Chute 21: The Story Behind Our Game-Changing Tailgate Innovation
I’m Bryan Wilcox, a home inspector from Billerica, MA, and proud father to Tyler Wilcox, a sophomore at Billerica Memorial High School.
Like everyone else, Tyler and I found ourselves stuck at home during the Pandemic. We had always talked about building our own cornhole boards, and with the extra time on our hands, we finally decided to make it happen. After clearing out the garage, we got to work. I taught Tyler how to use various power tools and saws, and with my guidance, he built most of the custom cornhole boards himself.
Once we finished, we wanted to keep building, so we tackled a giant Jenga set. That was just the beginning of us creating games.
For years, we’d been attending Patriots games, where we saw tailgaters bringing their cornhole sets. The problem? Cornhole takes up a lot of space—at least 30 feet—and as the parking lots filled up, finding room to play became impossible. That’s when we started brainstorming.
Tyler had the breakthrough idea: What if we kept the familiar concept of cornhole but made it smaller and taller? We experimented with different heights, sizes, and distances before landing on the perfect setup—a 3-foot-tall tower with an 8-10 foot playing distance. This compact design fit neatly under a 10x10 pop-up tent, making it perfect for tailgates.
We took our game to some tailgates, and the response was immediate and overwhelming. People loved it. We got compliments, offers to buy our set, and endless questions about where they could get one. That’s when we knew we had something special.
Enter 52Launch.
I found 52Launch, and they transformed our idea into a real business opportunity. Their team guided us every step of the way, helping us design, brand, and build our invention. They made the process seamless and exciting, and we couldn’t be more grateful.
Tyler and I have had an amazing experience working with 52Launch, and we highly recommend them to anyone who has a great idea and wants to bring it to market.
Bryan & Tyler Wilcox
Inventors, Chute21