Carve Through Town on the Powerful and Fun Phantom E-skateboard

This, however, is not the case for this new trinket that’s set to hit our streets. It’s not out yet, so don’t go bother trying to find one, but the Phantom direct drive e-skateboard from Miles Board is one toy for big kids I personally can’t wait for.

Listen, or rather, read, check out the video at the bottom of this text, and once you’ve unstuck yourself from the screen, come back to the text to get a better understanding of what the heck you just saw.

All done? Good. So, you’ve understood that this is no ordinary skateboard, after all, there was only one scene where someone was riding this thing old-school. And yes, it is most definitely electric, but we’ll get to that shortly. For now, let’s have a look at this board's construction.

One of the most important aspect of any skateboard, let alone an e-board, is the deck construction. I was so surprised to find that the deck on the Phantom is composed of carbon fiber and shaped in typical drop deck style. Just to understand how strong it is, the board comes with a weight rating of 275lbs. (124kg) but can take nearly double that.

However, anything beyond 275lbs. (124kg.) and components start having a bit of trouble trudging your lardy butt around. Due to its carbon fiber deck, with all other components on top, the board weighs in at only 18lbs. (~8kg).

I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention to past articles we’ve written on urban mobility vehicles, but there are some e-bikes out there that can’t carry anywhere near the payload this board can. And get this, folks, with such a payload this board is still able to hit top speeds of 30 mph (48kph), which is nearly double the legal road limit for electric light vehicles in most of Europe. Hence why the team doesn’t ship outside the U.S.

To get this sort of crazy speed, the Phantom is equipped with a 2200W dual direct drive motor that acts only on the back wheels. So, you won’t be pulled along, but rather pushed. This is essential for a vehicle of this type as rear-wheel-drive allows for easier and better carving, not to mention more fun. The motor is also strong enough to tackle a 30-degree hill climb. 30 degrees! Ever walk up a 30% hill gradient? Yeah, that’s tough enough on just your legs, let alone a motor you could fit into your pocket.

And of course, we need a battery for all this e-fun. Built into the deck we find a 43.2V 10Ah battery pack that powers this enormous e-guzzler. Now the range of 30 miles may not be phenomenal but remember that you’ve just been doing that for the past thirty miles. More than enough to do a few hill runs before needing to recharge. Speaking of recharging, it takes the battery 4-5 hours for it to stand up to another round, so you better make those runs count.

All the hardware is then connected via Bluetooth to a hand–held remote that allows you to accelerate, slow down, and even reverse. It’s also equipped with an LCD screen that displays information regarding battery levels, and odometer, and even the health of your board. This remote also allows you to select one of three speed settings, beginner, expert, and ludicrous.

Throw all that into one of the most appreciated designs this century, the skateboard, and you’re sure to have a winner. Oh, and if you think dishing out $950 for the IndieGoGo special is too much, take into consideration that the board includes a waterproof rating that also helps it with dust and any other particles. I, for one, would never take my board running through sand, rocks, dust, or beaches. Real friggin' beaches!

Now before you go drooling toward your credit card, or whatever it is you use to buy stuff online, make sure you know what you’re doing, otherwise, you’ll get this board and possibly be let down by its apparent inability to do what you want. Trust me, it’s not the board.