A YEAR IN REVIEW: ONEWHEELING IN 2023
2023 was an amazing year for Onewheeling. The GT matured into a more customizable option and then was locked down again. VESC continued to grow with the ingenuity only possible from a community driven project. The Floatwheel arrived on the scene followed by the GT S-Series. The search for the perfect amount of hub made an exciting discovery in 5 inches. It was a year filled with stoke, but marred with pre-order delays and controversy. Here is a list of some of the things worth remembering in 2023.
January 2023
REWHEEL
Technically speaking Rewheel was first released in December 2022. As described in this reddit post, owners of Onewheels could connect to their boards, enter factory settings, and recalibrate both their BMS (Battery Management System) and digital tilt. This allowed for releveling boards that were previously locked down and opened up the world of angled rails. It also allowed for people to change their own battery without their board becoming disabled.
Later they would add more features such as remote tilt, GT custom shaping, custom pushback settings, and even single zone footpad engagement.
DOGWHEEL: 8TH JANUARY
On January 8th, 2023 Craft and Ride rocked the world when they posted definitive proof that Onewheeling is not just for humans. Greyson is a Pitbull with over 100k followers on TikTok.
AIR PAD DELAY: 15TH JANUARY
The Craft&Ride GT AirPad is a footpad that went up for preorder in late summer/early fall 2022. This was at least the second delay. As a result, many riders would continue to suffer from foot fatigue due to hard plastic stock footpads, dreaming of a day when they could have the relief they craved.
BADGERWHEEL: 19TH JANUARY
On January 3rd, Robert Allen's Badgerwheel joined forces with The Float Life. On January 19th The Float Life must have decided it was working out because they released a video announcing the joining of forces.
He brought his expertise in waterproofing and engineering to help us create awesome new products such as the SureStart Pro. The teased new Kush Light has his fingerprints all over it.
February 2023
TECH RAILS x 1WHEELPARTS
"This has freed me up to focus more time on product development and it has allowed 1wheelparts to focus on marketing"
In early February 2023 Tech Rails products began showing up in the 1wheelparts.com store. This was the result of a partnership that had started growing on Thanksgiving 2022 when Jeff began testing the 357-Ts. I expect he found much to be thankful for that day.
Together they strive to have the best performance parts in the game. They work day and night to get it done and love it.
They put out an array of products in 2023. The Billet Wheel hub, which allows the GT to use a 6 inch tire. The Wedge, for those weak axels. Halo footpads, the widest footpad available on the market. The 357 Katanas are height adjustable angled rails.
If price is no object, the priciest and most premium product on the market today are Tech Rails 357 DaVinci Titanium rails.
I think this was a great partnership because previously the ordering process to buy many Tech Rails products was “Send $100 deposit to my paypal.”
FUN WEEKEND 3: 16 - 19TH FEBRUARY
Wheel Fun Stuff's Fun Weekend 3 took place February 16th - 19th in San Diego, CA. It officially kicked off the racing season.
Pro Men's
- Bodhi Harrison
- Sam Lara
- Austen Silva
Pro Women's
- Allison Stanley
- Mercedes Silva
- Nicole Watamaniuk
STOKEBIRD: 22ND - 25TH FEBRUARY
Stokebird is a free Onewheel gathering in Miami, Florida. It features daily group rides, skill clinics, exploration adventures around Miami, and for those up north an escape from the snowboard attire required for winter riding.
AIR PAD RELEASE: 24TH FEBRUARY
Craft and Ride announced on February 24th on Reddit that the GT Air Pad was finally shipping to customers. Good things come to those who wait. A great choice for any riders suffering from foot fatigue.
March 2023
ONE STOP BOARD SHOP OSBS COLLECTION: 2ND MARCH
If you live on the east coast you should know about One Stop Board Shop. They are the premier shop for all things Onewheel, e-skate, and everything PEV. In March, they began releasing their own product line, the OSBS Collection.
I highly recommend the sensor guards as they have protected my board from multiple impacts that might have required a new front footpad.
The rail armor for WTF's is also a no-brainer if you have any interest in protecting your shiny new rails.
I've met these guys at every Onewheel event I've attended because they go to and sponsor so many events. They are experts at repair. They offer products from everyone including The Float Life, Land-Surf, ProRide, Armor-Dilloz, etc. So their shop is awesome, but I want to really highlight that THEY are awesome.
They came out to sponsor an event and the racer count for Onewheels was low. I said “You gotta race with us.” and the owner Brian Lindy suited up and hit the course. The day would not have been the same without his team.
GOAT TIRE DELAY: 10TH MARCH
The GOAT tire for the GT went up for pre-order in November 2022 with an expected shipping date of early 2023. In March we learned more work was required on the tire. Bummer.
LEMONADE FLOAT FEST/UNDERGROUND FINALS: 29TH MARCH - 2ND APRIL
I believe Mr. Jeff Adair is better equipped to tell you about Lemonade Float Fest and the Underground Finals.
Men's Finals
- Riley Johnson
- Branden LaCour
- Luke Austin
Women's Finals
- Amanda Thompson
- Hannah Wells
- Allison Stanley
April 2023
LET IT RIDE 2: 14TH APRIL
Picture yourself a Onewheel rider living in Las Vegas in 2023. You're interested in racing and find out there is an ORL qualifier nearby. With all the confidence in the world you sign up and when you arrive you see Noah Mead do this. This event is not for the faint of heart.
Women's Finals
- Mercedes Silva
- Allison Stanley
- Raequel McCosker
Men's Finals
- Jahfari Silsley
- Jeff Adair
- Neil Bennett
GO FUND BODHI: 19TH APRIL
On April 19th Kash Harrison created a GoFundMe for her little brother Bodhi. The community has raised over $16,000 to help him in his time of need. Damn, for that kind of money he could have flown to a country with public healthcare and had enough left over to buy a few more Onewheels.
WTF HOMEBREW RAILS
WTF Rails became available in April 2023. Rewheel and the unlocking of digital tilt on the GT opened up the world of custom rails that ride at the height the rider desires. The Float Life made the decision to avoid pre-orders entirely. They are available in Standard, Low-Rider, and STEEP & DEEP.
STREET PRO 2
Street riders got a real treat with the release of the Street Pro 2 for the GT. Lighter, softer, torquier, and stokier than the stock slick. A nimble and smooth tire that will eat bumps all day. Nom nom nom.
RIP REWHEEL - 27TH APRIL
A message was posted to the ReWheel discord channel notifying members that the repository and all tutorial videos would be removed that evening. Luckily, users flocked to git to check out the latest version of the project.
While it is not under active development, it is still accessible to those who know where to look. →
WEAK AXELS: 30TH APRIL
Onewheel Mob Shop and others have noted that due to a decreased wall thickness on the GT stator, riders were breaking their axels more often on GT than on the XR. As always, the community began working on solutions to strengthen the axel and reduce expensive breaks.
Float Blocks, Clock Blocks, NimRODs, RamRODs, and The Wedge. You have many options, but none of them will work after the axel is broken so start looking today.
VESC PROGRESS
I'm still a VESC beginner, so I reached out to an expert to get his thoughts on VESC in 2023. Here's Nico Aleman.
The very beginning of 2023 is basically when the Float Package became a thing. It basically made tuning way more safe and accessible, with safe default values, max/min values, help texts for every parameter, along with tons of Onewheel-specific features. Was worked on by me and Dado, with some help from Mitch Lustig as well.
Before that, you had to be extremely careful about tuning to make sure you weren't doing anything unsafe, you had to read up on documentation to figure out what things did what, it was kind of a mess. So that was a huge one, technically released in December but basically was fleshed out through the beginning of the year until April or so.
Other than that, just progression on pretty much all fronts. Software improved with features added over time, the Float Control and Floaty apps continued to improve and make the experience more user friendly and accessible. More Onewheel-specific DIY hardware continued to be released such as the FloatBoxx and AV Box controller enclosures. Just huge boost in numbers of people joining the VESC community throughout the year, including hundreds of Floatwheels out there.
From a racing perspective, the first big race of the year, Underground Finals, saw Riley Johnson winning by a longshot on his VESC with remote, control freaks, and Big Tire which kicked off that movement. From then on, many of the big races saw VESC racers among the top 5 overall including Oak City Shred Fest (Time Trials had Enrique Garcia 2nd Overall and me 5th, and Enrique and I had the 1st and 2nd fastest overall H2H lap times respectively), DirtSurferz Enduro (I got 5th Overall), FloatLife Fest (I had 3rd fastest Time Trial and got 2nd in the Mass Start Race), and finishing the season with the WinMan Enduro where I came out on top, winning Overall Fastest and beating out Austen Silva in 2nd who was on a GT.
The entire year also saw a huge rise of Remote Tilt users in general, specifically for racing. I worked on it late last year but it wasn't really publicly available until the Float Package became a thing, and grew more and more in popularity as the year went on. Basically anyone seriously racing VESC rocks a remote now.
I have tried remote tilt and it's incredibly fun.
May 2023
OAK CITY SHREDFEST: 4TH - 7TH MAY
On the outskirts of Raleigh North Carolina, Oak City Shredfest 3 was a mind blowing experience. Floating through the streets of Raleigh for the Star Wars themed May the 4th ride, hunting for squirrels, racing, trick comps, group rides, live music, this event has it all.
Men's Finals
- Noah Mead
- Jeff Adair
- Finn Holcomb
Women's Finals
- Racheal Cecil
- Kay Love
- Heather Graehl
Open
- Enrique Garcia
- Kyle Klausing
- Nico Aleman
ARMOR-DILLOZ GETS REAL: 13TH MAY
On May 13th Cory Boehne of Armor-Dilloz posted his frustrations of other tire sealants popping appearing on the market. I highlighted this post because we saw more of that in general in 2023 with alternatives to niche products becoming available. Are they stepping on each other's toes? Will we see more in 2024? I expect so.
My own Facebook profile picture was taken by Cory at Oak City this year. So many great people like him contribute to this community in ways we don't always see. If you're opening up your wallet for tire sealant in the near future show him some love.
DIRTSURFERZ: 19TH - 21ST MAY
Dirtsurferz is an 8 mile Enduro race that takes place in Eureka Springs, AK. Rather than head to head races, you have individually 7 timed stages giving you a final time.
Women's Finals
- Rachel Payne
- Allison Stanley
- Racheal Cecil
Men's Finals
- Kyle Hansen
- Jessy Turpin
- FLOATY Mcfly
Open VESC
- Nico Aleman
- Adonijah Silsley
- Diego Rocha
June 2023
SEEK N SHRED SHREDFEST 3: 15TH - 18TH JUNE
Head up into the mountains for this PEV focused music festival in Wilseyville, CA. If trick comps, chair races, and good vibes are your thing this is the place to be.
Men's Finals
- Thor Callaghan
- Jahfari Silsley
- Brendan Schurmeier
Women's Finals
- Mercedes Silva
- Allison Stanley
- Raequel McCosker
RACE THE LAKE: 17TH - 19TH JUNE
I couldn't find any videos or results for this one. Let me know in the comments if you have a link to something.
MTE 5" REVEAL: 20TH JUNE
The Float Life finally revealed their much anticipated MTE 5" hub on June 20th by showing off the crazy stunts that can be achieved with extra sidewall.
GRIPPLES
Fix your sensor activation issues, lock yourself in, protect your rails, or buy a 69 pack and create art with them…somehow. The grippiest gripples on the market.
July 2023
NORTHWEST ELECTRIC FEST: 13TH - 17TH JULY
Like Dirtsuferz, NWEF is an individually timed race in Lynx Hollow Oregon. Unlike Dirtsurferz, your heats start in groups so you have other racers to contend with. Show off your air in the Bonk contest, or bring along your groms for the adult chaperoned kids races.
Men's
- Jahfari Silsley
- Tyler James
- Les Carroll
Women's
- Raequel McCosker
- Sarah Meeker
- Mercedes Silva
FLOATWHEEL ADV ARRIVES: LATE JULY
Early adopters of the Floatwheel ADV began receiving their boards in late July. Skeptics were quickly turned into believers when the comparison videos and reviews started coming out. With prices starting at $1599, outperforming the higher priced GT (and possibly the GT-S) and running on the VESC platform it is the first serious competition to Future Motion.
August 2023
STREET SPARKS: EARLY AUGUST
Spark up your ride with Street Sparks from Fluid Theory. Put on a show at night with a little tail drag that will go off like fireworks.
COLD ONES: EARLY AUGUST
Make overheating an issue of the past with Cold Ones. Installed over the axels in less than 10 minutes. Add a little flair of your own color style with colored Tabs.
WHEEL LIFE RALLY: 26TH - 27TH AUGUST
Wheel Life Rally features both EUC and Onewheel races and takes place at The Wick 338 in Southwick, Mass. The Wick is a world renowned Motocross track with 28 acres of groomed and natural terrain to contend with. Next year, One Stop Board Shop is set to become the official partner of Wheel Life Rally for 2024.
- Jonathan Massimino
- Collin Chandler
- Brian Lindy
September 2023
DROP TOP FENDER: EARLY SEPTEMBER
The days of deciding between fender or fenderless are over. The answer is yes. Drop the fender in on the muddy days. Take your top off on the sunny days. The Drop Top fender is the answer for whatever the world (or your tire) throws at you.
RACE FOR THE RAIL: 8TH-9TH SEPTEMBER
Race for the Rail is the championship Onewheel race of the year. In order to qualify you had to either win a regional qualifier, or be among the top ranked 12 Pro Men and 8 Pro Women.
Men's
- Tyler James
- Kyle Hansen
- Jahfari Silsley
Women's
- Rachael Cecil
- Rachel Payne
- Raequel McCosker
FLOAT LIFE FEST 6: 14TH-17TH SEPTEMBER
Did you know The Float Life doesn't run Float Life Fest? Crazy! FLF 6 returned to Camp Grier, NC for 2023. The final ORL event of the season and the last chance to gain points to become the Season Champion.
Men's
- Jahfari Silsley
- Josh Knoerzer
- Austin Silva
Women's
- Rachael Cecil
- Mercedes Silva
- Kay Love
Open
- Tyler DeFalco
- Wessley Uptagrafft
- Henry Dantzer
2023 Season Champions
- Rachael Cecil
- Jahfari Silsley
GOAT TIRE BEGINS SHIPPING: 27TH SEPTEMBER
"A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad."
After a VERY long wait, the GOAT tire from Flight Fins began shipping in September. A true trail tire, it is light fast and responsive. It has become the go-to choice for many pros and casual riders alike. I spend wayy too much time viewing Onewheel related social media and I've yet to see anyone have a negative thing to say about the tire. It was truly worth the wait.
RECALL, CUSTOM SHAPING 3.0, HAPTIC BUZZ: 29TH SEPTEMBER
Onewheel officially announced a recall of all boards on September 29th 2023. Which basically meant a software update for the board itself, or the firmware. The update was for initially available for GT with Pint, Pint-X, and XR+ coming in the following weeks. For the original Onewheel and Plus, a $100 store credit was offered if the owner agreed to stop using their board.
The firmware update introduced Haptic Buzz. It introduces a modulation of the motor to create an audible and tactile feedback. A good explanation of how it is done on VESC is available here.
Concerningly, the firmware also locked out features previously available to GT owners such as re-leveling their board and changing the battery.
Lastly, it introduced Custom Shaping 3.0. Previewed at Race for the Rail, it added features such as single zone footpad engagement, dynamic responsiveness, and turn compensation.
October 2023
ONEWHEEL FACTORY TEAM: 12TH OCTOBER
On October 12th Onewheel announced the formation of the Factory Team. Pro riders who will push the sport forward to help design and test new products and do demos and clinics around the country. While no one questions that these pros all deserve their spot, some have pointed out their common denominator of all previously being riders associated with The Float Life.
@turningmagnets
@trailhover
@bodhiharrison
@tylertheexplorer_
@thewheelneil
WINMAN ENDURO: 6TH-8TH OCTOBER
A 6 stage, 6+ mile enduro race through the WinMan Trails in Northern Wisconsin. The WinMan Enduro is supported by and ran in partnership with Dirtsurferz.
Men's Foothold/Future Motion
- Colton Pratt
- Luke Austin
- Eddie Metz
Men's No Foothold/Future Motion
- Austin Silva
- Jesse Turpin
- Luke Austin
Men's Open/VESC
- Nico Aleman
- Enrique Garcia
- Brooks McMahon
Women's Open
- Mercedes Silva
- Zayne Carter
- Sarah Meeker
DEFT PUNX FALL FEST: 19TH-22ND OCTOBER
The racing season has come to an end. The temperature has begun to drop. We must prepare our boards for the hibernation of winter. Much like a bear overeating in the fall to build up fat reserves, the Deft Punx Fall Fest is a final chance to build up your stoke reserves for the coming winter when floatpurtunities are scarce. A gathering of passionate Onewheelers who have spent the last year giving back to the community finally getting a chance to unwind and shoot each other with gel blasters.
FLOAT BLOCKS
Remember those weak axels back in April? Float Blocks replace your stock Axel carriers and add three main benefits. They allow you to mount the wheel vertically rather than horizontally. This reduces strain on the portion of the axels that are weak.
They are also finned to allow air to pass through and draw heat from your motor. Heat degrades the magnets in your motor over time.
Lastly, when rotated you get a little extra motor cable. Those things are weak and there are like 4 motor cable retention products out there.
ONEWHEEL GT S-SERIES: 27TH OCTOBER
An unexpected new flagship board came in October 2023, the Onewheel GT S-Series. It is a performance focused board. Lighter, more powerful, and lower form factor create a superior out of the box experience compared to the original Onewheel GT. Fully compatible with all GT third party accessories. It's a beast.
November 2023
GÜDRUN – NORTHWOODS MTB FESTIVAL: 10TH-12TH NOVEMEBER
Another event that I couldn't find a lot of information about, the Gudrun takes place in Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas.
Jeff Adair was the champion of the day.
MTE 5" HUB
While some look at an XR+ rim and think “This needs a bit more rim” others decided to go in a different direction and shoot for more tire. More sidewall. More cushion for the pushin. You know, like when you're really pushing it on the trails.
If you're like me, you are excited to see how these new hubs perform come race season 2024.
ONE 13: 21ST NOVEMBER
Onewheel released their first film One13 in the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Cocoanut Grove Theater. It features the new Factory Team pulling off incredible feats with the new Onewheel GT S-Series around California, Nevada, and Utah. If you haven't seen it already go watch it now. I recommend the best way to enjoy it is to put on your headphones, play your favorite music, and watch it on mute.
B.A.N.G. BUMPERS
Long awaited. Poorly imitated. The most asked question of 2023 was “When GT BANGS?” In November we got the answer. Youtube tier 2 subscribers got the first crack at them. Slippy, slidey, and durable BANG bumpers are the crème de la crème.
THE LOCKED DOWN FUTURE OF ONEWHEELS: 29TH NOVEMEBER
Jeff will explain it better than I can, so you should watch this.
I have no association with TFL other than they let me write a few blog posts. I wanted to add how this has personally affected me. My GT died the day before my GT-S was set to arrive. I experienced major stoke loss. When my GT-S arrived I thought I could get my stoke back, but found I didn't get my bundle despite ordering day 1. Reached out to Onewheel and they only offered a $15 coupon in place of my $200 bundle. Now I don't trust them to fix my GT and not try and pull some similar shenanigans on me. I'm still trying to get my stoke back.
Also I really want to install my Steep & Deeps. But digital tilt was locked away again, so I have to choose between a customization I love or riding with an improperly leveled board, reducing my safety. Thanks FM.
December 2023
ONEWHEEL ENDS FUSER 4 YEAR XR+ DAY STREAK
On April 2nd 2019, Onewheel enthusiast Fuser put at least one mile on his Onewheel XR+. He would continue to do this every day for over 4 years. In early December 2023 he finally gave up the #1 spot.
I reached out to discover why he ended his streak. Vacation? Injury? Life get in the way? Nope! App error. It will not let him collect another day streak. His GT-S won't even log a new day streak as seen below. He's tried deleting the app and reinstalling, so many things. What an absolutely devastating way to end a once in a lifetime streak.
Fuser retains his #1 mileage spot, but similarly cannot log anymore miles. On his app he has over 42,000 but as of today the leaderboard still shows him at 41,960 miles.
Will the current reigning day streak champion 801WHEEL sTOker JOnz run into the same issue soon? Time will tell.
KUSH LO FOOTPAD
In early December 2023, The Float Life fired back at the repeated copies of their innovations by releasing a copy of the Low Boy footpad. Just kidding.
A mellower concave than the Kush Wide, rounder edges, and of course the nice comfy urethane material. Choose Street or Trail grit.
FLOATWHEEL GTV KIT: 18TH DECEMBER
Some wonderful news to close out 2023, Tony from Floatwheel announced the development of a drop in VESC replacement controller and BMS for the Onewheel GT. He expects it to outperform the GT S-Series.
Kits for the XR+, Pint, and Pint X are also in development.
Bradford Bowes
November 23, No love for the 30 day Bowtie Challenge. First GTS awarded for taking the time at Bowtie Loop in San Diego. A time that had not been taken since it was set by an hidden XR record days before the first Underground season ended. WFS even did a documentary video for it. Chabre Schumacher earned the GTS with an astounding time after grinding for 2 days and over 60 attempts going back and worth Travis Frerichs up to the stop time.
Cal
Nice recap — I actually liked the one13 music, was I the only one? 😅
Jim
Axle not axel.
Braden
Sweet Review. Would love to see an FM focused one starting way back to where we are now. Good and Bad.
Canada Dave
I got footage and results for race for the lak I was there
LEt me know if you interested