sknowbest

A s you walk around any snowmobile consumer show, you are likely to see people with large coils of black plastic in their possession. Chances are, it's not garden edging they're lugging around, it's probably a Sknowbest Ultra Glide. We met with Pat Meacham, one of the four inventors who collaborated on the patented glide system and brought it to market.

"The Ultra Glide is one of those ideas that just seemed too obvious," Meacham explained. "The 'Glides' ribs are deep enough to keep the carbide from cutting into the base, which means they don't wear out."

In addition to keeping the trailer deck from being cut up by carbides, "the Ultra Glides reduce friction while you're loading and unloading," he added. "They're not a very high tech kind of product, so we haven't bothered measuring the coefficient of drag. But you can pull the sled up easier, and it doesn't smoke belts like you get when the carbide bites into the plywood and aluminum of the trailer deck. Plus, the sled is always lined up perfectly for tying down."

Meacham and his main partner, Mike Zeilinger, have a number of other trailer deck products on the market. "We have a couple of turn-out Glides available for drive-on/ drove-off trailers. One is a fixed radius model, the other is flexible, to allow the consumer to make it fit his trailer."

Sknowbest has also begun manufacturing a lower profile version of the original Ultra Glide in response to consumer demand. With the growth of enclosed trailer market, there is also a Beaver Tail Glide that replaces the heavy plywood tail on the door with a pre-formed set of glides and track grippers.

"There are a lot of cheap imitations on the market these days," says Meacham. "But our Ultra Glides are the only product to come with Glide Clips, which allow the glide to expand in the sunlight without buckling."

They are made of recycled HDPE and come available in 20, 40, 60 and 80-foot rolls. "We're the only company that sells our glides in coils so that the consumer can cut it to fit exactly to his or her trailer. That means no seams, and less hassle."

For more information, contact Sknowbest at 888/756-9278 • www.sknowbest.com