The graduate engineer Bruno Rixen, an addicted water-skier always asked himself why this magnificent sport is not that popular. A market research showed that waterskiing had two big disadvantages: very expensive and fewer opportunities with very long waiting time.

The idea of a water-ski cableway was born and had to be realised. After spending a lot of time and money on prototypes during two years, there was no way back. In the year 1961 Bruno Rixen founded his company “RIXEN SEILBAHNEN”. Additional to the technical challenges there have been early financial difficulties to cope with. But Bruno Rixen kept on inventing and developing – as he took his power from the feeling of success and his pleasure in waterskiing.

37 Inventions had been sorted, controlled and patented. The finances in those years had been limited so as a result the protection by patent was mainly used for the two cable principle and the starting-principle. Only the two cable principle allows the skier or wakeboarder to swing out on both sides of the cable and ride far away from the cable – under full traction. Even he can let out the handle without causing derailing.

The profitability of a cableway was only given when several skiers could ride continuously at the same time. Therefore the problem of the start was the biggest problem to solve, as it is not possible to stop the cableway each time to engage a skier. Bruno Rixen positioned the skier not as usual under the cable to engage him to the running cable, he positioned him aside in full towing line length from the cable. The skier accelerates continuously until he is below the running cable. The coupled tow line is transported promptly but the far away standing skier is accelerating slowly up to the running cable speed. This solution which seems so simple was the groundbreaking innovation which builds the base for all cableways until today.

Despite all these important innovations and years of experiments with cable guide, cable twist and derailing, Bruno Rixen was still in the early stages of waterskiing with a water ski cableway.