Buying a
hovercraft can be a smart business move. But a wise businessman doesn’t make
impulsive decisions. Instead, he gathers information, researches options and conducts
a thorough analysis before he commits to a capital outlay. Cory Wendt of
Madison, Wisconsin exemplifies that wisdom – and that’s what brought him to
Hovercraft Training Centers.
While in
college, Cory and his friend Jason Rockvam of Clancy, Montana, worked as guides
at a fishing lodge in Lake Creek, Alaska. It so impressed them that they made a
business decision: for the last 13 years they have owned and operated
Wilderness Place Lodge - and it’s now one of the top five fishing lodges in
Alaska.
The Lodge
is located on Lake Creek River, which offers some of the finest spin and fly
fishing in Alaska. But it also offers gravel bars, islands, pinched-off oxbow
backwaters, shallow waters and other areas boats and other vehicles can’t
access. Cory and Jason pride themselves on providing their guests with the best
Alaska fishing experience, keeping it up-close-and-personal – and flexible. To add
to that flexibility, they decided to add a hovercraft to their fleet of 18-ft.
boats. As Cory says, “If one little point
is an impasse for our guests, it spoils the trip.”
How about an
airboat; wouldn’t that work? Cory says no: “I
don’t think airboats are that great. We wouldn’t use one. Our guests wouldn’t
come; it would be too loud. They come up to get away from everything and
airboats are just deafeningly loud. And airboats are very difficult to control coming downstream. A hovercraft is the practical tool to get
us from point A to point B.”
So Cory
conducted his due diligence and made another wise business decision: he came to
HTC for Test Flights on a 4-passenger and a 6-passenger Neoteric hovercraft …
Cory (center)
and his father Bob Wendt (right)
board a 4-passenger craft for a flight on the Wabash River with HTC instructor
Steve Stafford (left) …
And off
they go - to join a second HTC Test Flight also in progress ...
Before
smoothly landing the craft onto the boat ramp, Steve gives a final demo of the
unusual maneuverability of the Neoteric HoverTrek™ due to its patented reverse
thrust system. (And no, he didn't lose a passenger on the river! The two Test Flights in progress switched passengers so they could fly on both the 4- and 6-passenger craft) …
But an HTC
Test Flight isn’t just ‘take a quick spin and go home’ – we spend time with you
to help you make the right decision. Here, Cory and Chris Fitzgerald, HTC
Senior Instructor and Neoteric President, thoroughly go over Google Earth views
of Lake Creek River to discuss which hovercraft model would best meet his needs
…
After two HTC Test Flights, during which Cory had
the chance to take the controls, he was impressed with the flexibility of the
hovercraft. “It was smoother than
expected. I didn’t expect it to be able to go through all the mud and sticks. I
figured all those sticks would break up the air flow, but they didn’t.”
And Cory
immediately understood the importance of proper training. “I didn’t fully have an appreciation until I drove it; it started to
feel a lot more like an aircraft. I could understand why training is important –
I’d read it and heard it but didn’t really appreciate it until I was at the
controls.”
What would
he say to someone who wants to buy a hovercraft and just take off in it with no
training? “DON’T. At the Lodge, we
require our boat captains to practice ten 8- to 10-hour days before they carry
passengers. Training is a must.” And he added, “We’re also the first responders, and I don’t want to have to respond to
an accident that we caused.”
So,
whether Cory decides on a 4- passenger or a 6-passenger
hovercraft for Wilderness Place Lodge, he definitely intends to undergo an HTC training course when he
picks up his new craft – another very wise business decision!
and
