JUST IN
2005 MERCURY 9.9 short shaft tiller manual start--4 Stroke. We will service before we sell change oil and gear lube
Low hours. Comes with gas tank and fuel line
$1,250.00
Show room is now open. We are limiting number in she ou w room to 4 and you must have a mask. We are back to regular hours:
Monday thru Friday: 8:00AM to 6:00PM
Saturday: 8:00AM to 1:00PM
Sunday: CLOSED
Due to the current IL Coronavirus situation, we are open by appointment only. Please call first as we have our gate closed. We are fully functioning but limiting contact in attempt to keep everyone healthy.
I apologize for not keeping current, but I needed some time to reflect on a man, who's hand shake to my grandpa's over 50yrs ago meant so much.
Forrest L. Wood and my Grandpa worked not a deal but a relationship - a promise. A promise that Belleville Sport Sales stood behind but more importantly Ranger Boats stood behind us.
Building a good product is one thing but keeping things right is another. There is no testing to match what the general public can do. Through 3 generations never was an issue that wasn't backed by Forrest. There were several instances that could...but Forrest believed in his product...as it was an extension of him.
He and his family truly built his boats individually with blood, sweat and tears through two factory fires & financial crashes not to get rich but because people wanted / needed his boats.
I recall the stories of my elder family and friends driving down to pick up boats at Flippin. Leaving the trucks at the factory and taking the afternoon to fish the White river for trout....funny for a bass boat company...but that was Forrest's backyard. He didn't send an assistant to take them fishing, Forrest was there showing 'his' honey holes. Quick lunch then back to the factory, trucks loaded then the 6 hour drive home.
Forrest quickly became a southern extension of our family from central IL.
I personally have known Forrest my entire life and can't say I've ever seen him leave early, cut a meeting short, stopped shaking a hand, telling a story or signing an autograph till the last person left...even in his 80s.
He and his family created a brand loyalty in the Bass Industry that has not been surpassed in the boating, automotive or motorcycle industries to my knowledge. There were times of Ranger outselling #2,3 & 4 combined in the fiberglass fishing boat industry.
I'm sure all the families employed / befriended / touched by Forrest have similar stories
This is our story of admiration and thanks from Bob, Gary, Jason Haselhorst and our Belleville Sport Sales family. Forrest we will miss the smile, cowboy hat and a hand shake.
Rest in Peace and God Speed Forrest.
Hopefully there will be some fish left for the rest of us!
Keeping Forrest and the Wood family in our prayers tonight.
Please include in your prayers one of the most influential people I have ever met. Forrest L. Wood is in critical condition since yesterday with sudden death syndrome at 87 yrs old.
I remember him as a man who didn't care what others thought about him or his works. He always went out of his way to do the right thing just because it was the right thing.
One example, driving to Ranger to pick our boats, I recall seeing fiberglass huts at the end of the roads on the main drag. Forrest built them for kids waiting on the school bus to get out of the weather.
The world needs more people like Forrest and I hope we can all carry his grace. Forrest we LOVE you and God's speed.