Hiding Out

When the voice on my phone finished the perfunctory introduction, I was still in the dark. First of all, I had never heard of Legend bass boats. Secondly, I didn't know there was even a fiberglass bass boat builder in Alabama, let alone a "high-performance" bass boat builder as the voice emphatically mentioned. My curiosity peaked. I played along.

It turns out that the voice belonged to Chris Craig, who has been charged with getting the word out of the Alabama hills about Legend Performance Boats' little boat building business. The company began when Legend bought molds and equipment from Vision Boat Company when the latter went out of business a few years ago.

Since that time, the Clanton, Ala. company (located midway between Birmingham and Montgomery) has changed all the hull designs and expanded the offerings to 10 models, from 16-foot skiffs to an LTV drag racing boat. Of the couple hundred boats it sells a year, the bread-and-butter of this very regional builder is its bass boats — and the new Dominator 202 is its performance flagship. That's the one Craig wanted me to see firsthand. We met a month later at the Gulfport Lake boat ramp, a couple of miles from Long Beach, Miss.

My short time around the new Dominator reinforced my view of smaller boat manufacturers. For one, the Dominator's fit and finish were of a higher quality than I'd expected: the finish was smooth, the rub rail straight, the carpet of high quality and the trim clean. The undersides of the deck cap and console had been sanded and sprayed with black gelcoat, too. In short, the boat showed pride of product.

It is also well laid out. The single-console I tested provides plenty of rod storage for all levels of anglers, adequate tackle storage fore and aft and a comfortable seating position behind the helm. The console lacks the styling flair of many of the bigger brands, but is fully instrumented with the requisite switches and gauges.

I would like a sliding base on the standard foot-throttle and a tilt-helm to bring the steering wheel down to a more comfortable height. I did like the way the bucket seats kept me planted in the boat, as well as the location of the "panic" handles on each side of the center cup holders.

The Dominator runs strongly, too. In fact, it's downright fast. My new Garmin GPS III showed a top speed of 76.2 mph at one point, while the Stalker radar gun recorded consistent 75s with two anglers in the seats and the twin 22-gallon fuel tanks still close to the full mark. Not bad speeds for a 20-foot 2-inch, 1,250-pound hull running a 200 Merc EFI. (The Dominator's bottom is reminiscent of those of Bullet and Bumble Bee.)

Craig says the standard setup comes with a 200 and a 12-inch-setback jackplate. But Legend has found that the 202 runs stronger on the top with a 15-inch setback, which is what this one sported. The big setback and 26-pitch small-hub Trophy helped push the Dominator to 7.4-second 0 to 30 mph times while holding the engine to about 5,800 rpm at wide-open throttle.

As for actual build quality, Craig says it's all laid by hand using a combination of traditional fiberglass building methods from encapsulated wood in the stringers to 24-ounce woven roving, coremat and biaxial cloths in the hull and cap. All the high-stress areas receive additional cloth and woven roving, and the cap is fiberglassed to the transom area and floor. They are also fully foamed, so flotation should never be a question.

These construction methods probably contribute to how the boat rides and handles. It feels solid in chop, with no noticeable flex or drumming. It also handles very nicely, lifting easily with trim at speed, staying true in fast turns and cutting a crisp line in tight, slower-speed maneuvers.

But I have saved the best part for last: the price. The base price for the Dominator 202, rigged with the 200 EFI Merc, is $20,980. With options such as tandem-axle trailer, additional setback, on-board battery charger, and upgraded electronics and trolling motor, it comes to $23,329. That places the Legend in a price range of very few other 20-footers, and it comes with a five-year hull warranty. The only problem is availability. Right now there are dealers in Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky and Mississippi. Craig says Legend want to grow its dealer network, but until it does, you'll just have to go south to get a taste of the new Legend.

Legend Dominator 202

Boat Specifications

Major Options: Tandem-axle trailer with brakes, Guest on-board charger, 15-inch jackplate, MotorGuide 756, electronics package

Manufacturer:
Legend Performance Boats
Gene's Marine
Dept. B&WB
3347 Alabama Hwy. 145
Clanton, AL 35046
(205) 755-3527