My Rick Pierce Story

[angleiron]

This post has been a long time coming as it has taken me awhile to figure out how to share without sharing too much. This is about Rick Pierce, and how if you are a Bass Cat owner you should appreciate the company and more importantly the man. I am not a nut swinger by any means which means I do not get any deals...I pay at the dealer the same as you do so what I am about to share is completely genuine and more so for some of you to learn something.

The problems I had are not important, and they are not going to be shared as the focus of this post is about how things were done by Rick to make things right. The statement "making things right" is sooo underated as far as the meaning as what was done by Rick Pierce went far and above that any of you could ever imagine. Everyday I go into my garage I am looking at my boat, and everyday I do I smile and shake my head out of appreciation because of what Rick did as he went above and beyond than what was expected.

Here is a life lesson for some of you...

At no point with what was going on did I ever threaten Bass Cat to share my woes on public forums, threaten to get a lawyer, expect to receive more than what I paid for, complain and whine to them about how you are inconvenienced, and I never raised my voice or was ignorant because of what was going on. As long as humans are involved there will be a potential for things not being right, and throw in the problems with Covid the potential for more problems multiplies. All I expected/wanted was what I paid for, and at no time did I ever expect anything above and beyond. There was never a "give me something extra" attitude for having to deal with what was going on. I talked with Bass Cat (I did not talk at Bass Cat as there is a difference), and I treated everyone the way that I wanted to be treated. I was calm, polite, logical, and what I received was far and beyond that was ever expected.

While everyone I dealt with at Bass Cat was great it was Rick Pierce who made the decisions as to what was to happen and to this day I still appreciate everything that he did as he did not have to do any of it. Rick did what he did for me on his own accord as I never asked or demanded anything extra. Rick accused me of being a perfectionist, and that I am but that is also Bass Cat's fault because I have owned a few Bass Cat's in my life and they were all near perfect boats. Nothing is 100% perfect, and if I have to tighten a few bolts here and there that is nothing to bitch about as humans were involved.

I have owned a LOT of different boat brands in my life, but a product is only as good as the company/people who stand behind what they build. My Caracal is one of the best boats I have ever owned not just because of the boat itself but the company/people behind it, and again this post does not even begin to cover how much I appreciate everything that Rick did (if you only knew).

[22R]

Very nice very vague post. I think most know that Bass Cat has a great CS reputation in the industry.

22R

[lamoon78]

Definitely the best in industry IMHO. Had a similar sounding problem and did just like you did and it went a long ways with them in my mind and in turn they went the extra mile for me.

[Shortbus17]

He is the best!

[willwork4fish]

I had bought a brand new 2004 Sabre from Sherm. This was my first (and only) new boat. '04 was the first year they put storage compartments on the rear deck. Anyway, the seats started rubbing on the back lids after about 5 trips. Really was noticeable after a tournament I fished with a guy who was on the bigger side. Anyway, call Bass Cat and Rick answered. He told me "yeah there's a problem with the design of those seats" and sent me a new set. Next year same thing happened, I called again and talked to Rick. They had fixed the problem and sent me another set. One of the old sets got turned into a little bench for my fishing room and the other got sent to a guy restoring his older Cat. All I asked him to do was pay for the shipping.

That created a customer for life as far as I was concerned. I've never been able to buy another new one but whenever they have what I might need as far as parts go I buy from them.

[Louie]

I've purchased a sabre ftd, caracal, puma and eyra... every boat had something I had to mess with. The guys at the factory and Rick are the sole reason I kept getting more boats. They really do care about their "family"... They don't even refer to people as their customers. Its always nice as well when he sends out various cards, around x mas or for other reasons he usually jots a quick personal note on each card... Mans got a steel trap upstairs I'm sure none of his notes are prompted. - Tight lines and happy holidays to all the bcb family.

[WStorey]

This makes me think... what ever happened to that guy that pitched a fit on youtube about his Lynx having problems?

[Louie]

This makes me think... what ever happened to that guy that pitched a fit on youtube about his Lynx having problems?

I believe he was taken care of, I dont recall the exact outcome but I want to say he went to another model. He was also up in Canada I believe during covid and I'm sure that was hard in terms of a support network and logistics up there.

[Bass Cat Boats]

Resolution and any details can not be discussed (NDA) on the Canadian customer. That was extremely difficult with CoVid as there were several complications that restricted us. The border was locked down and had restricted trade during CoVid and only recently reopened as we all know.

[WStorey]

The funny thing about that was half the things wrong with his boat could've easily been fixed in the time it took him to make that video and upload it.

[Luke]

I will have to tell a few on Rick also.
I probably shouldnt and he might not want me to but Im going to anyway just because Rick is one of the most stand up guys in the industry in my book.

Story 1- Years ago I had traded a dealer a Harley I had at the time for an older model P2. It was an 89 model with a 2001 Merc 200Efi. I made a 7 hour drive to the dealer from my house with harley in the back of the truck and excited to get back in a boat. I had been out of the bass boat and fishing game at this time for a few years due to finiancial issues that my wife at the time (Ex-Wife now) had. Got to the dealer and did the swap and etc. Loaded the boat up and headed home. Now I will say dealer was a stand up guy and someone I still consider a friend now. He had checked out the motor and it ran well. But he did not check the boat over well and I did not either really and didnt know much about some things I do now. I knew the boat was not pristine which was fine as I love to tinker and work on things myself. So after having the boat at home for a few months and with no garage and getting it during the winter I didnt have a ton of time to work on it at all. I would get a few nice days here and there. So I started going some things like wet sanding etc. I got to the back of the boat and noticed that the Aluminum trim piece that went across the back of the boat on the rear of the splashwell was pulled out from the boat. I didnt know any better so took some pictures and got to asking some guys on here and low and behold the transom was shot. I got in touch with the dealer to get some ideas and he felt horrible as like I said he checked the motor out but really didnt check the boat out since it wasnt something he had much interest putting on his site to sell. Was mainly going to keep the motor with it being somewhat newer. He contacted Rick and talked to him about the situation. A week or so goes by ( I cant remember exactly) and I get a call from the dealer. He said " I talked to Rick and he said to bring the boat to the factory and they will fix it and put a new transom in" I was floored. Here is a boat that at the time was pushing jsut a tad over 20 years old and Rick is going to have a transom put in this thing. Now I will say the dealer I got it from was a well known dealer and one of the biggest Bass Cat dealers and he did feel bad for the situation.
So I called the factory and talked to them (cant remember who I talked to at the time) and they said they knew all about it and to bring it down when I could and it might take some time to get it finished but they would get on it when they had time. So I loaded the boat up and headed to the factory to drop it off. Showed them the issue and dropped it off. Now anyone that has seen anything about how these boats are put together the top cap is epoxied to the hull. So for a transom replacement you have to cut the back half of the top cap off away from the boat. Quite a big chore for most people.
About 2 months go buy and I get a phone call from the factory saying the boat is done and I can pick it up whenever I want. So I drove down and picked the boat up. There was no carpet on the back deck when I picked it up since they had to cut through it they gave me enough carpet to cover the back deck. Even me looking at the boat you could barely see just a tad difference in the flake where the cut was made.
None of this would have happened if it were not for Rick.

Story 2-When I bought my current boat I had a tad more experience on what to look for because of the earlier story. So I knew what I was looking for. I bought the boat in August and did my best to clean it up as best as I could. One of the things I always thought was really awesome of Bass Cat is the Owners Invititaonal Tournament they do each year. So when I got the boat I immediatly signed up for Quest and when the time came my wife and I signed up for our first OI. This was on Beaver lake in AR. With fishing quite a few tournaments I knew right off the get go this is a well run and thought out tournament. With as many boats as they get (I think it was 386 or so at that T). We stayed not too far from the ramp it was all being taken out of.
Now my wife had at this time been ok when we launch the boat. She cant back a trailer up so that is what I do is back the boat in the water, Unload then she parks the truck and the trailer, and I pick her up at the dock. She does well with it but this was her first time doing it at a large tournament where there were anywhere from 4-6 boats being launched at the same time. The ramp there at Beaver is huge. So first morning of the T the BCB crew pulls everyone in to the ramp in a line and is flagging people into lanes to launch. As we drive by I saw rick and waved and said good morning and of course he did the same. So I pull into my lane to launch, back the boat in, jump out of the drivers seat and my wife gets in the drivers seat, I jump in the boat and unload. She pulls the truck out and goes to park. I pull the boat up to the bank and am just pulling rain gear out of the boat and putting it on. Then my phone rings, My wife on the other line is bawling and says she crashed the boat trailer into another guys trailer. So I put the TM down on the bank so the boat dosent float away and head to the parking lot. I walk up to my truck and trailer, and there is Rick hugging my wife because she is so upset. I walk up to them and hes talking her down saying it will be fine it can be fixed its not a big deal. I look at my trailer and the port side of the trailer is off the ground, the fender is turned up 90 degrees of where it should be and a huge chunk is gone out of the front of the fender. So Rick, Myself and one other of the BCB crew pick the trailer up, move it over about 4 feet to put it in a parking spot. Rick tells me he saw who it was (my wife) parking and he tried to flag her to go to the end of the parking spots where there were no trailers yet but she pulled in to the first open one she saw and just cut it to sharp and ran over the top of the trailer next to us. The trailer she ran over had hardly any damage, They had to put a tail light back in and that was it.
So we go out and fish all day, didnt do very well caught one to weigh in but had a fun day. I tell the wife im gonna go get the boat and move it around to the ramp and load up. So I go get the boat and beach it next to the ramp then we go to get the truck. Pretty much same process. I back the truck in, the load the boat, She pulls the truck and boat out. We walk up to the truck and there is a note under the wiper of my truck. First thing I think is its the guy next to us wanting insurance for hitting his trailer. I grab the note and jump in the truck and read it and its a note from Rick. It said " dont worry about the damages we will take care of it. Call the factory Monday with your HIN number" I think it was Michael he told me to call if i remember right.
Im a little confused about what hes meaning. So i get the boat loaded, she gets the boat parked with no issues this time.
We go to watch the weigh in and I see Rick standing off to the side watching the weigh in as well. I walk up to him " Hey Rick I got your note and im a little confused" he says " call the factory Monday and talk to Michael, I already talked to him about it and we are going to replace the fender on your trailer and the guy she hit" I was flabbergasted. No fault to him or BCB and hes going to fix my trailer. I thanked him shook his hand and he told me He had tried to get her to park at the end of the lot but she just pulled into the first spot and cut it to short. Was an accident and happens but he felt bad because she was so upset over it.
So monday morning I call the factory and give them all my info on the boat and they already knew everything about it. A few weeks go buy and I get an email saying my fenders are ready to be picked up. I email back and am like FENDERS as in two? They tell me yes its easier for them to make two at a time as that is how the mold is made so they just made both. So the boat needed carpet anyway and so I called the factory and bought all the carpet i needed to recarpet the boat and that weekend headed down with the trailer to pick it all up. Michael gave me some tips on the recarpet job and what to do with the fenders to replace them also along with the epoxy to attach them.

I have met Rick multiple times in-betweeen both of these stories and also after these stories and every time he knows who I am and a once about a year after the trailer incident even said the new fenders looked good on the trailer and how the old boat i got looks good and I have done a good job on it. Have seen him at the Classic and the same, knows my name as well as my wifes name.

This is why I own a Bass Cat boat. Not mainly because of the boat, but because of the people that build them and the family they have made.

[gebass]

Dammitt, you guys are making me want to get rid of my ranger and get into a bass cat!!!

[lamoon78]

Dammitt, you guys are making me want to get rid of my ranger and get into a bass cat!!!

When it comes to customer service you can’t top Rick and Basscat I’m a Basscat fan and owner for life for sure after how they handled my deal. Also props to Ed Whaley the rep for my area was also great to work with.

[WStorey]

Yep, I will never own another piece of fiberglass that isn't made by Rick Pierce.

[Triton03Vance]

Yep, I will never own another piece of fiberglass that isn't made by Rick Pierce.

I agree 100%, Rick and his entire team take the word “FAMILY” to a level that is not seen much anymore these days. I got the chance to meet him and visit awhile at the bass classic in Fort Worth Texas. I will NEVER forget that short time we talked and i hope to get the chance to visit with him again someday..

[iron banks]

I ran champions for years. Met Rick and have run nothing but Cats now. He is a true gem in the boating industry.

[Louie]

I ran champions for years. Met Rick and have run nothing but Cats now. He is a true gem in the boating industry.

I've seen some die hard champ guys move to that 203 hybrid bcb hull and no complaints from any of them. They will probably never let go of their 203's now lol.

[Rick Pierce]

To Angle Iron, Iron Banks, Luke, Lamoon, and many more, Thank You!

Let’s spend a moment on where this all came from. We’ve always tried to be fair with people and treat them in a manner we expect to be treated. That exists through today and we focus heavily on whether we are at fault, or the customers expectations are reality. We always try to focus on the expectation and while that may be challenged, at the end of the day we know we land that direction. When a customer has issues from other actions, or impact, they often feel we are at fault when we aren’t. We also have to support your expectations and support you as consumers often when the transfer in between is compromising. These lines are hard to walk as the fence is narrow.

It takes a team that has ‘like values’ and we have been fortunate to find people who rally around that cause and have realized our goal of customer service. A few will remember Junior, many know who Ivan, Scott, Bobby and others are that cemented and believed in the “why” (book reference), what and how we do it, they were the “who”. That team today is anchored by several starting with Stuart who’s been here about 35 years. Adding to that we have Daylon, Allan who calls you “his people”, Mark, Jared and many more beyond that service staff. They are todays who…

For over 30 years our surveys, JD Powers and now those we do with Correct Craft, they prove this is our “why”. For appx. 35 years we have had a customer loyalty of between 93% and 94%. This means that over 93% of our owners will end their boating life with their Bass Cat, amazingly 73% will buy another, and another, and often another. For reference Lexus had the highest automotive loyalty at 38.6%, Mercedes a close second at 38%. We do loose some to attrition as nothing in life lasts forever. We all will fortunately buy our last boat. And that is fortunate as the life beyond earth should be heavenly for us all.

This trend goes way back when we got re-entrenched in bass fishing. That was after almost loosing everything during in the 1982 recession. The advent of the Pantera Pro energized us and then energized anglers in 1984 (1983) with its 200 HP rating and the 19’ boat. It was followed in 1985 Model Year by a flurry of boats, which Dad, Scott and I tooled, in the Margay, Phelix and Caracal. All setting a stage that brings us forward. As those boats gave us the financial ability to bring our next dream to fruition.

It was always Dad’s dream to have an owners only event. And around 1984 we got started with a small event on Greers Ferry out of the Narrows Marina, where JW Lacey hosted us during the slow fall. In 1986 I took Dad and we fished it with about a dozen boats. When I told him we could do this large scale at home, he gave me the levity to move and we did. This was the start of what we know now as the “Bass Cat Family” as we began the Owners Invitational events as thank you’s and “Customer Appreciation” events.

In 1987 we held the first national event on Lake Norfork and I had told Dad we were hoping for 125 boats with the limited promotion. That evening of registration the tally was 247 teams and we were overwhelmed. My bass club (Twin Lakes) had cooked pigs for the event and we had to go out and buy more pork, soda, chips and all. (Chuck Forsythe cooked a mean pig) The armory was over capacity and it was pouring down rain outside. We got somewhere around 3 inches that evening. People were stuck in ditches, wetter than drowned rats and standing outside. What a mess we had and the next morning as we began those first Invitational events that February.

We went overboard servicing product at those events and you as consumers rallied around our efforts and told the public how we felt about you. We replaced tail lights, pumps, steering, and more items anchoring on building that loyalty we have today. Through this event we hosted up to 786 teams (1596 anglers) at these two day Invitational events. Over the years we pulled back some on the excessive service as people will always abuse free goods. When the boats started coming out once a year, wanting fixed free so they could fish. We altered course when one boat came out with a 3” tree stump, freshly cut off from the boats floor, where the tree was growing. It was unfair to pass those costs on to new owners.

Through the Invitationals we anchored a unprecedented pattern of customer service that gave our crew the “why”. Each of you are the major part of the “why”. Each of you is also the “who” as through each of these affirmations. You pass trust that the same customer experience will exist for others, beyond those each of you have shared. I can’t say it will, though hopefully those now learning understand how much this is the fundamentals of who we are.

The Who we are goes on through today and it should go on through future years, through each of you. This week I sent an Illinois gentleman, I just happen to know, an image of his fathers first boat’s registration card. The year was 1973 and I happened to come across it as I was doing some data work. When we get in 7 registration cards and I know 4 of the owners, that’s a joy. The week prior to this I sent a Thank You card to a son of a gentleman (NJ) I have known decades and I know his uncle in NJ also, both are Bass Cat owners. I also sent a thank you to a grandson of an owner in Texas, who just bought his first new Bass Cat and through his grandfather he learned who we are. There are so many stories like this. Just as those coming to the Owners Invitational learned who we are and began to spread the love of the “Bass Cat Family”.

The Bass Cat family has seen others try to replicate and duplicate their business as the “family”. The first bass boat family is each of you and through each of you your heirs will know what that means today. Hopefully knowing what our intent is, and that it carry’s those principles in the future.

We will always have those who object to our decisions and there will often be someone between us that can make our efforts more difficult. What matters is our intent is still there and that intent is always to “improve the customer experience” and “optimize every consumer touch point”. Those who disagree will come and go, often there will be much more to those stories, and the advent of the internet changed that game of reality. Amazingly the internet has cleaned up a lot since those chat rooms of the 1990’s. Facebook posts did bring back a little of the drama and those inaccurate accusations around the 2015 era, as brand groups emerged.

I am one man, and as above no one lasts forever. Things will change and a day will come that my term here either ends or changes. Since I was 17 I’ve been fully entrenched in doing what’s “right”, having the “reason”, and being “thorough” in all we do. As mentioned, we really began to focus on that in the 1980’s. What matters is that those younger here are willing to continue based on what we’ve built. To carry that customer focus well into the future. The team in place now has that focus and hopefully it will continue beyond my time on this earth. Brian Thacker (lamination) said it best, from his thoughts without it being scripted, in an original MLF video commercial… “everything has a reason”. And here it does and we hope is always does…

One of my favorite quotes came decades ago from Inc. Magazine and Richard Tierlink (CEO), commenting on the Harley Davidson turnaround. “We looked at the problem and the problem was us” he went on the refer crankcase oil leaks, issues and more. Then closed that paragraph with the statement that they changed their perspectives as they “(we) are our own competition.”

What others do doesn’t matter if you take care of what you do, and we’ve always marched to the beat of our own drum. We learned this coming out of the 1982 recession, and we haven’t stepped backwards since. This goes from design to how we do things, including service. Today many other bass boat companies try to claim the XYZ family. Since the early days each of you are a part of the original bass boat family. A family older than many competitors claiming that title now.

We hope to see each of you May 5th (2023) at the “family reunion”, the Owners Invitational on Lake Norfork. It would be nice to see another 500 boat event on Norfork and in May the weather should be great.

Thank you again for the kind words and we wish all of you a Merry Christmas. ��

Rick

PS: here’s one for your knowledge GB, both you’re boat and the Lynx mentioned had the same marine dealership involved. They also all (three) had the same exact located cigarette burn in the rear deck carpeting. And there were others…

[Luke]

As always Rick, very well said.
I actually just today went to see Ivan at his home. He offered some advise on setting up my boat with the motor I just bought for it.
I told Ivan these same two stories and all he could say was " thats Rick and how Bass Cat does it the right way" I have only talked to Ivan once before and with talking to him today standing in his boat shop with the temps barely touching 40 degrees it was like we had known each other for years.
Coming from a guy who has older siblings and does not get along with those siblings, that is what family is.
Each time I have been to the factory for anything at all its always a great experience.
For the times I have seen and talked to you, it is always the same...like talking to a friend I have known for years. Honestly that means more to me than you will ever know.
Some might think or say I'm a "fan boy" well so be it.
I am looking forward to the next OI and the next and so on.

[angleiron]

Hi Rick,

Re the carpet thing. I was there to pick up the boat, I noticed it, dealer said it came from the factory that way. That was as much information that I had, and I had no reason to doubt what I was being told at the time but as we both know now there were far more issues with the dealer in question, and there was more going on than you even knew about that never was brought to Bass Cat's attention because I would not try to have you be responsible for something that someone else did. All water under the bridge now as far as I am concerned as at the end of the day everything is good on my end and you played a big part of that. ONLY thing is you never gave me any feedback on the package that I sent you