Ex-rickshaw driver crowdfunds £250k for aquatic hoverboard invention

Inventor Ross Kemp on his powered hoverboard

A former West End rickshaw driver has created a high-speed aquatic hoverboard partly inspired by battery-assisted pedicabs .

Ross Kemp’s 23kg Wave Jam electric-powered water craft, made from dense foam, zips along at 10mph. Propulsion comes from a 4,000rpm propeller inside a tube.

Mr Kemp, 30, had the idea for a powered board while doing swimming therapy for a broken leg. He thought of turbocharging it after ferrying passengers around Covent Garden while competitors used battery-assisted rickshaws. He said: “I designed it as a rescue product because as a lifesaver myself I realised how difficult it is to tow someone back to shore. But I realised it was loads of fun and we needed a leisure version too.”

He pitched an early design on the BBC’s Be Your Own Boss show. He has now raised £250,000 on Crowdcube for his latest version.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in