Success in a rare business

For the past year and a half, Adam Rokoskie's Carson City business of retrofitting UTVs, or utility task vehicles, has flown under the radar, he said.

Now, the 25-year-old hopes to change that since opening Turnkey UTV LLC in early 2009.

The business is a custom garage for the compact, but robust vehicles that resemble a hybrid of an all terrain vehicle and golf cart.

So far, many Turnkey clients have been from out of state, but he's trying to attract more local customers by offering retail items such as steering wheels, tires and seats for UTVs.

Rokoskie's business specializes in retrofitting the vehicles with high-end technologies for recreational use, including a recent $55,000 project for a Silicon Valley businessman who wanted speakers, carbon fiber tires and heated seats installed on his UTV.

"It's got everything in the world on it," he said.

But Rokoskie is working on other projects that he said are still a rarity in the industry, namely retrofitting UTVs for law enforcement.

Rokoskie said he and his crew have installed things like reinforced windshields and armor on UTVs for police departments in California, Ohio and Pennsylvania as well as some consulting work for the Drug Enforcement Administration.

"We're trying to be innovative and do stuff nobody else is doing," he said. "Try to stand out in the crowd."

He said some industry magazines like ATV World have taken notice and will feature some of Turnkey UTV's work later this year.

Rokoskie said the popularity of UTVs - made by companies such as Polaris, Yamaha and Arctic Cat - started growing in 2005, especially in the after-market business where businesses like his would add roll cages and other technologies to the vehicle.

He said UTVs appeal to people of all ages, whether it's used to get around a large property or for recreation.

"Younger guys like me like to get as much power out of them as you can," he said. "Do 70 or 80 mph across the desert."

Rokoskie, who has lived in Carson City for 12 years, started working on UTVs on his own and developed a passion for them.

"I love these things, I started working on my own just playing around with it," he said. "I love coming here in the morning and staying until 6 or 7 o'clock at night."