MOTOXBOARDS was started as a result of a mechanic with a crazy idea, Eric, and a Helicopter pilot- surfer called Jim. After about fifteen years of tinkering and five or so frame designs, I had something that sort of worked. Then Jim Rose took it out and showed the board's potential beyond that which I had considered. We worked on the design weaknesses,
(like breaking in half), and now have a product that brings excitement and hoopla everywhere we take it. We then decided that we would be idiots not to market this design. It’s a new perspective.
We are proud to introduce a brand new technology in off-road boarding. Until now, attempts to ride off-road have been limited to modified skateboards, mountain boards and scooter type vehicles. The limited success of these units are due primarily to three factors. These are wheel size, suspension travel, and control.
The first factor, wheel size, was a tricky one in that it would be impractical to mount four very large wheels to a board. This would basically be a quad without a seat. The answer was to put one large wheel between the rider’s feet.
The second factor, suspension travel, was another huge issue. All prior technology used the skateboard truck for steer control. Trucks work very well for skate boards, however, limited travel and under deck mount positioning limit their usefulness on rocky and rutted trails. The solution we came up with was to use a long swing arm for travel, angle the swing arm for steer control, and get all of that hardware above the deck. This simple but effective innovation works in conjunction with the center wheel which is also suspended creating a floater type feel while dramatically reducing bump steer.
Control, the third
factor, was the final hurdle. When a board impacts an obstacle on a trail such as large rocks, wash outs, roots or whatever, there is a tendency for the board to fly out from under the rider. This is a problem. To combat this, most off-road boards either use hooks, straps or bindings, in effect gluing the rider’s feet to the board which is fine if you like pain. We don’t. The answer for us came in two stages. The first, how to secure the feet safely, was a freebie in that the shock towers used for the satellite wheels work perfectly for this function. These give the rider the ability to cleat in for positive control while having the option to escape easily if things go wrong. It is our experience that most riders that bail while riding have a natural tendency to land on their feet!
The second stage of
control landed in our laps when we needed a way to mount the brake and throttle. When things get hairy on a trail, even with cleats, feet alone are inadequate to control the insane buffeting especially on the roll axis of the board. So we decided to use a rear mounted handle. We found that if the handle were curved properly and allowed to pivot fore and aft, the rider’s natural stance could be maintained while greatly improving high speed control thru the crazy stuff. This does not impair storage whereas the handle folds flat.
So now you’ve got to
ask yourself,
"Am I Ready To Make History?"
You now have the opportunity to be the
first person in history to board your trail. We would like to document these
historical events. They haven’t happened yet, but they will.
- Eric Briner
