Smart Safety: Hoverboards

The hoverboard was one of the hottest gifts this holiday and more and more "fail" videos are surfacing on social media of users falling off the device. The CPSC said it has received dozens of reports of injuries and is expecting that number to grow.
Professional baseball player Dan Uggla was caught on camera falling backwards off a hoverboard, while Rep. Carlos Curbelo tweeted that he ended up in the ER after trying his nephew’s hoverboard.

In addition to the wipeouts, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is also investigating reports of 21 fire incidents across the country involving hoverboards, ABC News reported. Major airlines have also banned the devices from flights, they say for fear of the batteries catching fire.

Tony Le, CEO and Founder of Glitek, offers the following tips to users first learning to use a hoverboard:

• Users should always wear a helmet; those starting out should also consider elbow pads, knee pads, and wrist guards
• Test calibration before stepping on it. The Glide must be calibrated in order to work properly. To test this, lift the wheel up and press the foot pad. If the wheel is spinning and not shaking, that means it's calibrated.
• Keep weight centered and use a wide stance. To get on safely, step right in the middle – not too much toe, not too much heel – and use the widest stance possible.
• Step off board to the back. It's not intuitive to get off by stepping back so most people make the mistake of stepping forward which is why they fall.
• Straight posture and look ahead. When riding it, you want to have a straight posture, look straight ahead – you don't want to look down.