By Crystal McGough
University Marine at Pine Harbor has been servicing boaters at Logan Martin Lake in Pell City for over 30 years. The company boasts full-line boat storage with both dry and wet docks, boat detailing, service and maintenance, as well as being the only boat dealer in the Birmingham area to sell Manitou pontoon boats, known for their V-Toon technology paired with Honda’s reliable outboard motors.
“We have the only performance pontoon boat on the market right now, so we’re proud to carry them,” John Coffman of University Marine said. “The thing that separates our pontoon boats from everybody else’s is the hull of the boat. They’re not just a barge.
It’s really a pontoon that performs and carries itself like an actual v-hull boat. Instead of it being just your granddad’s pontoon boat– boring and rides horrible– you now have a performance boat that rides, turns and handles like a ski boat and rides like a Cadillac.”
Coffman, a certified Honda technician, said that University Marine has been a Honda dealer for over 20 years and has been selling Manitou pontoon boats since 2013.
“We want everybody to know that we sell a boat that nobody else has, and it’s backed with a Honda product,” he said. “I’m actually a full Honda-certified technician, so not only am I going to sell the boat, I’m the one that will personally rig the boat and get it ready for the customer. We don’t want our name on anything that’s not installed or done with top-notch service in mind.”
As one of the oldest full marinas on Logan Martin Lake, University Marine at Pine Harbor has a large storage building with the capacity to store over 200 boats. They offer inside and outside storage, as well as maintenance and cleaning. In addition, Pine Harbor is proud to be one of the only marinas that have handicap accessible docks as well as covered wet slips.
“As far as I know, nobody else on the lake has that,” Coffman said. Another service that University Marine offers is 24 hour, 7 days-a- week, on-the- water gas with premium unleaded ethanol-free fuel. “The dock pumps are ready to be used no matter what time of day or night they are needed. This is just an extension of the service we aim to provide to our customers,” Coffman said.
University Marine is a family-oriented business, and a home away from home for Coffman. “I’m fortunate that work and play mingle together in my everyday life. This place is part of my home for me.”
“We’re not corporately owned,” Coffman said. “Our customers are family, and that’s really what we strive for. My hope is that when our name comes up in conversation, they say, “Oh man, those guys are great!’ That’s really what we stand for here. We’re proud of what we sell, and we service our customer’s boats like they were our own.”