Learn to surf on pavement with the innovative LandSurf

By Amanda Ellis Updated May 19, 2017

BioBoards, out of the University of Porto, recently engineered the LandSurf — the first skateboard that provides a scientifically accurate sensation of surfing.

The LandSurf appears similar to a skateboard with three wheels but is designed to emulate a surfboard on the water. Biomechanical engineers and professional surfers teamed up, and through extensive research developed a product that causes your body to move like it would on a wave — on land.

The research team used motion sensors to recreate the movements of surfing and utilized the results to determine the physical distance between placement of the trucks on the board in order to adequately situate the center of balance. The wheels offer a rotational pivot that allows users to practice real surfing maneuvers.

Unlike a skateboard, the LandSurf does not need to be pushed, but instead is powered by pumping, similar to how you would pump on a wave in the water. The front truck was strategically designed with a slope that matches the direction of momentum while allowing for freedom of movement.

The back two wheels work similarly to surfboard fins, providing for unlimited directional turning capacity. Three different types of boards provide for varying levels of surf maneuvers, including carving, cutbacks, pumping, and snaps.

In addition, the product serves as a beacon of sustainability. The boards are constructed completely of recycled Portuguese cork and pine. Each one is handmade.

The LandSurf is available in three different board lengths. The Draco is the shortest and serves as the Fish Board style, ideal for quick response movements. The Besil is regarded as the Fun Board, good for a moderate combination of speed and maneuvers. The Kamai is known as the Gun Board, and is capable of reaching the fastest speeds.

The Draco is available for pre-order on the Indiegogo campaign page for $150. The Besil runs $160 and the Kamai costs $170.

Topics

Contributor

Amanda is an outdoor junkie and digital nomad with an insatiable hunger for gear. Based out of Raleigh, NC she travels to…

Outdoors

Goodbye, coolers. The EcoFlow Glacier doesn’t need ice — it makes it

The EcoFlow Glacier is a fridge shaped like a cooler with its own battery,

Every cooler operates on borrowed time. It leaves for your camping trip brimming over with crisp produce and ice-encrusted beer that looks straight out of a Super Bowl commercial, and returns with a soggy block of foil-wrapped cheddar cheese floating in a pool of mustard water. Mother Nature always wins.

Perhaps that’s why I was so enamored when I saw the EcoFlow Glacier at CES 2023. Less a cooler than a mobile battery-powered fridge on wheels, the sleek electric Glacier not only obviated the need for ice, it would make ice for me in 18 minutes. My home fridge can’t even do that, and I didn’t even know I wanted it to until just now. When EcoFlow offered to let me try the Glacier, I envisioned sipping a perspiring glass of whiskey in the tropics and accepted the occupational hazards of my job.

Outdoors

I was wrong. E-bikes are so practical, they’re a transit cheat code

An Aventon Level 2 ebike sits outside a grocery store.

Confession: Despite loving both bikes and gadgets, e-bikes never excited me. Compared to my bicycle, e-bikes seemed unfair. Compared to my motorcycle, they seemed slow. Compared to my car, they seemed impractical.

But with $1,500 federal e-bike rebates potentially on the horizon at part of E-Bike Act, I decided it was past time to reconsider. Not just because 30% off would make them way more accessible, but because the entire idea that e-bikes could be worthy of a rebate changed the way I looked at them: less as toys, more as transit. Had I written off an entire way of getting around because I was looking at it the wrong way?

Outdoors

Upway launches one of the best marketplaces for certified e-bikes, new or not

Man holding ebike from Upway in a field, lifestyle image.

This content was produced in partnership with Upway.
It wasn't too long ago that e-bikes were a rare sight, but all of that has changed, and rightfully so. Electric bikes are all over the road these days, and there are many brands either venturing into the technology, to launch their own versions of the sustainable transportation option or reiterating existing and traditional designs. From Aventon to Schwinn, or RadPower to Momentum, with so many opportunities, the prevailing question is, where do you go to find the best deals and the best information about these brands and their e-bike models? The answer is Upway, the number one certified electric bike provider and an official partner to many of the aforementioned brands.

What is Upway, exactly? It's a marketplace, specializing in e-bikes, featuring an inventory that's sourced from some of the best brands in the world. There are American brands -- like Specialized, Cannondale, and RadPower -- and European brands -- like Riese, Muller, and VanMoof. The best part is the discounts, offering up to 60% off retail, for a plethora of brands. Upway is on a mission to make sustainable mobility affordable for everyone. It's also one of the best places to go for a new or pre-owned e-bike, and here's why: