We reached out to ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo to learn more about his electric boards and how everything started. Inigo is developing the Onean Carver and Onean Manta electric surfboards in Spain.

New electric boards will follow 2018.

E-SURFER:

When you were a teenager, which were your most favourite sports you did yourself?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

I began windsurfing when I was 13 and once you begin there is no way out, you are hooked. The freedom sensation when you are planing over the surface is completely addictive . Once you have tried it, you have no choice but to pursue it.

E-SURFER:

When did you have the idea of an motorised surfboard? Was electric your first choice?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

The idea came up while I was in college, it was one of those days when there was hardly any wind and you realize the weather dependency for this sport. The idea of the Electric propulsion was clear from the beginning because I was already involved with it at school. Once I had the opportunity to begin the project three years ago, electric vehicles were already settling in the market and the tendency to replace these for combustion engines was clear.

E-SURFER:

How did you first prototype look like?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

The first prototype was handcrafted. We needed to quickly validate the feasibility of the concept and we used a commercial windsurf board and incorporated an early stage propulsion system. What we were looking for was to see if lithium batteries were able to stand such power demand.

E-SURFER:

Was your intention to build a business or where you developing for your own fun?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

We were able to launch this project within another company (Bizintek Innova) where we saw the opportunity of developing certain applications for other clients that would demand electric mobility systems. This way the project began as internal training within our company. The objective was to design a 100% electric propulsion system for a surf board besides acquiring knowledge about mobility electronic systems.

E-SURFER:

When did you decide to make electric surfboards your business?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

During the first tests of this first prototype at the beach, we saw the tremendous interest drawn by the Board and we decided to bring this project to a developing phase for its later launching into the market.

E-SURFER:

Which were / are the biggest challenges?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

To begin the production of a product is always a great challenge. And even more with a product of this magnitude which gathers so many areas of knowledge, skills and experience. On the other hand, we are constantly working on our R&D&I to launch new models in the near future.

E-SURFER:

Which was your biggest success so far?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

We believe that one of our biggest achievements is to have designed the entire board in modular systems. This way it’s easier to expand the different options to present to our customers, and this way, each customer can choose the board that best fits to their size and skill level.

E-SURFER:

How often are you riding your own boards?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

Not as often as I would like to. This company demands a lot of dedication and that leaves very little time for trips to the beach but I try to use them at least once a week. Not only to enjoy the ride but also gather more information about the product while its being manufactured.

E-SURFER:

What do you plan or the future?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

We are currently focused on increasing our production capabilities in order meet the demand. We are also working on new models which will be launched next Summer 2018.

E-SURFER:

Anything else your would like to share with your fans?

ONEAN CEO Inigo Sobradillo:

I have been asked in multiple occasions what my preference is in terms of watersports. To be Frank, if there is wind, I go windsurfing, if there isn’t any, I go Jetsurfing. These are complementary sports, it’s not one or the other. When it comes to surfing it is the same. It’s a completely different feeling and the sports behind a board have different routes although the names may seem similar.

Check out their electric boards at www.onean.com and compare the Onean Carver with other electric surfboards in our E-Surfer comparison.