Magic Tilt began back in the mid 50's as a small builder of boat trailers. The Magic Tilt line was unique because the trailers really did "tilt" a little to allow the boat to come on or off the bunks or rollers. Today, it is one of the largest trailer manufacturers in the country and a reason for the Magic Tilt success is the company's straight-talking president John Bruels. His undergraduate degree was mechanical engineering and, for a while, Bruels worked on jet engines for General Electric. After receiving an MBA, he went to work running a boat trailer company for an independent investor. Since 1984,he's been running Magic Tilt.

What is the most important issue facing the trailer boat industry right now?

It's not just the trailer boat industry, it's all of boating. We have to make it less of an effort to get out on the water if we want to attract new boaters. It has to become maintenance free. The guy who goes golfing today will pack his clubs in the trunk of his car, play a few rounds, maybe wipe the clubs at the end of the game and go home. End of story. The avid boater won't care but the potential boater, the one who is sitting on the fence, is going to ask, "do I want to devote so much time to preparation and cleaning?" We need to compress the time.

How do you do this?

One of the things that bothers me is the industry has too many complacent members. Our competitor isn't the other trailer manufacturer or boat builder. It's Bill Gates. It's the people who make VCR's or DVD players. They are taking the disposable recreational dollar away from us because their products are easy to use and require little time. We have to think that way and nobody's addressing the problem. When the first personal watercraft was developed, nobody knew how to use one because it was so complicated. Once they recognized the need to make it easy, sales took off. That's what we have to do.

At Magic Tilt, we sponsor activities that encourage boating such as "Ladies, Let's Go Fishing" which is for women who want to learn the sport but haven't had the chance to do it with their husband or boyfriend. It's also called "The No Yelling School of Fishing." This involves people who normally wouldn't go on the water alone. Demographics have changed. Today, the decision maker isn't always the guy. Women are more motivated and the burden is on the industry to make it more user-friendly for everyone.

What will a trailer of the future be able to do?

Again, it's going to require less time. Lighting is a real problem on trailers. We are testing some prototypes this year and I'll bet in two years you will see improvements. Lights will be LED's (Light Emitting Diodes) and you'll submerge them in ice cold water with no consequences because we'll have an improved harness and seal. The other place where there will be an improvement is bearings. The technology is out there to produce sealed bearings that won't be affected by salt water.

Every president of a trailer manufacturing company we talk with says brakes are an issue because every state has a different rule as to what weight dictates having, or not having, brakes on the trailer.

It's a real problem. Nobody enforces brake laws. There are a lot of trailers out there right now that need brakes. We talked about suing the state. We have tried to get brake manufacturers to take a more active role and become more involved. I think trailers should be inspected. It could be done every 3-5 years or after the boat and trailer are sold or when the trailer is re-registered. They do it in Europe. It's a risk to innocent people and I think it is going to take a near tragedy before something is done. Brake laws are confusing. States don't see brake laws as a source of revenue so states don't enforce them.

If you could say anything to boat builders, what would it be?

They should think about the boat they build as something that will be trailered. There ought to be a standard height and location for the bow boat eye. And while some boat builders publish information about the bottom or the center of gravity, all of the builders should do this.

One of our readers asks why spare tires and tire mounts aren't a standard part of a new trailer?

Dealers don't want to pay for it. A boat trailer is an after thought. The salesman wants to sell the largest possible boat to a customer and once the deal is struck, then the question of a trailer is considered. I'd like to see the packaging of a new boat with a specific trailer and the spare tire built into the price. But I don't see any movement to change that.