I recently had the pleasure of spending some time with Terry Sobo, the sales and marketing manager for Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats. I met Sobo a few years prior at the Desert Storm Poker Run in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., and over the years I've shared witty banter with him on OffshoreOnly.com and ran into him at various Florida poker runs or events.

The instant I met Sobo on Lake Havasu, I liked him. He's laid back, soft spoken and knowledgeable in all things performance boating. Plus, he's always friendly and always greeting those he meets with a warm smile and a firm handshake—whether they are a buyer or not. I've been following his posts on OffshoreOnly regarding the most recent Nor-Tech builds—including the two 80-foot Nor-Tech sport yachts and the various 39-foot center consoles that have drawn high accolades and praise by those who have seen one and the lucky few who currently own one.

During Powerboat magazine's boat tests in mid-December, we—editor Jason Johnson, sales manager Ryan Johnson (no relation), my wife, Kelly, and I—paid a visit to Sobo at the Nor-Tech facility in Fort Myers, Fla. He was able to take time from his busy schedule and give us a personal tour of the factory, which included witnessing several Nor-Techs in various stages, as well as taking a sneak peek at future Nor-Tech models.

After the awesome tour, my wife and I found ourselves sharing a car ride with Sobo from Fort Myers to Sarasota, where I had the opportunity to pick his brain and delve a little deeper into the man many consider one of the nicest guys in the business.

Sobo told me he's been with Nor-Tech since 1999, when he came from Black Thunder Powerboats. As he described it, he enjoyed working for Black Thunder and had poured his heart and soul into his first boating-related venture coming from the field my wife and he jokingly described as: “The exciting and new field of bar codes.” Sobo said he went from a well-paying job to barely making ends meet while pursuing his passion in the performance-boat business. While working for Black Thunder, he realized there likely wasn't going to be much room for vertical movement in the company so he jumped at the opportunity to work for Nor-Tech and moved from Missouri to Florida.

Seeing as we were on our way to run Nor-Tech's new 80 Roadster sport yacht, I asked him about the build of the company's two magnificent, larger-than-life yachts. As he explained, the building of the two behemoths was quite an undertaking and a lot of work and stress. He said they (Nor-Tech) learned a ton from the two builds and they'll be able to meet any expectation a future customer of the 80-footer would demand.

When the conversation turned to the new 39-foot Nor-Tech center console, I was surprised to hear Sobo had poured his own blood, sweat, tears and (most astonishingly) personal finances into the project. He went on to explain that after owning a plethora of styles and makes of performance boats, he realized the desire to own a center console to cruise around the local waters. He ended up purchasing several center consoles from competing companies that he'd entertain customers and friends on. He soon found his customers also enjoyed the versatility and ease of use that comes with a center console and wished to purchase one for themselves.

Sobo knew something had to be done when he realized he was inadvertently selling other manufacturers' boats! It was at this time he approached Nor-Tech owners Trond Schou and Nils Johnson with the idea of building a center console. The founders of Nor-Tech were less than thrilled with the idea. Sobo, however, was so determined and sure that the boats would be a success that he presented them with an offer they couldn’t refuse. Sobo proposed that he'd personally front the entire R&D and start-up tooling fees to get the project started. Schou and Johnson agreed.

His goal was to build a well-performing, comfortable and versatile boat that offered a superior and dry ride. It was a huge gamble for Sobo, which has fortunately paid off in spades. It’s always nice to see a good guy in this industry “win” once in a while. The 39-footer has taken off like gangbusters since its debut at the end of 2009. With 15 or so already built, and plenty on the order list, the new 39 center console has made quite a name for itself in the market.

To contact Sobo regarding the center console of any of the various V-bottom and catamaran models Nor-Tech offers, e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . And be sure to look for the "5 Minutes With" interview where Powerboat Editor at Large Matt Trulio pins him down for a little one-on-one in the upcoming March/April issue of the magazine.

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