Entrepreneur Partners With Boat Builder for 'Back to the Future' Machines

Tom Harper creates and sells time machines.

His machines seem to magically transport people over the Hoover Dam, or even through the human blood stream for a heart-pumping adventure.

Harper is part mad scientist and part good old-fashioned entrepreneur. The machines that his company, Phoenix Simulation, makes may sound like they belong in Universal Studios' “Back to the Future.”

“I ususally just tell people I’m in the entertainment business,” Harper says about the complexities of describing Phoenix Simulation, his one-man company. 

“But the first thing they think of is ‘adult entertainment.’  It’s absolutely not that.  So I just tell them, ‘Think of the "Back to the Future" ride at Universal Studios. That’s what I do.' ”

His hand-built, motorized capsules simulate out-of-this-world adventures, right down to the smell of steam spewing from a pioneering train or the death-defying views of a fighter pilot flying an F-16.

The capsules themselves are created from a mold by Aquadyne, a Clearwater boatbuilder.

An Orlando company, Servos and Simulation, that creates simulators for the military adds the computerized effects, which include TV screens and 3-D videos.

“I tie it all together,” said Harper, who admits his out-of-pocket costs per machine are high.

For the public, “riding” the time capsules is more affordable than buying a ticket to an Imax theater. He also said that the experience is more fun.

Harper said that the simulators can boost revenues for museums and aquariums. Visitors get an interactive experience.

Currently, Harper is making an entertainment capsule that re-creates the sights, sounds, smell and feel of riding a steam engine train. The customer is a railroad museum in York, England.  

He also is trying to sell a submarine adventure capsule to a Florida aquarium.

“You definitely have to have an entrepreneurial spirit to do something like this,” Harper said. “It requires a lot of patience and attention to detail. But the payoff is phenomenal.”

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