Macomb Man Uses a Different Set of Wheels for Daily Ride
Jeff Colbert travels about 500 miles a year to and from his job at McDonough District Hospital; however, he's not feeling the pinch at the pump like most Americans. That's because the 64-year-old's four-wheeled vehicle is an electric longboard, a longer, wider version of a skateboard. You may have seen him riding his mile-long route on Dudley Street, where his top speed reaches 21 miles per hour.
“I live by the Presbyterian Church, so it's pretty much a straight shot down Dudley,” Colbert said, pointing to his longboard. “Since I have this, we only do, like, 3,000 miles a year in our car. It's just basically around town most of the time, and then an occasional little jaunt elsewhere.'
Colbert has been riding his longboard to work since he moved to Macomb and became the Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (PACS) administrator at McDonough District Hospital in 2014. PACS is the computer system that records and saves digital X-rays, CT scans, MRI scans and other imaging procedures.
Traveling on Four Small Wheels Colbert began skateboarding in the mid-1970s, when he was about 12 years old. His riding days ended when he entered the Air Force in 1982. After he left the military in 1995, he took up two-wheeled transportation.
“Before getting back into skateboarding, I was huge into cycling,” he said. “When I got out of the Air Force, I rode across the country from Oregon to North Carolina. And we're not talking about an electric bike, just a plain bike. We got a camper, and my wife and son and dog followed in the camper.”
After a brief cycling stint, Colbert put down the kickstand and returned to skateboarding – and then moved on to longboarding.
Colbert explained that longboards are strictly for transportation, whereas regular skateboards can be used for doing tricks also. The longer and wider deck of a longboard is flat, ranging from 36 to 46 inches long and about 9 or 10 inches wide, and its wheels are larger than skateboard wheels. Skateboard decks may have kicktails on one or both ends.
“When I started getting into longboarding, I got together with guys from across the country,” said Colbert, who was in his mid-30s at the time. “We went up to California and skated, went to Louisville, Kentucky, and skated at their big skate park.”
Powering the Ride
The popularity of rechargeable electric longboards – power boards – took off in 2014. He bought the board he uses now in 2016. He has about 20 other skateboards and longboards at home. Replacement parts, including electronic components and wheels, are getting harder to find for the older models. However, Colbert calls himself a “tightwad” and prefers to piece together his equipment using his technical know-how.
Colbert begins his rides with a push start and then uses a handheld remote to control speed and breaking.
“When I'm going down Dudley, I just go wide open. A lot of electric bikes don't go as fast as this, and this is considered a slow board,” he said. “If I got the new model of this board, it does 29 [miles per hour].”
Safety on the Streets
“You really have to be on high alert, looking at the ground all the time when you're riding,” Colbert said. “But you got to be aware of traffic and everything, too – little potholes, rocks, sticks, stuff like that. These bigger wheels are a lot better than a standard skateboard, but they will stop in a hurry (if they strike an object in the road). And if you stop, they call it going Superman because you dive off the board like that.”
After two significant wipeouts 15 to 20 years ago, one of which knocked out his front teeth, his wife bought him a helmet. Although Colbert thinks he could still “drop in on a ramp” on a skateboard, he said his skate park days are over.
“The main thing is because when you crash – not if you crash but when you crash, it hurts a lot more,” he said.
Colbert’s helmet is equipped with a GoPro camera on the top. “It's just to document if I get clobbered,” he said. “It's kind of sad to say that, but that's what it's for.”
He’s had several close calls, but he’s never been hit.
“It's like a motorcycle or a bicycle. You have to know that you're invisible. And keep your head on a swivel, always be looking around,” Colbert said, adding that the condition of the road is an important factor for a safe ride. He changed his route from Madison Street to Dudley Street after the latter was repaved.
One-of-a-Kind
Colbert said a few people have tried riding his longboard, deciding it’s not for them. This includes his now-adult son.
“Maybe he saw me crash too often,” he quipped. “I've seen three or four other people in town riding boards by the college. But I've never seen anybody my age riding anything like this.”
Colbert doesn’t anticipate hanging up his longboard soon.
“They say that as you're getting older, one of the good things to keep up with is your balance,' he noted. 'As long as I don't end up conking my head or something, I should be fine.”
When Colbert retires in a couple of years, ending his daily commute, he plans on reviving his interest in cycling. Five bikes are waiting for him in the garage.
