'Back to the Future' Hover Board: Real or Fake?
Posted Tuesday, March 4, 2014 at 4:45 PM Central
by John Couture
Just when you thought the day was going to be just another Tuesday, someone claims that they have invented the hover board as seen in Back To The Future, Part II. Pardon me while I remain skeptical at best.
The problem for me is that I always imagined that something as Earth-shattering as creating an anti-gravity vehicle would come with a little more fan-fare than a few inspiring words from Moby or Billy Zane. Although Zane gets a pass because he was in the movie, as was Christopher Lloyd who intros the video by getting out of a non time-traveling DeLorean.
And yet, I checked my calendar and it's not April 1, and really, who would unleash such an awesome April Fool's joke a month early? But, it has to be a joke, right?
Well, if it is, then they have enlisted a very eclectic mix of celebrities who are either playing along or putting their professional reputation on the line. Besides the aforementioned Back To The Future alums, there's Tony Hawk. Let's face it, you can't launch any type of board, hover or skate, without the legend himself.
You've got Moby (random), Terrell Owens (bizarre) and Mark Cuban, who wouldn't be above being involved in a prank, but he's sort of gone legit recently and while he enjoys the spotlight, I just don't see him being involved with a stunt in which he wasn't actually present.
But enough talking, why don't I just let you see the video for yourself.
They also have a fully functional website that includes just enough information to make it seem like it could be real, but not enough to discount the idea that it could be a great hoax. Looking at the video, there are few moments that make me think it's not real. Some of the riders seem to be wearing harnesses (especially Terrell Owens and Moby) that would be indicative of them being hoisted up by a digitally-removed crane of some sort.
And then there's the whole idea that using "high-powered electromagnets" might work if you keep the board level with the ground, but once you start moving it laterally then the magnetism should result in you falling on your face. At least that's how I remember it from my high school physics class.
It other words, I'm not an expert, I'm just a skeptic. Over on their Facebook page, HUVr Tech took the time to answer a few questions:
Thanks for all your enthusiastic responses! We've received a lot of emails and comments, so we'd like to address the most popular questions:1) Yes! This is real! We look forward to showing you just how real The HUVr is with a series of public live events coming soon to major US cities.
2) Yes! It is safe! Your safety is our highest concern. We wouldn't release a product that wasn't rigorously tested to the highest industry standards. When used properly, The HUVr is actually safer than riding a bike!
3) Pre-orders will be available within the month and we hope to ship in December of 2014. Yes, we will ship internationally!
4) We're working with the manufacturer to bring the price point down to something everyone can afford. Based on your excitement, it's looking like we can get there!
5) Yes, it's as fun to ride as it looks!
-The HUVr Team
And yet, the majority of the feedback from the 'Net seems to be on the negative side. Speaking of Back To The Future, Nike did just announce that they were going to be bringing self-tying laces as seen in the films to market in 2015.
2015. For those of you that know your movie trivia, you will recall that this was the year that Marty jumps forward to in Back To The Future, Part II. I imagine that 2015 will be a big year for everything related to Back To The Future. I'm not quite sold on the idea that we'll all have hover boards by then, but I bet Sony will be celebrating the films in some amazing fashion.
Perhaps we'll find out this December, which is the date that is on the HUVr Tech website. I mean, if it is a hoax meant to go viral and not a real product, then surely someone thought of using it in some form or fashion to pimp something out, right?
What do you think? And no, to those of you who think that this is some way pointing to a new Back To The Future coming out this December, I can tell you unequivocally that this is not true. We've seen Sony's 2014 slate and trust me, they would have gotten the word out on this long ago if it were true.