How fast do electric skateboards go? No-load speeds by board

Journ-E's own boards are rated at no-load top speeds between 15 and 60 km/h: the Nova 15 km/h, the Origins and Apex 40 km/h, the Relentless 48 km/h, the Spartan 51 km/h and the Phantom 60 km/h. No-load means the wheels are spinning freely with nobody on the deck. The guest-brand DNASkate V4 is listed by its maker at up to 45 km/h. With a rider on board, weight, battery level, hills and headwind all pull real speed below those figures.

How fast is each Journ-E electric skateboard?

The figures below come from each board's product listing. Journ-E top speeds are no-load figures, so treat them as a ceiling, not a cruising speed. Prices are in rand and include VAT.

Board	Price	Top speed (no load)	Listed range	Motor	Listed rider level
Nova	R4,499	15 km/h	12-15 km	300 W single hub	Beginner / casual
Origins	R9,999	40 km/h	Up to 20 km	Dual 600 W hub (1200 W)	Beginner to intermediate
Phantom	R12,299	60 km/h	30-35 km	Dual 1200 W	Beginner / intermediate
Apex	R17,999	40 km/h	Up to 25 km	Dual 1650 W belt (3300 W)	Intermediate to experienced
Spartan	R14,999	51 km/h	Up to 65 km	Dual 800 W hub	Intermediate to experienced
Relentless	R19,999	48 km/h	Up to 50 km	Dual 3500 W belt	Experienced
DNASkate V4	R20,999	Up to 45 km/h (maker's figure)	Up to approximately 35 km	Dual 500 W hub	Listed for riders 16 and older

Top speed alone will not choose a board for you. The Phantom has the highest no-load figure at 60 km/h and weighs only 6.8 kg, the Spartan pairs 51 km/h with the longest listed range (up to 65 km), and the Relentless (48 km/h) is built for off-road riding on 140 mm airless honeycomb wheels. To weigh every spec side by side, use the board comparison page or browse all Journ-E electric skateboards.

What does no-load top speed mean?

Every Journ-E top speed is a no-load figure: the board on a stand, the wheels spinning free and nobody on the deck. On the Spartan, for example, that is how the remote's display read 51 km/h. It is an honest, repeatable way to compare boards, but it is not the speed you will hold on the road.

A motor with nothing to push is running at its no-load speed. For a DC motor, Motion Control Tips defines no-load speed as the speed at nominal voltage with zero load, and notes that an increase in the load on a motor causes a decrease in speed. Put a rider on the deck and the wheels on tar, and the motors have to work against rolling resistance, air resistance and any slope, so the reachable speed drops below the bench figure.

Remote readouts need care for a second reason: some remotes calculate speed rather than measure it. On VESC-based setups, the displayed speed is worked out from settings such as gear ratio and wheel diameter. In one VESC Project forum thread, a rider's geared mountainboard remote showed around 200 km/h because the setup was set to direct drive. Once the gear ratio and wheel size were entered, it showed about 44 km/h. So treat every no-load figure as a ceiling for comparing boards, not a riding speed.

What slows an electric skateboard down in the real world?

Each factor below changes the load on the motors or the voltage available to them, and most of them lower the speed a board can hold. Our guide to electric skateboard range covers how the same factors eat into distance.

Rider weight

A heavier rider presses the wheels harder into the ground. Rolling resistance is usually expressed as a coefficient multiplied by that downward (normal) force, so more weight means more resistance at every speed. Evolve, an electric skateboard manufacturer, notes that heavier riders draw more current, which cuts range, and that motors work harder on inclines.

Six of the seven boards have a listed maximum load: 70 kg for the Nova, 120 kg for the Origins and Phantom, 150 kg for the Spartan and Relentless, and 200 kg for the Apex. No maximum load is listed for the DNASkate V4. If you are close to a board's rating, read our weight limit guide for heavier riders.

Battery level

For a DC motor, speed follows voltage. Motion Control Tips states that when the load on a motor is constant, speed is proportional to supply voltage. A lithium-ion battery's voltage is not fixed: Battery University gives 4.2 V per cell at full charge, a nominal 3.6 V and a lower limit of about 2.8 to 3.0 V, and explains that voltage under load depends on the current drawn and the battery's internal resistance. In principle, a board has the most speed available on a full charge and less as the pack drains.

Gradient

On a slope, part of the combined weight of rider and board pulls back down the hill. OpenStax Physics gives that component as mass times gravity times the sine of the slope angle, and it grows as the slope gets steeper.

The listed climb ratings are 10° for the Nova, 15° for the Origins, 20° for the Phantom, and 25° for the Spartan, Apex and Relentless. The DNASkate V4 is listed at a 30% gradient, which is a different measure: a 30% gradient works out to roughly 17°. A climb rating tells you what a board is rated to get up, not how fast it will get there.

Wheels and surface

Wheel size changes how far a board travels for each turn of the motor. As our guide to electric skateboard wheel sizes and types explains, on a hub-driven board a larger wheel raises the effective gearing, but it also gives the motor less mechanical advantage, so acceleration softens and gradients get harder. Surface matters too: loose or soft ground adds rolling resistance compared with a hard surface, the textbook example being sand compared with concrete. If you fit a different wheel size, a remote that calculates speed from a wheel diameter setting may no longer read accurately.

Headwind

Air resistance depends on your speed through the air, not over the ground. NASA's Glenn Research Center explains that airspeed is ground speed minus wind speed, with a headwind counted as a negative wind speed, so a headwind adds to your airspeed. NASA's drag equation shows drag rising with the square of velocity.

Ride at 30 km/h into a 20 km/h headwind and you face the drag of 50 km/h of airspeed, about 2.8 times the drag of riding at 30 km/h in still air. In still air, according to the Physics Hypertextbook, the power needed to overcome drag rises with the cube of speed, which helps explain why the last few km/h are the hardest to find.

How can you check your real top speed?

To measure it yourself on the move:

1. Start with a fully charged battery.
2. Use a GPS speed app on your phone as a cross-check on the remote.
3. Choose a flat, smooth stretch of private ground where you have permission to ride.
4. Ride it in both directions, so a tailwind one way and a headwind the other do not skew the result.
5. Average several passes. TechGearLab reports an average over at least three test passes, because radar guns sometimes caught one-off top speeds that boards could not maintain.

Which top speed suits your riding level?

A higher top speed is only useful if you can control it. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) advises skateboarders to master the basics, especially how to stop, slow down and turn, before trying anything more advanced. Here is how the listed rider levels line up:

• New and casual riders: the Nova, 15 km/h no-load with a 4-speed remote.
• Beginners who plan to progress: the Origins (40 km/h no-load) and Phantom (60 km/h no-load). The Phantom has a 3-speed remote, so start in the lowest mode. Check the manual for what each mode allows before you ride.
• Intermediate to experienced riders: the Spartan (51 km/h no-load) and the Apex (40 km/h no-load).
• Experienced riders: the Relentless, 48 km/h no-load.
• Riders aged 16 and older: the DNASkate V4 is listed with an age guide rather than a skill level. It has 4 speed modes and a top speed of up to 45 km/h.

For how one motor compares with two, see single-drive vs dual-drive electric skateboards.

What safety gear should you wear?

The AAOS lists the following protective equipment for skateboarding. Its guidance covers skateboarding in general, not electric boards specifically.

• A quality bicycle or multi-sport helmet that meets or exceeds US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) standards.
• Wrist guards, which the AAOS says have been shown to reduce the frequency and severity of wrist fractures.
• Knee and elbow pads.
• Closed-toe shoes with slip-resistant soles.
• Goggles or glasses to keep debris out of your eyes.

Our protective full-finger riding gloves add palm and knuckle protection, in sizes S to XL at R450. They are an extra layer for your hands, not a replacement for wrist guards or a helmet.

Is it legal to ride at these speeds?

Top speed and legality are separate questions, and this article does not give legal advice. For where electric skateboards stand under South African law, read are electric skateboards legal in South Africa?

Frequently asked questions

What is the fastest electric skateboard Journ-E sells?

The Phantom, at 60 km/h no-load. Next are the Spartan (51 km/h, with the longest listed range at up to 65 km) and the Relentless (48 km/h, built for off-road riding). Remember these are no-load figures: with a rider, every board is slower.

Why is my board slower than its listed top speed?

Listed figures are no-load ceilings. Rider weight, a partly drained battery, an uphill gradient, a rough or soft surface and a headwind all add load or reduce the voltage available, and each one lowers the speed a board can reach.

Can the Spartan really do 51 km/h?

51 km/h is the Spartan's no-load top speed, measured on a stand with the wheels spinning free and no rider. With you on board, your weight, the battery charge, any gradient and headwind lower the speed you can actually reach, so expect less on the road.

Is a single-drive board slower than a dual-drive board?

In the Journ-E range, the only single-drive board, the Nova, has the lowest listed top speed. But speed also depends on battery voltage, load and wheel size, so compare full specs.

Still working out how much speed you need? Our buying help page has a rider match questionnaire that filters boards by weight, terrain and distance, a range calculator, and a way to ask the team directly.