Fairway Golf Cars zeros in on adaptive car market

Golf Course News, Jun 2002 by Overbeck, Andrew

WAUKESHA, Wis. - A year after introducing the latest version of its Spirit adaptive golf car, Fairway Golf Cars has rolled out a full line of vehicles.

New president Cole Braun, who came on board in January, said the company is focusing on getting its sales force into action this year and aggressively attacking the golf market.

"Last year we finalized the product and this year we need to get out there and educate the customers," said Braun. "We want to have a course per region put in a fleet of our cars when they open."

Fairway Golf Cars has eight salesmen in 20 states who are targeting new golf courses and national accounts.

The company, which used to be a division of medical scooter maker Ortho-Kinetics, is now a completely separate entity. While they still share manufacturing space and purchase components from OrthoKinetics, Fairway Golf Cars has its own board of directors and its own investors.

"They developed the product and we can still draw on their talent and experience," said Braun. "But we have the product expertise in the golf market."

In addition to its 330-pound Spirit adaptive car with hand controls, the company has introduced its Single Rider 8000 one-- passenger car and its Freedom Walk power caddy.

The Single Rider 8000 weighs in at 480 pounds and looks and drives like a two-- passenger golf car. Braun said the vehicle is geared toward the mildly disabled golfer, but also expects in the long-term that the single rider concept will catch on as a golf course fleet vehicle. The company has already installed a fleet of Single Riders at The Village at Lady Lake in Florida.

"Over time we think this car can speed up the game and help retain those three million people that leave the game of golf because it takes too long," said Braun.

The Freedom Walk power caddy is geared toward golfers who still enjoy walking, but don't have the stamina to carry a golf bag for 18 holes. It operates via handle controls or has a cruise control mode that allows for hands-free operation.

Since the Justice Department has yet to directly force golf courses to supply adaptive cars as part of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Braun said the market is limited to golf courses that are being proactive.

While the company has already signed exclusive contracts with the Waukesha and Milwaukee park systems, Braun said the marketing job is just beginning.

"If the car just sits there all summer unused, then people will say that they don't need the product and that will make it harder to develop the market," he said. "Our job is to promote the product and make sure that they use it."

The Spirit retails for $4,495, the Single Rider 8000 for $3,700 and the Freedom Walk for $2,495.