It’s the age-old philosophical question for skateboarders from around the world: If you learn a new skateboarding trick, but no one’s around to see it, did you actually learn a new trick? Philosophy aside, a start-up company, Krack, is quickly pushing the boundaries of fitness wearables to help the extreme sporting community enter the wearable, data-generated industry. Tyler Hayes, writer for FastCompany.com explains, “Krack is trying to quantify skateboarding the same way that running and other types of movement have been successfully mined for data.”
Starting with quantifying skateboarding, Krack aims to implement “the ultimate hardware by and for skateboarders.” It starts with a simple idea: skateboarding is a very technical sport, with quick and precise movements. Therefore, there is potential to measure these movements and show these athletes detailed data about their skills.
The tricky (no pun intended) part comes from developing complex algorithms that can detect that slightest difference in movement. As Hayes points out, “A 9-year-old beginner’s Ollie is completely different from someone who’s 35 and has been skating for decades.”
Through tiny sensors that attach to the bottom of a skateboard, Krack uses a gyroscope, accelerometer, and magnetometer to collect the data that goes into these algorithms. The most important aspect of this technology, according to founder Kevin Straszburger, is that these sensors are so small and so light that it will not affect your skateboarding in any way. The website gives potential consumers one promise: “we will never make our beloved skateboards less beautiful and pure than they are today.”
So, once skateboarders are able to collect this data, how can it be used? Most obviously, it can be used to track their own progress, by detecting accomplished tricks and having proof to share with family, friends, and peers. Beyond the tricks, however, Krack aims to enhance the skateboarding community through their achievements and locations. Skaters can build profiles, learn of different skating locations, and connect with others who are using the app.
The smart hardware start-up is still in the research stages, as they aim to collect enough data to develop an algorithm that can recognize simple tricks, and automatically adjust to recognize new tricks. It’s a work in progress, but they may be on their way to revolutionizing the future of wearable technology.