters will be able to master the machine.
PC World explained how the Hendo hoverboard creates its lift.
“The magic behind the hoverboard lies in its four disc-shaped hover engines. These create a special magnetic field which literally pushes against itself, generating the lift which levitates our board off the ground.”
Hendo started a Kickstarter campaign to produce its hoverboards, and the company has already reached its goal. However, you need a Tony Hawk-sized bank account if you want to get the most out of a hoverboard — the device only works on a special metallic surface. In other words, hoverboard owners will have to build their own shiny skate parks.
Hendo only offered ten boards for sale during its Kickstarter campaign, and they were priced at $10,000 apiece. Other hoverboard fans will have to patiently wait until Hendo produces more units using its Kickstarter funds.
So what did Tony Hawk feel like wobbling on top of that hoverboard? As the Inquisitr previously reported, standing on top of one of the devices has been described as “like getting on a snow board that’s just been pulled out of an oven.” The board is tough to control and prone to spinning.
I rode a REAL hoverboard yesterday thanks to @HendoHover. If you don’t believe me, it’s your loss. Most 360’s ever. https://t.co/Z4tNT0Q9ky
— Tony Hawk (@tonyhawk) November 13, 2014
This isn’t the first time Tony Hawk has been on top of a hoverboard. According to The Wrap, he and Back to the Future star Christopher Lloyd starred in a HUVr board hoax video earlier this year. The video also featured a Delorean, Moby and Terrell Owens.
Does watching Tony Hawk spin around on a real Hendo hoverboard make you want one or are you willing to wait until modern-day technology catches up with Back to the Future Part II?
[Image credit: Universal Pictures]
