Lexus' Hoverboard 'is Like Floating on a Cushion of Air'

In fact, what looks a lot like smoke emanating from below the Japanese luxury brand's hoverboard is actually caused by the liquid nitrogen required to keep the 'board's insides cool. How cool, you ask? Put it this way: liquid nitrogen freezes at -346 degrees Fahrenheit. Ice cold, baby.

If there is a bit of tricky deception in the video you see above, it's that the superconductors Lexus is using in its hoverboard will only cause the machine to lift off surfaces that are magnetic. In other words, a skatepark full of concrete won't work. For that matter, in true Back To The Future style, neither would water... even if you've got power.

Does any of that techno mumbo-jumbo even matter, though? What we have here is a real-life hoverboard that doesn't look like a poorly conceived high-school science project. The Lexus hoverboard is beautiful, with bamboo decking, a carbon fiber base and, let's be honest, that awesome special-effects-style smoke.

Ross McGouran, a professional skateboarder, seems to agree with our assessment of the merits of the Lexus hoverboard. In a new video from the automaker that you can watch above, McGouran compares the hoverboard to regular skateboards and says riding Lexus' invention is like floating on a cushion of air. Which sounds equal parts difficult and amazing. We look forward to more from McGouran and Lexus.