Shallow Sport Boats

Shallow Sport Boats Inc. was founded by Rex Hudson in 1983. The history of boat building in this family, however, started way back in the late 1940's with his father Willis Hudson. Willis was originally from Texas and, following military service in World War II, graduated from Rose Polytechnic Institute in Terra Haute, Ind., with a degree in engineering in 1948. Willis' first employer was Union Carbide, who transferred him to Niagara Falls, N.Y., along with his wife Mackie. That was too cold for the Hudsons and they headed back to Houston. Willis went to work for a company making corrugated roofing where he began working with a new material called Fiberglass. In 1950, Willis claims to have built the first molded all Fiberglass boat in the country, in his garage. He never really intended to be in the boat business, he just figured that he could mold a boat out of fiberglass. Willis was successful in his experiment and somebody saw it and they wanted one too. That's how it all started. Willis formed a boat company in 1954 called Glass Jet which eventually became Falcon Boats. In the mid 1950's, Willis went into a venture with Houston oilman John Mecom Sr. to make boats to ferry supplies to offshore oil rigs. At 45 feet long, they were the largest molded Fiberglass boats of their time. Willis formed Falcon Boats in 1956. Within a few years he was making five to six boats a week and had 40 employees. The secret of his success was that he was a prolific boat designer always at the forefront of his trade. Like his father, Rex got into the business by accident. Rex decided that he wanted to build a flats boat with a large tunnel and a flat deck. After Rex and Willis both agreed on the design of the new boat, Rex proceeded to build one in his garage around 1982. Rex had no idea that he had just built the most stable, shallow running boat of all time. His friends and local guides were amazed by the efficiency of the tunnel and the boat's ability to stay on plane at low speeds. One boat became several thousand and now there are ten different models ranging from 15' to 27' manufactured by Shallow Sport Boats. Rex and Connie Hudson have owned and operated Shallow Sport Boats since 1983. History will not repeat itself again. The next generation won't accidentally get into the boat business. Rex's son Wes and his wife Kyra, both graduates of Texas A&M University, now run the company located near South Padre Island, Texas. You can join the large family of fisherman and boating enthusiasts with your purchase of a new Shallow Sport Boat at one of their retail stores.