Using a leash with the onewheel?

18 October 2018, 18:47 UTC

Hi guys,

after seeing some scary video of board running away and that can hit hard someone (like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGIohExNgZk) I was considering to use a snowboard leash, also to avoid board going against people if falling or bailing out (since before stopping sometimes it goes forth for few meters).

Do you see any danger on using a leash? Attached to the leg or forearm? Any other better/safer way on handling the "runaway" board?

Thanks

Alvise

20 October 2018, 10:27 UTC

All I can contribute is to consider how fast the board might be able to fly off without a 150 or so pound weight on it. Now consider that 25 pound board flying off at that speed while tethered to your leg.

Might not go so well for your leg. 😬

20 October 2018, 11:33 UTC

@Ryusui better my leg, than some innocent bystander's. What's the impact force of (almost 30 pounds, multiplied by almost 30 miles an hour)?

The more I think about it, a waverunner-style deadman key/killswitch seems desirable. Replace the power button with a key ignition; the key is on a retracting or spring-coiled cable (so that once you are on the board it is as short as possible, to minimize the chance of it catching on something) that is attached to your leading-foot ankle.

You fall or jump off, the key comes out, the board's electrical power is physically killed (so it doesn't MATTER if the footpad sensor has malfunctioned; really, it becomes debatable if the footpad sensor is even necessary any longer).

Yes, there may be occasional issues with riders, especially off-road riders, accidentally catching their key cable on a bush/branch or something and wrecking themselves.

But that still seems better than wrecking some random bystander who didn't ask for the risk.

And, a physical key that is attached to your body increases security - the casual thief who wants to steal your board, would also need to steal your key.

20 October 2018, 18:00 UTC

@Glyph the trick riders aren’t going to like this idea.

20 October 2018, 19:29 UTC

It pretty much has to be a deadman key. If you just attach a snowboard leash to it, your face will run into some problems, as it won't be long enough to run or roll out of a nosedive. Maybe FM can build an optional RFID keyfob for the next model, to use as a deadman key and a key in general. A thought for future versions maybe?

20 October 2018, 22:31 UTC

@Fresh much better idea. Some sort of proximity shut off. Like a push button start in cars.

21 October 2018, 01:39 UTC

@tomfoolery - Don't get me wrong, I would RATHER have something fancy with no cable, but the issue I see here is that a proximity RFID system is...a sensor. Like a footpad sensor. Meaning, it can fail to stop the board, if the sensor fails to sense what it should sense, or communicate that info to the control board, or the control board fails to heed the incoming sensor message.

An old-school key/deadman switch is a physical interruption of the electrical circuit - it introduces an actual gap to the flow of electrical current. It's primitive, but it's also nearly foolproof. Physically break the electrical circuit, OW no go.

But I suppose an RFID sensor PLUS the footpad sensor, is redundant enough that both systems failing at once would be very unlikely. So maybe this is the way to go.

21 October 2018, 03:39 UTC

@Glyph @tomfoolery I dunno . . . any network based system (bluetooth/RFID) could be interrupted and shut down the board while I'm riding, whereas a physical key with a leash would ONLY stop the board if it gets yanked out. There's already an issue on the XR where the bluetooth disconnects, what would happen if the RFID disconnects, it would think I'm not on the board and shut down, causing a nose dive. I'm not so sure the leash is doable either as it would have to be something long enough that you can attach it before you get on the board, but short enough that it doesn't hang off and get snagged on something, causing the board to shut off.

21 October 2018, 10:23 UTC

They're all sensors, they can all fail :/ Let's say FM puts in a deadman key and it gets caught on brush, someone nosedives and sues. Or RFID they get off and it doesn't shut off... I'm guessing the legal safe route is to just fix the footpad >.> Are all these runaway boards XRs? That's what it seems like.

There's a test you can do on your sensors if you want to ensure they are working properly. While the onewheel is on but you are off of it: Turn the LEDs on via the app and lightly touch each sensor to see if it brightens the LEDs. It should. Then leave your onewheel on till it shuts off to make sure it doesn't get brighter on its own. If you are paranoid about runaways, do this test often.

22 October 2018, 21:53 UTC

Guys, just found this post of a month ago
https://archive.owforum.co.uk/topic/8037/nearly-killed-a-child

Now o really want to attach a leash to my board. Anyone has an advise on how to do it? Attaching it at the fender? Fron or back foot?

22 October 2018, 23:38 UTC

@alvises That guy just has a bad sensor pad. He probably had some small issues getting off of it that he mistakenly chalked up to poor eye-hand coordination before the incident. Stay alert to how the pad reacts, do the test I told you about. If you catch it not lighting up or lighting up on its own, film it and have FM replace the pad ASAP. Something like this could still happen but the odds are astronomical that it'll injure someone if you pay attention. If you're still adamant about a leash: You'll face plant from your next nosedive and maybe break your collarbone, so hooking it anywhere will be fine as long as you have proper health insurance ;) You may find front foot to front pad or front of fender is best as your back foot is first to move in a nosedive. Delay that collarbone fracture by a few seconds :D

23 October 2018, 01:46 UTC

@alvises @Fresh he also admitted to riding on the beach in the wet sand. Water (especially salt) doesn’t mix well with electronics.

23 October 2018, 03:00 UTC

I wasn't trying to point fingers at the OP of the other thread as to why this happened. I just want to note that there are symptoms of a faulty sensor pad that can be easily overlooked. If you know what to look for and how to test it, you'll have a pretty good idea of whether your board is safe or not. There's a vlogger on youtube who's a bit older, and was having trouble dismounting. He chalked it up to poor eye-hand coordination and moved on. He had his board run off on him. The sensors were acting up before the runaway. If you dismount properly most of the time, the symptoms will be much more likely to show up first, before the runaway. Paying attention to this is and testing it is likely much safer than tying yourself to a board so it can whip you into the ground during a nosedive. Not safe enough for you? Point the board at a nearby structure every time you dismount, step off the back so it can't go either way.

23 October 2018, 04:43 UTC

LOL! I once had the thought of adding a leash temporarily when my OW+ had the runaway symptom. I refrained from doing it due to the extreme dangers that could potentially happen.

Imagine traversing through some trees and then the leash get snagged by some root . Id rather not suffer the consequences.

A properly working OW would not need a deadman kill switch. Thats what the footpad sensors are for.

We have other boards and I would only ride my OW+ with the runaway syndrome very seldomly until I sent it in for repair.

I think that annyone with a runaway board should have it fixed, replaced or abanoned.

Any addon cutoff system adds another potential failure point.

23 October 2018, 10:19 UTC

@Fresh thanks, you are right. Just seeing if the footpad sensor acts strange every time I ride.

btw, Did you break your collarbone? Seeing you mentioning it a lot ...

does this can help? https://gform.uk/padded-compression-shirt

23 October 2018, 10:28 UTC

@fruitygreen gosh, another runaway board :( can you please tell me how did you see the symptoms? Like start riding was fine and during a ride you had the issue? Or is something you can see since the beginning of the ride just trying to properly disengage the motor?

23 October 2018, 11:51 UTC

You guys are geniuses!! I was carrying my limp wheel, got tired and Eureka!!!.....I used a leash attached to the rear end to roll it back home this morning. It's just like walking a dog. Silly wheel ran out of juice trying to keep me from going faster than 5 mph...long story.

23 October 2018, 12:21 UTC

@alvises I had a minor one 4 months after I first started riding. I ride nearly 100% off-road so I've experienced several hundred if not a thousand nosedives. I had more than my share back then because I was reckless with a top speed in the woods without a proper trail of 18mph. I still have more than my share because falling is a thing of the past. I was one of many that believed that you can roll out of anything. It's like rolling dice. Eventually you will make improper contact. Maybe on-road is safer since it has flat ground but.. Turns out, with a little cardio training it's extremely easy to get your top speed on foot to over 15 mph. Since I've begun maintaining that(alongside other knowledge I picked up along the way) I run out of every nosedive. knock on wood

That shirt may help but I doubt it's going to improve your odds by very much. Don't use/wear/hold anything that will interfere with your ability to move. It might be worth trying and seeing if it really leaves you as unencumbered as they say.

23 October 2018, 12:51 UTC

@hilby do you have a picture of the leash you use to bring your onewheel around?

23 October 2018, 12:55 UTC

@Fresh g-foarm knee pads and elbow pads seem to be pretty good.

Have you tried evolve gtx at for offroad? I have a boosted board and I'm tempted to see if I can find something in between without all the risks of the onewheel (nosedives etc..) and the limits of the boosted (mainly street wheels)

23 October 2018, 13:34 UTC

@alvises I'd love to ride an Evolve GTX offroad. There's a whole list of things a Onewheel can do that an Evolve can't though. This is addictive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtPE1ZG6glU&t=4s. I imagine the Evolve is great for trail rides but to me the OW is king :)

I have seen a few videos where an Evolve rider gets launched off the board(same outcome as a nosedive) after the tire hits something. They may be less frequent but for me that may be a bad thing as it can cause me to become overconfident.

23 October 2018, 13:42 UTC

@Fresh said in Using a leash with the onewheel?:

I'd love to ride an Evolve GTX offroad

before owning a onewheel or you still use both?

25 October 2018, 01:22 UTC

I have seen videos of a person using his belt as a leash to tether a dead OW back home. Not a bad idea that fortunately I have not had to do.

As for a kill switch one has to remember that an unpowered OW rolls a lot farther and faster than a powered OW with no rider on it. Test it for yourself and you will see that when the OW thinks there is no rider on it, the hub motor applies the brakes so it doesn't roll away.

As for a potential liability when a runaway OW torpedoes an innocent pedestrian, I make sure I am going really slowly when I am near people. Going at a quick pace near people is asking for trouble.