If you spend any time reading through the #GarageSimCrew thread on the THP forums you’ll quickly see just how creative people can get when setting up their indoor golf space. For most of the us, the reality is that we have to find a way to repurpose space in our homes for golf. In many cases, we don’t have the luxury of making our indoor golf area a permanent fixture. At a previous house, I was constantly setting up and tearing down my “tent-stakes” net so that my wife could park her car in the garage, and while it wasn’t an excruciating chore, it was just annoying enough to deter me from practicing as often as I should have.
Illinois resident Aaron Holden Holden found himself in this very familiar situation. After swinging a few 6 irons in the living room, he was banished to the garage for his golf fix. For a while, he tolerated the process of rebuilding his practice area every time he wanted to use it, but eventually started thinking about how to make it easier to set up. One day, as he watched his neighbor extending his retractable awning using a remote control, it came to him – he could create something similar for golf. With that, G-Trak was born. He devised a system that attached to the framework of his garage door with a retractable mechanism so he could set up his golf area quickly and efficiently.
How Does it Work?
The cornerstone of the G-Trak system lies in the patented G-Trak brackets. They mount around the outer edges of your existing garage door tracks, allowing the garage door to operate normally, even when the screen is being used. Installation can be done by a single person in a few hours, though the company recommends two people to make it easier.
Telescoping drive tubes constructed of heavy aluminum are attached to the two brackets. The nice thing about the telescoping design is it allows G-Trak to fit in garages with either single or double-wide doors. It can be ordered between 8 and 18 feet long, which should cover just about any possible opening one may have.
After building out the mounting assembly, the G-Trak Retractable Screen simply clips into place. Afterwards, you’re left with a remote-controlled, completely retractable unit that includes a screen (or net if desired) and side walls. The video below shows the unit in action.
It’s important to also note that the G-Trak is not only intended for garage use. It can be ordered as a wall-mounted solution as well. A set of mounting brackets are simply bolted into the studs behind your wall and then the rest of the assembly process is essentially the same.
For the multi-sport households, G-Trak offers four different accessory targets, making it useful for golf, hockey, baseball, and soccer. While we focus on golf at THP, my indoor golf setup is often “borrowed” by my children for batting and pitching practice. A simple target is incredibly useful for this type of use and might help convince the family just how bad they need the G-Trak.
What are the size requirements?
As noted earlier, the telescoping drive tubes can accommodate a variety of spaces, but it’s important that you take the time to measure your space first. The G-Trak not only comes in three base sizes (8, 9, 10, and 16 feet), but also gives five different screen size options (7, 8, 10, 12, and 14 feet). This wide range of sizes should allow users to integrate a variety of projectors into their setup if they so desire.
Of course, it’s also vital to consider the vertical space you have available to ensure which clubs you can safely swing. We tend to lean towards a 9-foot minimum, but everybody, and every swing is different, so take plenty of time to be sure.
For the wall-mounted build, the same basic concepts are in play, though it is important to locate and mark the locations of studs prior to measuring. As seen above, the indoor mount not only adds versatility for in-home builds, but G-Trak can (and is) designed to work in places like gyms, schools, and commercial buildings. This is especially useful for spaces that are used for many different purposes. For example, the golf and baseball teams at a school could utilize G-Trak for practice, and quickly retract it when done.
Details of the G-Trak Retractable Impact Screen
- Available to order now at g-trak.com
- Ships in 3-5 days
- G-TRAK Retractable screen starts at $1,999.99 and includes mounting assembly, remote-controlled retractable screen, and side walls.
- Retractable net starts at $1,849.99 and is currently available for 16-foot garage doors.
- Wall mounting kit available for $199.99
