When seeing a hoverboard for the first time, people often ask us, "Is it hard to balance?" or "How long did it take you to learn?" To the initiated, these seem like silly questions, but everybody started here at some point.

The fact of the matter is that a true "hoverboard" will float above the ground without touching it. Official hoverboard What we are talking about here is actually a gyroscopically balanced platform that will only move when "told" to move.

Like it or not, over the past year these have come to be known on the internet as hoverboards. Name drama aside, the way you use one is by standing on it just as you would stand on flat ground. With your weight evenly balanced between your heels and toes, the unit will not move, even if someone pushes you. You must tilt your feet slightly toe-down in order to move forward.

This does not take a lot of pressure, and you will find that you actually need to lean forward slightly in order to prevent the hoverboard from moving forward without you. It takes about a minute for your brain to learn the algorithms of how much to lean forward for a given amount of toe pressure, and about 5 minutes to get good at it.

Most people who fall, do so because they try to step on the board before they understand how it works. Since the motors are activated by tilting the platform, you cannot step onto it like walking up a staircase.

Instead of using the ball of your foot as you do on the stairs, you must take care to step on and off with "flat feet" only when the unit is not moving. If you step on or jump off using the balls of your feet, you are in for a short and wild ride.

The first time you use it, we recommend you stand near a wall, counter, or friend for support, and activate one of the gyros by putting just one foot gently on the board with the other foot still safely on the ground.

Try moving your toe up and down, and get a feel for how it moves before putting full weight on it. Once you have found the neutral position, step up with your other foot taking care to not move tilt either foot up or down.

Once you get it, it is so intuitive you will never remember how clumsy you felt at first. The learning curve is rapid, and you will be having a blast getting around in no time!