“New company is taking
some of the hassles out of owning a boat”
By Emily Ziegler
Ven-T Boats have a unique edge in the small boating industry.
This Allenton,
“Our
goal is to bring new people into boating. If you don’t bring them in, they
can’t move up to buy other boats and engines,” said Dave Gruenwald, vice
president of engineering for Brook Stevens, Inc.
Statistics
suggest that once people enter into boating, they will buy five more boats over
their lifetime. But boating participation has been on a general decline since
the mid-1980s when Bayliner was the last company to
make a significant impact on entry level boating. One of the primary causes of
that decline is that the cost of a new boat/motor/trailer package has gotten
out of reach for the average consumer.
According
to a recent article in Composites Manufacturing Magazine, the average outboard
boat sold for $10,144 in 2001 and for $15,006 in 2005.
That’s an increase of 48 percent.
Brook
Stevens is planning on launching the Ven-T Boat to consumers in late 2008 and it
will carry a $7,000 to $8,000 price tag.
“We
aim to change that,” Gruenwald said. “By using the low-cost Briggs and Stratton
engine and joining it to a revolutionary new form of the proven power-vent propulsion
system, we have made a boat ‘for the rest of us.’”
Ven-T
Boats, Inc. created this boat and with some help from a Milwaukee-area angel
investment group. This group has committed $2 million to Ven-T Boats Inc. to
get their innovative boat out on the market. The company was brought to the
group’s attention at the Wisconsin Early Stage Symposium put on by the
Wisconsin Technology Council.
The
15-foot, 6-inch boat uses a surface piercing propeller in a vented tunnel. It
also houses twin rudders and a reliable 26-horsepower engine. The engine is
air-cooled instead of most engines which use a water pump to cool the engine.
The lack of a water pump allows the boat to run quieter. The engine is also
housed in a noise cover to make it quieter.
The
boat also comes with “POWER-VENT.” This patented propulsion system utilizes a
surface piercing propeller. This propeller system works just as well as
non-surface propellers, because the propeller is twice the size of those
propellers. Since the propeller is surface piercing, it sits higher than most
propellers. This allows for the boat to run in only 12 inches of water.
The
engine is unique but still powerful. It can pull water tubers, although not water
skiers. It can reach speeds in the low 20s. A special clutch allows the boat to
slow dramatically down to half a mile per hour via Slow Troll technology.
No
outbound engine allows for more fishing room off the back of the boat. There is
also rod storage on board and the in-tunnel, protected propeller allows for
improved safety while boating.
The
Ven-T Boat helps out with all common boaters problems. Prior to this technology
boaters would have to avoid muddy water as the water pump takes water from
outside the boat to cool the engine and the muddy water would harm the engine.
Boaters also had issues with weeds getting tangled around the propeller. With
the special POWER-VENT system all the boater needs to do is drive in reverse to
get the weeds off of the propeller. The inbound propeller also makes it safer
for swimmers and water tubers to be in the water around the boat.
The
Ven-T Boat is also less susceptible to damage. The propeller is higher and does
not hit rocks as easily. The rudders are special a “pop-up” kind and they pop
up to avoid being damaged by rocks and other obstacles.
All
is all, a boat that should prove a lot less intimidating for non-boaters – and
even experienced boaters who are ready for a change.
Ziegler is currently a
student in the UW-Madison Department of Life Sciences Communication.