The Story of Rebounding
Ann Fitzgerald meets with Rebounder Godfather, Joachim Heymans.

Ann Fitzgerald
Master Trainer
In 1938 the first small trampoline (rebounder) was created by Ed Russell. I first started using them 20 years ago and created the JUMPGA program using the Trimilin rebounder. Today there are no rebounders that can match the quality of the Trimilin made JUMPGA rebounder.
T
The Start-Up
In 1983 he decided to do his research – which was not easy because there was no internet and no fax; just paper catalogues – if you were lucky! He travelled to Taiwan, which was then an under-developed country, and, to add to the pressure, he didn’t speak a single word of Taiwanese.
He purchased a few components for 2 to 3 years, to begin with, then entire units. Unfortunately, he could not work with them long term because their end products always had issues. Also, even when he supplied them with the American mats, they used poor quality stitching because they were always trying to cut costs.
By 1988 he was producing his rebounders, made in Germany, but he still had the difficult task of selling the health concept to health professional retailers and traders. At that time, rebounding was unheard of as a tool for exercise or as part of a rehabilitation programme. His breakthrough happened when an elderly client – with several physical ailments – presented his rebounder on a TV show broadcast across Germany. The following day he sold out, and the rest is history, as they say. Physiotherapists and sports therapists began using Trimilin rebounders for recovering patients and sports athletes. Now nearly every top German football team uses our Trimilin rebounders, and many therapists, physicians, athletes and private users own them too.
In 1987 he incorporated bungee cords, and in 1991 I created rebounders with folding legs. I asked him whether he copyrighted the idea. He said, ‘Unfortunately, I wish I had copyrighted more because every folding leg rebounder uses my original design. But I copyrighted the bungee cord tension system used in the JUMPGA rebounder.
Why is the JUMPGA is a superior rebounder
One of the stand-out features that made me switch allegiance is the quality of the bungee cord. Heymans said, ‘Without exception, all our bungee cord rebounders use a cord coated with multiple layers of highly elastic synthetic acetate fibres for unparalleled longevity. Our competitor’s bungee cords have a thin textile coating that wears through very quickly, but ours are much more durable. I asked what about the suspension system? He said, Unlike the Bellicon or the American brand JumpSport our suspension – our ‘Vario system’ uses 12 individual cords – allowing the user to set the tension of the elastic mat to tighter or softer bounce depending on their weight and usage. All without having to swap or replace the cords.
Lastly – and most importantly – we have the only explicitly developed machine in the world that tests the tension of the cords. We have tried our competitors’ cords and know that our cords last up to ten times longer.
I told Heyman that Bellicon and JumpSport are widely advertised but not his Trimilin rebounder. Why is this?, No need – with over 35 years of experience in research and design, we are known in Germany as the most experienced and reputable manufacturer in Europe. At first, trade buyers decided to go to the Far East to buy the cheaper rebounders but soon learned that it was a false economy when they kept breaking. When these buyers returned to Trimilin, they said, “Never again – we only want to buy your rebounders”! Because I am not a large company, I don’t need to advertise like Bellicon and JumpSport to make huge turnovers, so I do not have to compromise the quality to make more money. When people find us, they never leave us.