I was going to pass on posting about the re-rerelease of the Back to the Future Hoverboard replicas from Mattel until I watched a little bit of another Hoverboard video featuring Bob Gale, the co-creator of Back to the Future. He’s talking about items featured in an auctioned that benefitted the Michael J. Fox Foundation for parkinson’s research. Blah, blah, blah until you get to the part about one of the original props being auctioned at Sothebys for $17,000, and then being resold a few years later for $55k. (!) Also interesting, the mechanical effect used to make the hoverboard appear to float when thrown on the ground. The video shows two different boards, one used for the wire flights and one used for the throw down.

Check out this Lego hoverboard that actually floats, thanks to some magnets. – Thanks to Matthijs for the tip.

MattyCollector.com reports that Mattel is going to release a hoverboard of sorts… Details are slim. It apparently “glides over most surfaces,” whatever that means. So is it just a slippery board or does it have wheels hidden inside it that aren’t visible from the top Finally! This totally awesome 1:1 replica of the hover board from the BTTF 2 and BTTF 3 films includes multiple whooshing sounds and will glide over most surfaces (does not actually “hover” – check back in 2015 for that feature). We’ll be taking orders for it March 1 – March 20, 2012, and the final product will be shipped around November/December 2012. Because this is such a high-cost item, there will be a minimum number of orders required to go into production. If we don’t receive the minimum orders, won’t go into production and customers will not be charged. The price will be announced later this month. (Note: Hover board does not work on water.) Also, what’s up with the name Matty Collector? It’s Mattel’s weak attempt at branding a web site aimed at adult collectors. Really? That’s what you came up with. Horrible web site on top of that. Poorly organized. Meh… Photo is…

Just don’t stray too far from the approved hoverboarding facilities… I know the supercooled exhaust is there for reasons of physics (I assume) but it also nice retro-futuristic icing on the hovering cake. Premiers tests du skate à lévitation supraconductrice construit à l’université Paris Diderot-Paris7. Hey, that’s French for Back to the Future! – Thanks to Andrew Wahl for the tip.

Honestly, not sure why skateboarders of a certain age are obsessed with the skateboarding footage in Back to the Future. After the last BTF post I made I seriously doubted that there would be any recurrences in the near future, but now here we are. It doesn’t hurt that I have little kids and still love Legos. CUUSOO is a project where lego fans design and submit Lego creations to the community. If enough people “like” the design then the gods of the plastic brick mountain will consider releasing a kit version or full commercial version of the model, and the designer gets a small percentage of sales. What Delorean Time Machine would be complete without Marty McFly and his skateboard?

Singularly the goofiest thing I’ve seen in awhile. I was confused at first, but burst out laughing at the 56 second mark. The thing that really makes it is the voiceover and sound effects are all done by the same guy, multitrack Matt Mulholland. Sit down and watch the birth of the skateboard from the chase scene in Back to the Future, but with an a capella soundtrack. If you dig it, check out his Matrix scene too. Yeah, I watch Glee. – Thanks to Andrew Wahl for the tip.

Two of the best animated shows ever. What about Family Guy? Meh. It has its moments, but it’s not in the same class as these two. This is actually part of a panel from a Fururama comic book where the Futurama cast is trapped in a Simpson’s comic book by evil floating brains. I found this over at Insane Journal after getting sidetracked while doing an image search for Stella Stevens on a skateboard. It was a fruitless search, but I did find illustrations of Fry and Bart Simpson skateboarding together. There’s even a Back to the Future plug. Let’s analyze that. A real movie reference in a comic book that takes place inside the universe of a different comic book. Now if only there was a skateboard in The Venture Brothers.

Before you get too excited, although it is technically “real,” it’s just maglev technology, you know, electromagnets that you can buy off the shelf, provided you go to the right store. This hoverboard only works on the platform that houses the electromagnets, and while it can carry some weight, it’s not near powerful enough to hold a human. A clever and fun demonstration of a simple idea, really. The creator Nils Guadagnin says there are also lasers involved to help balance, but I’m not sure how or why they are needed. Video after the jump. – Thanks to Concretin Nik for the tip.

This is the cover of the audio CD version of Michael J. Fox’s book titled A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Future. Twists and Turns and Lessons Learned. I guess it’s a nod to the fact that his most memorable role was Marty McFly. Back to the Future still gets credit for the skateboard boom in the 80’s.

Hoverboards, the mythical flying car of the future for the skateboarding crowd. Let’s run down the hoverboard links first: A fan makes his own adequate replicas Auction of one of the original props Photoshopping hoverboards into existing photos What else is there? Well there’sa guy in the UK who will sell you a, uhm, realistic looking prop for the paltry fee of $290 USD. Hoverboard.org.uk has some fancy replicas with only sublte finishing differences that are only visible when you compare them side by side with the original. They even sell replicas of Griff’s baseball bat for people who are clearly over-obsessed with Back to the Future. Lastly, check out the Hoverboard graphic from Boston’s Proletariat, pictured above right. It’s one of those “Why didn’t I think of it? ” ideas. Proletariat’s decks are really well executed, and clearly the winner because they are only $49 and you can actually skate them. – Thanks to Aaron Shims and Mike for the tips