Students, faculty and visitors constantly cross walkways and bikeways, congesting an already crowded campus due to ridiculous foot traffic. However, a new way to get around campus has literally rolled into town. The new wave of transportation comes in the form of an automatic electric board that riders lean to roll forward and backward. UA students weigh in on the futuristic transportation trend.

Daily Wildcat: What do you think about the wheelboards on campus?

“I think they look interesting but kind of weird.”

- Madeleine Ness, veterinary science freshman

“I think they’re cool. I’m actually planning on getting one soon, I just need to save up for [it]. But I think they’re super cool.”

- Sheriff Akanni, business junior

“They’re kind of neat but at the same time, they kind of seem to get in the way every once and awhile.”

- Bailey Bellaire, chemical engineering sophomore

“I don’t think a lot about them. I just know that they’re expensive and I wouldn’t buy one.”

- Destyni Ellis, pre-neuro and cognitive science freshman

“I think they’re kind of cool.”

- Shawn Rys, campus lecturer

What do you think of the people riding the wheelboards?

“They kind of seem pretentious.”

- Madeleine Ness

“I think that they’re having a good time because they don’t get to walk in the heat.”

- Sheriff Akanni

“I don’t think down on them. They’re just people.”

- Bailey Bellaire

“I think it’s a wide range of people who ride on them. There’s no specific group that I see ride them.”

- Destyni Ellis

“I don’t make any assumptions about them. They’re just regular people.”

- Shawn Rys

Do you think that the wheel board is a practical way to travel on campus?

“No. It seems like it’s all just for show.”

- Madeleine Ness

“In small distances of course, yeah. But if it’s a long distance trip, no I don’t think so.”

- Sheriff Akanni

“Kind of, but I think biking would be much faster, and a more practical way of doing so.”

- Bailey Bellaire

“No, because there’s a lot of stairs and curbs that go down. You’d have to get off and pick it up. So I don’t think it’s that practical.”

- Destyni Ellis

“I always prefer actual mechanical emulations, like a skateboard or walking or bicycling. Something that requires a little bit more exercise. I think that that’s a more useful form of transportation.

- Shawn Rys

For now, it appears the wheelboards are here to stay. However, it does not seem like the tech-savvy trend will last much longer. In addition to not being very practical, the wheelboards require a certain level of balance and skill. It will fade into trend oblivion just as the RipStik Caster Board did, a once-innovative way to travel that no one continued to use because it took too much effort to actually master.

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