2009 Innovator of the Year Finalist: Kuat Innovations LLC

Kuat Innovations LLC is racking up points among bicycle enthusiasts for its lightweight aluminum bike racks.

"When we went after it, we said, 'Let's go high-end (with a rack) that looks great, works great,'" says co-founder Luke Kuschmeader, "and after the prototype came out, we knew we had something worth exploring."

The "eureka moment" for Kuat - which they say rhymes with "blue hat" - came while Kuschmeader and co-founder Brian Atkinson were hanging out with Atkinson's dad, Ron, who worked at a company that made aluminum vehicle hitch racks for all-terrain vehicles. That got the co-founders thinking about whether anyone was making aluminum bike racks.

The duo's research didn't turn up any, and local bike shops confirmed that such a product would be unique, Kuschmeader says.

A remodeling company operated by the pair allowed them to fund work on a prototype. Bikers themselves, they focused on what they would want: lightweight, easy to fold and store, and a hip look.

They bought aluminum and started welding their sketches into reality.

"They all broke horrendously bad. ... We just put it down," Kuschmeader recalls of the early production days. "We just kind of lost interest. I don't know how many prototypes we did, probably 20."

After working on sample racks throughout 2004 and into 2005, the partners hit on one that worked.

"I found a way to make it fold up, which was huge," Kuschmeader says. "We found a way to make it tighten in the receiver that our competitors weren't doing ... with just your hand (and) without tools."

Kuat officially opened last year with Kuschmeader and partners Guy Mace, former president and CEO of Turblex Inc., and John Raidel, owner of Ridewell Corp. Atkinson has since left the company.

A turning point in the design process came after an engineer suggested Kuschmeader and Atkinson work with a computer-aided-design professional, and that's when Jim Quintas came on board and worked on getting the kinks out. The folks at Springfield bike shop Cycles Unlimited provided feedback, and local machinists helped refine the prototype.

Kuat's first product was the Alpha, a 13-pound rack that comes in two colors and can hold up to three bikes. It folds up for easy and quick storage, and its hitch cam system is likewise as simple: Insert rack and turn knob by hand. By using aluminum instead of steel, Kuat cut the rack's weight by at least half.

Then came the 11-pound Beta, which can hold up to two bikes and comes in one color.

Next up is the NV (short for "envy"), which launches later this year. Conceived with the serious cyclist in mind, NV incorporates a lightweight platform rack with a repair clamp built into the rack's design, another first in the industry, according to Kuschmeader, who says this element is normally a separate stand.

"They've taken a pretty common item ... and put a twist on it," Quintas says. "One thing I think Luke is really, really good at is taking something and not only designing it but also the style of it. ... If you get just the pure artsy kind of guy, it's ambiguous and it's all about the aesthetics of the thing, but with Luke you get both."

Kuat products are in about 380 bike shops, including local retailers Cycles Unlimited, Dynamic Earth, Queen City Cycling, Sunshine Bike Shop and A&B Cycle.

"The support locally ... has been incredible," Kuschmeader says.

"It's been amazing. They really believe in it, and I think that's what it really comes down to."[[In-content Ad]]