FINNCYCLE BY SUN MOUNTAIN
Not long ago, Rick Reimers figured golf’s slow pace of play was just like the weather. Everyone complained about it but nobody anything about it.
Unlike the weather, however, Reimers knew he could do something about slow play could do something about – hence the FinnCycle was born. A two-wheeled cycle — or, if you prefer, a scooter — with an electric motor and lithium battery offering 36 holes of play on a single charge, the FinnCycle by the way, is named after Reimers’ dog, Finn.
“The first time I took a FinnCycle out on Missoula (Montana) Country Club, I played nine holes in 30 minutes,’’ said Reimers, founder of Sun Mountain Sports and Sun Mountain Motor Sports. “It’s not a long course, but I thought I marked the time wrong. So I played nine holes again – 30 minutes.
“The next time I played on a FinnCycle I played two people in a golf cart. I was down the fairway and they were barely off the tee. That’s when I realized the pace of play was simply too slow to hold the interest of anybody who isn’t retired and has nothing else to do.”
In other words, the FinnCycle is a potential boon for courses whose tee sheets are getting a little long in the tooth — and, especially, modern courses (including Montana’s own Moonlight Basin) that are very spread out with big distances between green and tee that normally require a full-on cart to negotiate.
Quiet and almost as easy to ride as a bicycle, FinnCycle has front and rear suspension. The golf bag sits along the center-line of the cycle offering easy club access and stability. Braking is with a hydraulic disc brake. Available this spring, FinnCycle will be sold to golf courses, Reimers said, through a revenue-sharing model that reduces the up-front cost to the course.
