history-index-7

1971, McCulloh took the first step to modernize parasailing by introducing “the world’s first” parasail platform as an improvement over land based and beach operations with a focus on improving the safety of parasailing through equipment design. The basic concept of the Parasail Platform was to move the operations from the beach into open water thereby the launch and recovery process away form obstacles. First, a stationary platform was anchored offshore in an area without boat traffic and obstructions. Participants were shuttled to the platform by a tow vessel which consisted of the driver and observer. The platform ground crew consisted of two people that were in charge of assisting parasailors throughout the process. 1972, McCulloh, added an outboard motor to the stationary platform to create the first "motorized" parasailing platform which significantly improved the launch and recovery of parasailor vs. the stationary platform. Unfortunately, the motorized platform required up to five crew to operate, (2) crew on the tow boat, and (3) crew on the platform each of whom had to coordinate the launch and recovery while underway with precision. This method was more costly to operate vs. the Stationary Platform but provided additional safety .