Forrest Wood
1932 -
2010 Inductee
It wasn't long after the founding of Ranger Boats in 1968 that the company had become the largest manufacturer of bass boats in the country, and founder Forrest Wood had become the Father of the Modern Bass Boat. Born in the tiny town of Flippin, Arkansas, Wood worked as a rancher and farmer until the early 1950s, when he and his new wife, Nina, moved to Kansas City where he assembled fighter planes for the Korean war. When the couple returned to Flippin in 1955, Forrest began supplementing his income by guiding anglers on Bull Shoals Lake and the White River. Quickly realizing that fishermen were happy to pay for quality, he provided excellent service, the best equipment, and home-cooked food prepared by Nina. Word spread and his business flourished. To ensure his fishing guides had work year-round, Wood did some contracting and ran a boat repair service. Soon he and his crew were building boats in his backyard, adding improvements such as raised swivel seats for extra legroom and fiberglass hull protection. When Forrest fished one of these boats in his first bass tournament (which he won), it generated a great deal of interest, and he returned home with notes scribbled on paper napkins, prepared to build bass boats to his customers' specs. An accomplished angler, Forrest competed in his first B.A.S.S. event a few months later and fished the circuit -- including the 1972 and 1979 Bassmaster Classics -- for many years. He found B.A.S.S. participants had definite ideas about boat design that they were extremely eager to share and, astutely recognizing the value of this unique research-and-development team, he capitalized on it. Wood left that tournament with six orders and Ranger was born. To Forrest, the word "Ranger" -- as in "Texas Rangers" -- implied strength, safety and reliability, the very qualities he wanted in his boats. As his early models evolved into fishing machines with tackle box holders, rod containers, and aerated holding tanks to keep fish alive, bass anglers took notice. And as B.A.S.S. and its tournament concept grew, so did Ranger. For the second Classic, Forrest and Ray Scott designed something revolutionary: a boat with all equipment pre-rigged and factory-installed. That bass boat became the industry standard, Ranger became the official Classic boat for almost 30 years, and the personal and creative partnership between the two men led to groundbreaking milestones in their respective businesses and in the sport. But the growth of Ranger Boats was not without setbacks. On May 4, 1971 the uninsured factory was destroyed by fire. Somehow Wood salvaged 60 orders from his desk in the burning building, and the next day the family set up shop with a telephone nailed to a tree. As Forrest and his staff cleared the rubble, customers called in orders, many offering to pay in advance to help finance the rebuilding. Remarkably, Ranger was back in business within 40 days and the 60 salvaged orders were met on time. Wood was adamant about building the best boat an angler could ever hope for, and to that end he made sure the Ranger family consisted of loyal and talented people who fished, and who respected the company's values. Ranger's ad slogan -- "Built by fishermen, for fishermen" -- said it all. Forrest Wood served seven years on the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and is a member of numerous Halls of Fame, including the Professional Bass Fishing Hall of Fame, the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame, and the National Marine Manufacturers Hall of Fame. In 1996 Operation Bass was renamed using Forrest's initials, becoming the popular FLW Tournaments. In 1998 he received the American Sportfishing Association's Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2005 Field & Stream named him one of their "50 Legends of Fishing." Though Forrest sold Ranger Boats in 1987, two original trademarks remain: his white cowboy hat and his wife of almost 60 years, Nina, the first Lady of Ranger. Forrest and Nina are the two halves of the success story that is Ranger Boats, a company that rose to preeminence in the industry, took hold, set firsts, and defined standards. And as Forrest helped make bass anglers rock stars, and fishing tournaments major media events, he never lost sight of the importance of the sport and the value of the experience to individuals and to families. For his enduring vision, the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame honors Forrest Wood.
23 авг 2012
