Founders Ian Bowie (left) Ross Benns (second from left) and Christine Benns (second from right) changed their love of water sports into an innovative and exciting business. “The idea of enjoying wake boarding without the environmental implications of using a speed boat really intrigued us—we just needed to find the right venue and the right application to do it.” After years of scouting the GTA for an ideal spot and hurdling through power supply and government regulations, Rail Yard Wake Park opened for business in 2013.

“We wanted to capture the true feeling of traditional Wake Boarding and open it up to the public. You can literally show up here with a set of swim trunks and everything else is taken care of.” Capturing the true feeling of Wake Boarding required a drive system that was robust enough to handle a solid 12-15 hours of uninterrupted use, along with integrated electronics for ultra-precise speed control and wireless capability.

The zip line application was designed and built by Germany based Sesitec and came equipped with SEW drives and electronics. However, operations managers Ross and Ian knew that any downtime would result in disappointed customers. “ We wouldn’t want to see the look on the faces of our guests if one of our two lines went down. An average ride is 7-10 minutes, so we need to be sure any problems can be addressed quickly. Sesitec has a great reputation for expedited delivery of critical components, but we needed a service protocol in place specifically for the drive system.”

After a quick chat with a colleague, Ross discovered that SEW-Eurodrive has several Canadian offices that could replace or repair the drives and electronics 24/7/365. “We got on the phone immediately, and talk about rapid response, Scott Gallop called us back right away—then he showed up to our park the following week. Scott told us exactly what we wanted to hear, and based on his responsiveness, we knew he meant what he said.”

“We really appreciated Scott’s level of interest in what we do and we didn’t even buy anything! This just shows you what type of company Eurodrive really is—they care. When the time comes for servicing our drive system, we will definitely make it SEW.