Braking

After having a few weeks to use my Boosted Board, I feel like there’s one important point left to discuss. Breaking.

Let’s start by talking about the history of breaking on skateboard, and work our way to Boosted.

For orthodox skateboards, there were no breaks. Because you had to kick the board, you didn’t want much resistance. Most of your rides were about getting speed, not losing it. Skateboarders had to use their skills to break. They had to use skate gloves, turns, and a maneuver called a Coleman to slow themselves. In other words, orthodox skateboarding is kind of dangerous.

Then came Evolve. They had breaks. For me, this was a great crutch. I’d compare Evolve’s breaks to training wheels on a bicycle. I could slow down the board. While those breaks didn’t stop the board, they allowed me to slow the board to a speed where I could probably jump off without an issue.

But there was some skill involved in stopping. I still had to be able to run my board into the grass, or hop off, if need be.

Then Boosted came. At first, I trashed their remote control design. And for that, I am sorry, because the remote is designed brilliantly. Due in part to their dual drive chain design, a Boosted board can break, similarly to the Evolve board. But even on a hill, it can bring itself to a complete stop. It can even go back uphill if you want to. That’s the genius of the ‘mouse wheel’ remote design.  

Boosted brakes don’t just slow you. They’ll stop you, or reverse you. That’s a trick Evolve has yet to learn.

And one other thing about the breaks. When you’re going downhill and need to stop, is where the dual drive trains add safety.

When I took my girlfriend to the Payne’s Prairie bike trail, she got into trouble on a downhill. She was riding the Evolve Carbon Fiber series. She used the brakes. But with only one drive train, braking at speed can be very asymmetrical. She fell off that day. Of course, I had her wearing full safety gear, and it wasn’t much of an issue. I believe that if she had been riding their dual drive wheel board instead, she wouldn’t have had a problem.

Boosted took the braking system on Evolve boards and … evolved it into something superior in every way.

I’d like to end this post by cursing Sanjay Dastoor, the man behind Boosted Boards. At first, I had planned to buy one of their boards, test it, and return it. But he knew me better than I know myself. He knew that I was just like Frodo. I could take the magic ring to Mordor, but I’d be unable to throw it away. I’m keeping my Boosted Board.