Less than two months after teasing an operational hoverboard nicknamed “Slide,” Lexus->ke47 has finally released details, images and a video->ke278 for this sci-fi mode of transportation. Through the use of magnetic levitation and a specially built skate park, the Lexus hoverboard is finally a reality. More impressive, it took just 18 months to create.

The hoverboard is made possible through the use of liquid-nitrogen-cooled superconductors and permanent magnets, and it hovers over a hidden track built into the floor of the custom skate park located in Cubelles, Barcelona. The existence of a track means that the hoverboard is only able to operate in limited areas, but it can still travel over water, grind down a hand rail and jump over a 2016 Lexus GS F. Lexus didn’t say how much it spent to build the hoverboard or skate park, but I’m sure it wasn’t cheap.

Professional skateboarder Ross McGouran was the Guinea pig for the hoverboard demo, and the accompanying video shows just how difficult this sucker is to ride. After riding the hoverboard, McGouran said: "I've spent 20 years skateboarding, but without friction it feels like I've had to learn a whole new skill, particularly in the stance and balance in order to ride the hoverboard. It's a whole new experience."

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Why it matters

It still isn’t clear what a hoverboard – or maglev technology – has to do with the future of luxury cars,->ke505 but Lexus says the whole point of the project was to push the boundaries of technology, design and innovation "to make the impossible possible.” Mission accomplished.