Old marina/New attitude.

[Walleye Express]

Picked my boat up at Lindys today after the spring start up. $362.85 labor and parts for 4 new upper/lower seals and hydrualic fluid in the outdrive power and trim cylinders. New buzzer in dash (DNR required) for auto bilge alarm. New 60 amp fuse box and fuse hooked up for power trim hydraulic system. Battery charge and systems check.

Haul boat to Hoyles to launch and tie up at my slip. #1 good thing I notice is the Kid working at the ramp asking to assist me in pulling my truck out after I launched. Then parked my truck for me over in the visitors parking area near my boat so I would not have to run back and get it myself. Third year I Iaunched my BIG AZZ boat by myself, and up until today was never asked by any body there if I needed a hand.

Tie boat up at my slip and decide to check the working order of my HT Yamaha kicker. It starts right up but won't go up or down when the Power trim is engaged. Remembering the Mechanical service (or lac there of) I received before from Hoyles in the past, I head all the way back to Lindys and ask their opinion. Chet figures being my kicker gets drowned quit often because of how low it is hooked up on my transom, that either the brushes or the motor itself is burned out from getting to much water inside these last 4 years that I've had it. My first charter is on June 2nd. 12 days away. My kicker also has an auto pilot hooked up on it and is a large part of the way I fish. It has to be working properly. So my options are, we can order the brushes, but if that's not it, add 4 more days for getting the whole power/trim motor assembly in. 8 days with only 4 to spare in case of other SNAFU isn't going to work for me. So I decide it's better to order the tiny little power and trim motor for this 8 horse. Guess how much? $417.00 just for the part not including labor to install it. There's $780.00 and the season hasn't started yet.

So now I figure I have to pull my boat back out, take it back to Lindys, park it in their yard and wait for the part. Hoping they can get to it before it's to late. So I haul my trailer all the way back to Hoyles to take the boat back out of the water, but decide at the last minute to talk to the (under new managment) parts and service man at the new Linwood Beach Marina and Campgrounds (Old Hoyles), to see if things have changed any service wise. Well, this new service manager [John Gorm] is like talking to an old friend versus the (I could give a crap) cold shoulder I got from the old Hoyles previous service head. He says that they hired all new service peoples since they bought the place except one, but they are still swamped with both new and old work, and that it would be impossible for them to get at it before the end of Memorial Day weekend. But knowing the pinch that I was in, that he would personally put it on for me if I wanted to order and pick up the part from Lindys, who could get the part a lot faster being they are a Yamaha dealer. This to me is above and beyond the call of duty to a customer. Letting me buy the part from another dealer and offering to put it on in his own time. Then I ask if it's O. K. to park my trailer somewhere for a few days on the property, until I get the part and we can pull the boat for the repairs. He says sure, we don't charge for storing your trailer all summer when you rent a slip here. Well, I almost dropped my bottle of pop on the floor when he said that. First they lower the slip rental $100.00 for the 2007 season and now all of this. I was quickly impressed from all corners today at the new Linwood Beach Marina and am very gratified with the new ownership at the old Hoyles and their new business attitude. :D

[Priority1]

I agree Dan. The former Hoyles will keep improving. John Gorm done some work for me when he was @ GLs. He knows boat service inside out, and will go the extra distance when required. I think the new owners have what it takes to make Hoyles better than ever. The place started to go down hill fast when the old man died. GL to the new owners.

[shu9265]

Dan, you are a lucky man. To find a place like that with that kind of service is a rare find.

Best of Luck with getting it all together in time for your season to start.

[Alligator]

we fished the steelheaders tourney on the 16, the guys were very organized and did a great job getting boats in and out in an orderly and quick manner.