An inventor has created what he feels is an improvement on the racing cart that is currently used reports Morning Sentinel.
Gaylord Boutilier said he has been leading up to this breakthrough for decades, tinkering in the industry that he views as a lifelong hobby.
Now his goal is to turn the invention into a business in Maine.
Like many inventors, Boutilier, 78, learned through trial and error. He even owned a small factory in Detroit for a short time where he manufactured an early version of the improved technology for racing carts, known as sulkies.
More recently, he has been learning about what Maine has to offer local inventors.
An area company, Bonnevie Machine Shop in Livermore, helped to develop a working model for tests, according to Boutilier. Then engineers at University of Maine worked on testing the invention, known as the equalizer because it stabilizes the ride by isolating the horse from the sulky, he said.
An agent in Farmington helped him secure a patent for the invention, and the economic development agency has introduced him to investors and developers in the area.
For Boutilier, this support is leading toward a new business venture that could create jobs in the area, he said, something that may have been difficult to accomplish without help.
“Without this interest, I’m not sure how I would have approached this,” Boutilier said.
Photo by Number Six (bill lapp)