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Legends of the Sport
Forrest Wood
Interview by Bernie Schultz

July/August 2004

Some measure success through political power or financial gain, others by achievement in sports, creativity, or family relationships. If these are true measures for success, then Forrest L. Wood is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished and successful men on the planet. Through honesty, devotion, and hard work, he has built an empire. Family, friends, employees, and countless people throughout the industry revere him.

His contributions to sport fishing have been monumental. With his own hands Forrest Wood built the first Ranger boat some 36 years ago. Today the company is one of the most powerful in the industry, garnering awards for quality control, customer satisfaction and resale value - all of which stem from a company ethic instilled by Forrest since the beginning.

He's a survivor - from early financial struggles, to rebuilding the company after a tragic fire engulfed the main plant in 1971, and most recently his recovery from a near-fatal farm accident, he personifies the saying, "What doesn't kill you will only make you stronger."

Note: This interview took place during the inaugural Ranger Rally Weekend, at the Ranger Boats Museum in Flippin, Arkansas (April 24, 2004).

Bernie: Forrest, tell me where you got your start in fishing, when you decided fishing was a possible career choice.

Forrest: I fished with my dad a couple of times when I was small, then grew up along the White River, and a neighbor boy and I fished with trot lines, limb lines, noodlin' and giggin'. I finally got a reel and rod bought for $8.88 and knew I liked to fish then, but had limited opportunities because of work duties and other interests like school and so forth.

Nina and I moved to Kansas City for fifteen months after we were married and tried to make enough money (to pay) for some cattle we had bought that didn't do as well financially as we had anticipated. When we got the man paid back we came back to Arkansas and determined we would live on whatever we could get.
Bull Shoals dam was completed by then and a boat dock was opened on the lake. I didn't have any real plans for making a living yet, so I applied for a guide's license and started guiding…for 14 years. In that time I learned the basics of how to fish, and how to catch fish. So the beginning of my interest in making a living from fishing was when I got my guide's license. After that, I often thought how great it would be if a person could get paid for their skills in catching fish. It was years later before competitive fishing came into play.

Bernie: So your start came on the White River as a trout guide?

Forrest: No, my first guiding was done on Bull Shoals Lake as a bass guide. Then I started guiding wherever they (customers) wanted to go, whether it was the lake or the river. If they stayed an extra day, we would go some place new. It was about 1953 when I got a guide's license, I guess.

Bernie: So the lake was dammed and automatically started producing good catches of fish, or did it take a while?

Forrest: Didn't take long, the bass grew pretty fast. It was a new reservoir and it had a lot of forage in it, so they grew pretty rapidly. I worked on Bull Shoals dam after I was out of high school for two years, and it had started backing water up before it was finished. The Game & Fish Commission did a good job of stocking. They brought the trout to put in the White River to compensate for the warm water fishery that resulted when they built the dam. So they created a great trout fishery as some sort of mitigation for the reservoir's impact.

Bernie: So both fisheries flourished then.

Forrest: Absolutely. New lakes (reservoirs) are notoriously good for a while, and then they decline some.

Bernie: What was your beginning in boat building?

Forrest: Well, after I got my guide license, the man I was working for sold out and left. So Nina and I got some river boats and kept them in our backyard. In fact, I did some work on a house, and built a house for a man for some boats. And to keep our guides in work year-round, we did whatever kind of work we could. General contracting…whatever somebody wanted built, I'd give them a bid on it. We built everything from houses to concrete bridges to commercial buildings.

Bernie: Really?

Forrest: Anything to keep (our) people working. At that time we built a wooden johnboat or two on our carport, and learned to cover them in fiberglass. Then we just decided to build a lake boat. That was in 1968, the year after B.A.S.S. started up.

The first bass tournament I heard about was at Greer's Ferry (Reservoir). It was not a B.A.S.S. tournament, but Jerry McKinnis and myself, and a couple more people went down and entered it. It was a team deal and we won the tournament. While there, I asked if anyone wanted to buy a boat, and one or two did. I met Dennis Demo, who wound up buying the first boat. He was from east of the Mississippi River, and later Dennis worked for us for many, many years.

Bernie: As a sales rep?

Forrest: Yes, and uhh, that kind of was the humble beginnings…without any plan, just trying to make a living for myself and the other guides with me.

It just so happened that it was the right people at just the right time. The reason I say that is because there were already a lot of people in the boat business. Glastron owned the world, and there was Caravelle and Ouachita and others. But evidently they weren't the right people…maybe the right time and place, but not the right people.

I think because we were experienced in guiding and fishing and so forth, we knew how to communicate with the fishermen that wanted to buy our product. We actually did custom work. We built each boat just exactly how the customer wanted it, and still do today as much as we can.

Back then I would just draw up an interior design on the back of a business card or a table napkin or something, and bring it home. Then we'd build it. I'd like to say we did a market survey and determined there was huge potential in the bass boat business, but that's not how it happened. (both laugh)

Bernie: Tell me about your association with Ray Scott (founder of B.A.S.S.). How did that get started?

Forrest: Ray Scott was at Smith Lake, Alabama, at the first B.A.S.S. tournament I went to. A friend and I went down and entered the tournament and caught a few Kentuckies there. We met Ray and he commented on my hat. Came home and Nina ordered a hat for Ray, sent it to him, and that was the first western (style) hat he owned.

We built a wooden johnboat or two on our carport, and learned to cover them in fiberglass. Then we just decided to build a lake boat. That was in 1968, the year after B.A.S.S. started up.

For many years we were going the same direction, working to promote the sport of competitive fishing. We did a lot of things in conjunction with B.A.S.S. and Ranger Boats that were the beginnings, I guess.

Bernie: You guys were the pioneers.

Forrest: Absolutely. And in his case, there were some attempts at holding fishing tournaments, but nobody (until Scott) really had a handle on it. And the tournaments that had been, failed for lack of rules, planning and so forth. It was very difficult to monitor a competition without everybody being watched all the time. But B.A.S.S. came up with some regulations that were pretty hard to get around.

Bernie: You have had a strong identity with B.A.S.S. over the years. You both grew the sport together, a mutual effort. They may want to take more of the credit, but I think you (Ranger Boats) were equally responsible for much of the growth in this sport.

Forrest: Well, we spent quite a bit of money helping them. Anything they wanted to do we'd side in and carry our share, and maybe a little more sometimes. And at times we realized that, but so long as we were benefiting some, it seemed it was a reasonable deal.

Bernie: It was a good association.

Forrest: Yes, absolutely. I'd be remiss if I didn't say that. Nobody could say we weren't good for each other, or both good for the sport.

Bernie: Forrest, on May 4th, 1971, you received a shocking phone call alerting you to a fire, one that was sweeping through your plant, ultimately destroying it. Tell me how that affected you, your family and the company as a whole.

Forrest: Although the fire was shocking, I wasn't completely devastated…and actually slept some that very night. Since we saved my desk with the boat orders and were able to borrow enough money to pick up and continue, giving up never crossed my mind. With the help of some remarkably good people we were back in business in 40 days and nights. I believe the fire made us stronger.

Bernie: I want to talk about your competitive involvement with the sport. A lot of people probably don't realize that you actually won a tournament on the B.A.S.S. tour, at the Thousand Islands in New York.

Forrest: Well, Bernie, I did that and it was a big thrill. And I always felt I could have competed if tournaments had been my top priority, but my prime interest was selling boats. I didn't go pre-fish like some did. I think that would have helped me, but I'm not complaining. Things worked out pretty well.

Bernie: Let me be the first to tell you…from the perspective of a competitive angler, I think you made the best choice. (both laugh)

Forrest: Well, I think I did too. But from an ego standpoint, well…

Bernie: Well I know better than most, because I fished with you in competition, that you had the skills. I think it was obvious to those close to you that you could have gone in that direction fulltime, and you qualified for the Bassmasters Classic twice, 1972 and '79.

Forrest: Well, thank you. I'm comfortable in my own mind I could have because I'm pretty tenacious. And if I start to do something it's pretty hard to discourage me.

Bernie: For me, the Thousand Islands in New York is a special place.

Forrest: Absolutely it is. I had 15 smallmouth bass…well almost 15. I may have had a couple of largemouth. But the majority of my stringer was smallmouth - 15 fish that weighed more than 46 lbs.

Bernie: That's stout!

Forrest: I would have been just as happy to catch 'em even if there wasn't a tournament goin' on. (smiles)

Bernie: I have the same feeling for that place. No matter how long it takes to get there, it's worth every mile.

Forrest: Yeah, that's exactly right. And I'm told it's better now than it was back then.

Bernie: I've heard the same. I won a tournament there more than ten years ago and I had about the same weight that you had. But they say now you have to have about a four-pound average to win.

Forrest: I guess people quit taking the fish out (of the lake).

Bernie: That may be it.

Forrest: I don't know what else it could be.

Bernie: Well the zebra mussels, according to some, have really cleaned the water up, especially out deep.

Forrest: And they thought zebra mussels were gonna kill our fisheries. (grins)

Bernie: There you go. Look at what's happening in Lake Michigan…zebra mussels have cleaned up that lake and the smallmouth fishery is now thriving.

Forrest: Bernie, I've lived long enough that things are coming around a second time. There was a time when Smokey the Bear said, "Don't burn, don't start forest fires"…and he had tears in his eyes. Well, the result of not burning was that oak bores moved into our forests and began destroying them. The mentality that dreamed up Smokey the Bear is probably the same mentality that conjured up the zebra mussel scare. So it may not be the end of the world…it just might be a better world.

Bernie: Things aren't always as they initially appear, that's for sure. Things are going to evolve, regardless of what we want.

Forrest: But there are people…Chicken Littles that say the sky is falling before they really know what's what. We have some of those here in Arkansas on some issues, and they really don't know what they're talking about.

Bernie: Ranger Boats was obviously growing by its association with B.A.S.S., and then Operation Bass (now FLW Outdoors) came along and you quickly developed a business relationship with them, which also grew the business.

Forrest: Actually, that's true. Mike Whitaker came over with a proposal when he had the idea to start his tournaments. I remember Mike saying several times before he got through with his pitch…of course I'm a little bit hyper and had a lot of things to get to…he said - I would have agreed long before he finished his pitch (laughs). It was a great idea that would reach some people that hadn't been reached yet.

Bernie: More grassroots.

Forrest: Exactly. One of the things that I'm most proud of is that we did sponsor so many tournament organizations around the country. Just about anybody that came along and seemed halfway honest, we'd give 'em a try, and there were many of them that never got national recognition, but they still served a purpose. That was one of the contributions we made to the sport that many people don't realize. There was B.A.S.S., Operation Bass, US Bass, Western Bass, Mid-America, Sun Country, Guys & Dolls, Bassin' Gal, and so many others that I can't recall them all, but I'd dare say there were a couple dozen or so.

Bernie: I'm sure that's conservative.

Forrest: And many of those reached people that would have never been able to fish B.A.S.S. They were smaller circuits that gave people an opportunity to get their feet wet and try competitive fishing, and a few evolved into national competitors.

Bernie: So they also grew.

Forrest: Yeah, so I think that's where we made some of our biggest contributions to the sport. And another boost for us was when several of them said having Ranger Boats as a sponsor helped them to gain other sponsorships. Evidently we'd established an image in the industry that said if we felt something was alright, then others were willing to take a chance, too.

Bernie: I can vouch for that first hand. I remember when I first signed on with Ranger, Nina (Wood) sort of picked me up and dusted me off, and put me on the program. And that brought other sponsorship, almost immediately. So I believe there's a lot of truth to that.

Bernie: I'd like to talk about the sale of Ranger Boats, but before we do I want to take you back for a moment. I recall drawing you in a B.A.S.S. tournament on the Harris Chain in Florida, a Megabucks tournament. I recall you struggling with something - don't get me wrong, you didn't wear it on your sleeve, but you were obviously struggling with the situation. Here's a company you built, that you forged yourself, and you had a lot of people, personnel, family, all following your guidance with that company for so long. And knowing the sale of the company would impact all those people, and even people around the country, dealers, reps, and others. You were struggling with that throughout the day.

We had a good day of fishing and we'll talk about that, but tell us about your dilemma. When it came time…there was a fork in the road and you had to make a choice. You seemed to be thinking, "Keep the company, stay with it, or go in another direction?"

Forrest: That was without a doubt the hardest decision I, actually we, ever had to make. Nina and I struggled with that for two years, and never really knew for sure what we ought to do. But we obviously decided we could probably benefit more people if we sold it while we had the opportunity. Things don't always stay the same. The road's rocky and there are ups and downs. We were on a high at that time, and it seemed like a good time to sell.

One of the things that I'm most proud of is that we did sponsor so many tournament organizations around the country. Just about anybody that came along and seemed halfway honest, we'd give 'em a try

We really didn't know what to do, other than take our best shot. So we did that. And I'm not sure even today if it was the best thing or not for most people. But we did it because we believed it was the best for most. And if we had to do it again today I'm not sure we would do it the same way or not. We'd have to agonize over all that again.

As it turned out, since Randy (Hopper) stepped up and took charge, and with Keith (Forrest's grandson) getting involved, the ownership of the company still treats us well. And we're kinda doing the same things we've always done.

Bernie: There's still a family ethic.

Forrest: Absolutely. Our employees are still so loyal, and that's so nice. We're (Nina and I) doing what we want to do, and that's promoting Ranger Boats. But there's no question…that was a traumatic experience.

Bernie: I know it was. In fact, the day we fished you caught the big bass of the tournament, and getting that fish in the boat was a thrill. I remember it getting hung up in the lily pads and it was really anxious for both of us. But we got the fish in and got her to the scales, and I could see how much you enjoyed that. It was special, but somehow you were still burdened by the problem at hand.

Forrest: I didn't know it was that obvious, but I guess it was. It was traumatic, no doubt about it. It was twenty years of our life and total concentration that had been very productive from a self-fulfillment standpoint, and from a financial standpoint.

Anyway, we just all go through life…you know, there's a lot of gray in the world. My secretary at the time, after I told her I didn't know what I wanted to do, said, "Mr. Wood, you mean you don't know what you want to do?" And I told her, "Yes ma'am, there's a lot of gray in life. And you won't always know what you want to do."

Bernie: Those of us that have survived the transition take solace in the fact that Randy Hopper has taken charge. I've said it before; he's the closest thing we have to a Forrest Wood; maybe not with Keith around now, but certainly at the time. We're so glad that he stayed on. And now that Keith's coming on, the company still has a family feel to it, although more corporate than it was.

Forrest: It has to be, the nature of the beast. When it was just us we didn't have to ask anybody; we just made decisions on the spot, at that moment. But maybe it might be better to take a little time to make some decisions (laughs). But Keith, with all due modesty, is a lot like me. He's pretty outgoing, people remember him, and he pretty well has a plan for whatever is going to happen.

Bernie: So, in many ways it's mapping out like you had planned.

Forrest: It is, like I'd hoped. It would have been very hard to live with if the company had deteriorated, but instead, it's gone up. The FLW thing has come along and has meant so much to the sport. There again, we see on a grander scale what we talked about earlier. When Wal-Mart came along and offered to sponsor FLW, it led the way for every other company in the country. That's probably the biggest thing that's happened in our sport since the beginning of B.A.S.S.

Bernie: How did it feel when you first heard that Operation Bass (FLW Outdoors) wanted to honor you by using your name, initials, on their tour…calling it the Forrest Wood tour, or the Forrest Wood Open, honoring you as the namesake?

Forrest: Well it was a thrill and an ego booster, of course. But still I knew that if it didn't go well there could be some negative connotations attached to it. Nina and I talked about it, and we didn't agree to it for quite a while. But because of the confidence we had in Charlie Hoover, Charlie Evans and Kathy Fennel, and some things Irwin Jacobs had said to me, we decided we had the confidence to let them go ahead and do it.

When Wal-Mart came along and offered to sponsor FLW, it led the way for every other company in the country. That's probably the biggest thing that's happened in our sport since the beginning of B.A.S.S.

Of course their interest was to give it instant credibility by using those initials for their circuit; they felt it would save time in building that image. They've treated us well for the use of those initials; I have no complaints. I think we're gonna to see it grow bigger and bigger; they've just started.

Bernie: Tell me about your relationship with Irwin Jacobs.

Forrest: Irwin has treated me so well, no complaints at all. I really think he has a great deal of respect for Nina and I, and this company, and that he sincerely found something that surprised him here at this company…the integrity of the people running it.

His daughter Trish…I got a letter from her thanking Nina and me for going over to Bentonville (site of the Wal-Mart Open) to the tournament, saying our presence added so much. And I think they do believe that we add to the party. Of course today they would survive without us, but they haven't chosen to do that. They could kick us out and go on if they wanted to, but evidently they think it's better with us there.

Bernie: I think we all do, Forrest. When you're not there, you're conspicuous by your absence.

Forrest: Well, thank you, Bernie. I went to Hot Springs, Arkansas for the BFL All American just because Charlie Hoover and Charlie Evans said they sure needed me there if I could make it. And so, I did shoot a turkey at 11:30 Saturday morning and was supposed to catch the plane at 1:00 pm. I was a little late getting to the plane, but I had a turkey beard with me when I arrived. (laughs)

I think enough of them and the people that like to see us that I was willing to take the weekend and go down there. I believe they took as many pictures there as any place I've ever been. Those contestants, as you know, are the grassroots from all around the country - they clawed their way to the top and earned a trip to the All American.

Bernie: I can remember my first experiences making a championship, a Classic, an All American, and having you and Nina come. It was really a big deal for me, so I know how they feel.

Forrest: It's amazing that it's still that away…because a lot of the young ones have no idea of who we are, or where we came from. But there's enough that do that kinda influence that, I guess.

Bernie: As an innovator in boat building, have the boats that are being engineered out in the plant now met your expectations? In your wildest dreams could you have imagined that bass boats would become what they are now?

Forrest: Oh no, I don't think anyone could…because the innovations that have come about, and the technology available is so unbelievable. Thirty years ago who would have thought you'd have GPS in a boat? We didn't even know what GPS was.

Way back fifteen or twenty years ago I would lay awake nights wondering what in the world we were gonna to do the next year. Fortunately, I didn't have to worry too much about it. We had an R&D department that was pretty good. They had their finger on what was new, and what was going on. Nowadays it seems there's more new stuff than you can actually use. Some of it's really good, but you have to sort through it. Just because it's new doesn't make it better.

Bernie: I think that's the part that Randy Hopper likes…the development and design.

Forrest: I do too (smiles). He's a good artist, I don't know if you knew that or not.

Bernie: Oh, I do. I found that out the hard way. Once I was trying to sketch something for him and he just about took the pencil out of my hand and showed me what I was trying to illustrate. (both laugh)

Forrest: He's so intelligent, and so experienced. He grew up in an automobile mechanic shop and came to Ranger when he was only 15, and he learned to do it all.

Bernie: With his involvement, Ranger's success is bridging over to other markets, like saltwater. Now you have a strong presence in that market, particularly in the south.

Forrest: It appears we can go just about as far as we want, if we can get the personnel to keep up - that's the limiting factor.

Bernie: Ranching, is that now your primary passion?

Forrest: Yeah, Nina and I have had cattle all of our lives. We bought real estate whenever we could afford to, and sometimes when we couldn't afford to. So we own quite a bit of land. The only return from that is to either subdivide it, or pasture it and raise cattle. Consequently, we like cattle better than we do the other, and we just keep getting more and more cattle all the time. It's not really a money making deal for us, but it's a pleasant occupation, and we like it.

Bernie: But it is a big business for you isn't it; how many head do you have?

Forrest: Pretty big, I guess. We have eight or nine full-time hands, but I don't know exactly how many total head, maybe 800 mother cows with 700 to 800 calves each year. In addition to that we have replacement heifers, and one place where we raise registered Angus cattle and sell bulls. Actually, we sell a lot of bulls, all we can raise, and we have suppliers we buy bulls from for resale.

Angus is a real popular breed. When we bought the farm the cattle were there and I thought we might sell them. But that year I had a heart attack and we didn't get them sold. So we decided just to keep them and bought better herd sires. Now we don't have any trouble selling them. Our bulls are kinda like Ranger boats, they're pretty good. It's not much trouble to sell something that's good. (smiles)

Bernie: You mentioned your heart attack. I'd like to discuss your health issues. You've had some bouts with your health in recent years, but you look great Forrest. I mean, you're really fighting the storm well.

Forrest: Well, thank you. The doctors told Randy and Keith that the last little deal I got into, the farm accident, that they were amazed how I recovered, because I had a punctured lung and other things. Determination, I think is what the doctor said. I just…it's just my nature, I think. Maybe I'm fortunate genetically also.

Bernie: Nina's museum; it's so impressive. We're in the museum now conducting this interview and it's overwhelming…the history. It's like a walk through time, through bass fishing's history. Not only with the early boats, but the photographs of the people that have touched you and Nina, and Ranger throughout your career. A lot of this museum is not so much a collection of artifacts as it is of memories and relationships.

Forrest: That is true, exactly the case. We don't have a lot of boats here. We thought we were building a big place, but there's not enough room for those. But really, memories are the main things we're interested in here. People seem to enjoy coming here, even people that are not knowledgeable about tournament fishing are interested in it. We have a lot of stuff yet to get displayed, particularly the boat trip business. As I told you in the beginning, I had a guide license for 14 years, and we touched a lot of people in that time. We have a lot of letters and cards, and artifacts from those days that I think people will find interesting. In fact, Randy and I have talked about building an old wooden boat for the museum.

Bernie: That would be neat. Isn't this whole project kind of Nina's project?

Forrest: Well, yeah. She was the motivating factor. I probably would have never got it done if she hadn't wanted to. We hired a carpenter and a couple of guys and didn't really have a plan. We just made our plans as we went along. We didn't want it to just look like a big metal building, so we placed wooden beams inside and covered the interior with wood.

Bernie: It's gorgeous, and hopefully anybody that reads this will take the time to come and visit the museum.

Forrest: Well, I think they certainly would enjoy it. Whether or not they're tournament fishermen, there are lots of interesting things. Really, it's our life; the things Nina and I have been involved with for 53 years.

Bernie: Last question…what's ahead for Forrest and Nina Wood?

Forrest: (pauses) I'm reminded of something I heard one time. When asked what the future is like, I'm gonna say it's a lot like the present, only longer. (both laugh)

We're gonna continue what we're doing. I don't see either one of us wanting to stop. We're just not geared that way. Our energy is a little lower than it used to be, of course, but we still get out pretty early and run just as hard as we can all day. There's not much we want to change, I reckon. I would like to go fishing for smallmouth bass in New York again. But we have so many obligations that it's hard for us to leave. We're just gonna keep doing more of the same, I believe.

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