Years ago when Terral RiverService was looking for a shipyard to build its first new boat, Johnny Martin had specific ideas on what he wanted.
By Capt. Richard Eberhardt
Years ago when Terral RiverService was looking for a shipyard to build its first new boat, Johnny Martin had specific ideas on what he wanted.
Martin, who is now marine superintendent, said he wanted a river boat, not a canal boat. The Red River in central Louisiana really rolls during high water, and he wanted a boat with big rudders to be able to handle the current. He went into shipyards with his designs for barn-door-sized rudders.
“Build me a boat around these rudders,” Martin said. But he got excuses. The big rudders wouldn’t work because…. Excuses seemed endless. So he kept looking.