Skip to main content

Hoverboards are the absolute worst way to run from the police

hoverboard
Ben Larcey/Creative Commons
Hoverboards as getaway vehicles? With a top speed of around 6 mph, they may not be the wisest choice for criminals trying to flee a cop in a car. However, if recent reports are anything to go by, it seems the self-balancing scooters are getting some serious attention among the criminal fraternity.

The latest incident took place this week in the Florida town of Clearwater when an officer stopped one Jerome Antoine Dennis on suspicion of marijuana possession.

Apparently keen to get the heck out, Dennis jumped on his hoverboard and took off. Well, not literally, you understand, as these devices – in case you weren’t aware – don’t actually hover. Trundle, yes. Hover, most definitely not.

Reports suggest Dennis soon ditched the hoverboard and made a run for it, presumably after realizing the cop was fast gaining ground. On foot. Possibly walking.

Sadly for Dennis, even his own legs weren’t enough to help him escape the law, and the suspect was quickly apprehended.

No, this isn’t the first time someone’s used the popular two-wheeled transporter as a getaway vehicle. Just last month, we heard about a suspect in Dallas actually managing to escape the police by hopping aboard one of the machines and zooming off – OK, puttering – into the distance.

It seems that the man, who’d apparently been involved in a shooting incident, fled the scene before the cops turned up, so banish from your mind the amusing image of the officers engaged in a low-speed car chase with a guy on a hoverboard.

What crooks must really be waiting for is a fast-moving board that glides like the Slide, a board developed by Lexus that actually does hover, though admittedly it does have some severe limitations in terms of where you can use it.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
The best portable power stations
EcoFlow DELTA 2 on table at campsite for quick charging.

Affordable and efficient portable power is a necessity these days, keeping our electronic devices operational while on the go. But there are literally dozens of options to choose from, making it abundantly difficult to decide which mobile charging solution is best for you. We've sorted through countless portable power options and came up with six of the best portable power stations to keep your smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other gadgets functioning while living off the grid.
The best overall: Jackery Explorer 1000

Jackery has been a mainstay in the portable power market for several years, and today, the company continues to set the standard. With three AC outlets, two USB-A, and two USB-C plugs, you'll have plenty of options for keeping your gadgets charged.

Read more
CES 2023: HD Hyundai’s Avikus is an A.I. for autonomous boat and marine navigation
Demonstration of NeuBoat level 2 autonomous navigation system at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show

This content was produced in partnership with HD Hyundai.
Autonomous vehicle navigation technology is certainly nothing new and has been in the works for the better part of a decade at this point. But one of the most common forms we see and hear about is the type used to control steering in road-based vehicles. That's not the only place where technology can make a huge difference. Autonomous driving systems can offer incredible benefits to boats and marine vehicles, too, which is precisely why HD Hyundai has unveiled its Avikus AI technology -- for marine and watercraft vehicles.

More recently, HD Hyundai participated in the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, to demo its NeuBoat level 2 autonomous navigation system for recreational boats. The name mashes together the words "neuron" and "boat" and is quite fitting since the Avikus' A.I. navigation tech is a core component of the solution, it will handle self-recognition, real-time decisions, and controls when on the water. Of course, there are a lot of things happening behind the scenes with HD Hyundai's autonomous navigation solution, which we'll dive into below -- HD Hyundai will also be introducing more about the tech at CES 2023.

Read more
This AI cloned my voice using just three minutes of audio
acapela group voice cloning ad

There's a scene in Mission Impossible 3 that you might recall. In it, our hero Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) tackles the movie's villain, holds him at gunpoint, and forces him to read a bizarre series of sentences aloud.

"The pleasure of Busby's company is what I most enjoy," he reluctantly reads. "He put a tack on Miss Yancy's chair, and she called him a horrible boy. At the end of the month, he was flinging two kittens across the width of the room ..."

Read more