Mountain Home ?

[POPSLAVAZ]

What was the last year production in Mt. Home?? 2003??

[Tx Champ]

2001 ... Genmar finished those in progress as 2002. 2003 was the first full year under Genmar.

[POPSLAVAZ]

Thank You!!

[Bass Cat Boats]

Summer of 2000

[Lea]

As Reggie posted, I had always heard 2001 with models still being built sold as 2002.????

[pmgoffjr]

Like Rick said mid year 2000. They were building 2001 models

[Lea]

Thanks Pat and Rick...

[Tx Champ]

Champion was forced into involuntary bankruptcy in Nov 2001. Genmar acquired them in Jan 2002.

http://www.bassfan.com/news_article/...t#.XNYwLDdOnEA

https://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/...19/story6.html

[Bass Cat Boats]

We stand corrected.

It was a difficult time frame as everyone was fighting for survival during 2000 and the eventual OMC bankruptcy. Cobra/Viper also filed in that same time frame. Lots of finger pointing going on by many back then.

We still have the files and docket from the original bankruptcy proceedings, as well as the following Genmar Tennessee docket, Ranger Boats and all relating documents.

[Tx Champ]

I was going to say that 2000 is when OMC filed. Interesting times, for sure.

[pmgoffjr]

Just so everyone is aware, there was some massively sneaky stuff that went on over this deal.
There were two employee ownership proposals, the leading one by Loren Smith to take control, everything/everyone stays where they were and keeps going. The city had a bill for something that needed to be negotiated, but the main thing 150 Mountain Home residents would still have jobs. Scumbag Jacobs slicked somebody of importance and like a miracle Genmar ended up owning it, and literally sneaking out stuff in the middle of the night. It was a sad day indeed.

And before the magpies start squawking, it had NOTHING to do with boat sales, it had everything to do with Porthouse mismanaging the company into the toilet.

[mixermark]

Pat,

I’m not as close to it as you and Matt, and of course BCB, but I remember reading things in the papers while down at Bull Shoals fishing and thinking that the whole deal smelled funny. It really seemed to me like some of the local politicians were trying to line their pockets at the cost of jobs for the common man.

Truly a sad deal all the way around. Such fond memories of driving over to Mountain Home from Theodosia with my Dad, drooling on the new boats, and then hitting the Western Sizzler for a steak and the biggest baked potatoes I’ve ever seen.

Was just in Mountain Home a couple weeks ago, and I still almost tear up at that intersection with College.






Sigh.





It isn’t “just a boat” to me.

[rao]

i like living there in the 90's i always wanted a champ until i seen the swift......looked like my vector, but i suspect there is a lot more to the fall than we know but they are second to none

[MMosher]

There were so many rumors and scuttlebutt going on when it happened. Sad day when they closed their doors.

[rao]

yes i agree its hard to find a better boat than a champ

[dkennimer]

It's a damn shame what happened with them. I am lucky to own one of the last Mtn home boats, '01 206. I can't believe as soon as Genmar got em, they started going cheap on a few things. Small details like Aluminum carpet trim, going to plastic trim. Champions always had a "class" to them. They remained great boats, but not what they could have been. When spending that much coin, details matter. I'll be a Mtn Home Champ lover forever. My Dad is impressed every time he gets in my boat. I took him night fishing a week ago, and after the 30 minute run back in the dark, he still had to say it... "damn this boat handles good". Makes me proud!