Celebrating 40 Years

From boyhood dream to 40 year career, a passion for boating has always been at the center of Boats By George's success

Boats By George was born out of a childhood dream. Founder and President George Pensel, who grew up on the east side of Lake George, was the son of Donald and Mary Pensel, owners of Dunhams Bay Boat Company and a dealer of Century and Chris Craft boats from 1948 to 1970. George grew up around the marina, water skiing with family and friends, running around the bay in a small skiff, and working the docks as a teenager. It was there that George's passion for boating and being around Lake George developed.

Donald Pensel, however, had a different passion. While he loved being around the water, the marina business wasn't his true calling. Inventing, designing, and engineering were his passions. And so while running the marina, Don was spending time tinkering in his workshop developing a revolutionary new type of boat hull, which he named the Ski-Hull, in an attempt to create a boat that could handle the rough chop with ease, while also being more fuel efficient and faster than similar sized boats with traditional flat bottomed or V shaped hulls.

So when a buyer for the marina came knocking in 1970, while Don's project was in full swing, the decision to sell the business was made. Losing the family marina and the freedom that came with it was devastating to George, but ultimately that loss was the spark that would change the course of his life a decade later.

Don, now freed up to put his full attention into his passion, developed two models of his Ski-Hull boat - a 14' outboard, and an 18' sterndrive. Filing a US Patent for his invention, he went to work marketing the ski hull. This lead him to a feature on the cover of Popular Science Magazine in 1977, and a visit by the US Navy to see if his hull was a fit for their fleet.

George may have not known it at the time, but witnessing his father successfully chase his dream would the catalyst that gave him the confidence he needed later to go out on his own and find his way back to a marina on Lake George.

Shortly after Donald Pensel purchased Dunhams Bay Marina in 1948, a fire ravaged the building and left him with nothing, forcing him to completely rebuild.

Don rebuilt the marina better than before, utilizing surplus US Army quonset huts as part of the structure, which were supposed to be incredibly strong and cost effective following WW2. However, in 1958, the huts collapsed under snow load, forcing Don to rebuild again.

George Pensel standing next to his first ever sign at Boat Cover's By George.

George Pensel standing in front of his canvas shop on the beach of the Gilchrist Marina, 1980.

George Pensel's original location of Boats By George at 18 State Route 149, taken around 1983.

Boats By George shortly after the addition that closed in the shop, and added rack storage to the south of the main building, 1985.

Boats By George in 1985, after the 2nd and final rack building at this location was completed.

In 2001, George renovated the route 149 location in preparation for a new showroom addition. The renovation refinished the exterior, added more shop space for service, added parts storage, and added additional sales offices for his growing staff.

In 2003, the 8000 square foot showroom was completed. This gave George the ability to display boats in comfort year round.

In 2005, after building Boats By George for 23 years, George finally achieves his ultimate dream - owning a marina on Lake George. With the purchase of the former Mooring Post Marina, Boats By George 'On The Lake' was born.

The addition of a marina and showroom rapidly expanded Boats By George's growth, and it quickly became apparent that additional boat storage space would be needed. In 2008, Boats By George purchased an 8 acre lot off of Route 149 5 miles down the road from the flagship location.

In 2016, construction of a brand new state of the art boat service facility was completed at the site of the storage lot. This included 3 indoor rack buildings and an 8-bay indoor shop. An additional detailing shop and rack building have since been added to this location.

In 2018, Boats By George acquired Warner Bay Docks, a 55 slip marina on the same Cleverdale peninsula that Boats By George on the Lake is located, giving our customers even greater access to Lake George.

In the late 1970s, George had been working as an Assistant GM at Pilot Knob Marina, learning how to run a marine dealership. Sensing some trouble with the future of the company, George decided it was finally time to go out on his own. But after meeting with an accountant, reality set in that he didn't have the finances to open a full fledged marina.

The accountant recommended that George start small and specialize. Seeing a need in the market for someone who made quality canvas, George armed himself with a small Singer Sewing Machine, and began to sew boat covers. He took so many orders that he burnt out his machine, and with the help of his mother, Mary, who took a loan taken against her life insurance policy, he was able to upgrade that singer into a commercial grade Rex Walking Foot machine. George sewed himself through $200,000.00 in boat canvas in 2 years, and in 1982, with just enough saved to start a boat dealership, Boats By George was born.

To read more about our history, click here for a story written for Cobalt Boats' eLines Newsletter on our 30th anniversary!

Learn What We're Up To Today

Over the last 40 years, Boats By George has grown from a single location, land locked boat dealership, to a multi-location, industry-leading Marina and Dealership. We offer two marinas on Lake George, a state of the art service center and storage facility on 8 acres, a flagship 8,000 square foot showroom and storage facility on Route 149, and coming soon, a 50,000 square foot showroom, retail, and meeting space at the former location of the Lake George Forum.

The purchase of the Lake George Forum in August of 2021 marks a monumental step in the growth of our company. The facility will be one of a kind - a 30,000 square foot showroom space housing up to 60 new boats at time. This space will rival the size of most regional boat shows, and make Lake George a destination location for boat shoppers from all over the northeast.

Boats By George has been one of the top 10 dealers of Cobalt Boats in the world for nearly 10 years in a row, and one of the top 10 dealers of Chris Craft boats for 3 years in a row. We are also a dealer of Barletta Pontoon Boats, and Malibu and Axis Wake Research tow boats.

The Future

Learn About Our Long Term Vision

As a multigenerational business, Boats By George is positioned to continue serving boaters well into the future. Not only are George's sons, Adam and Andrew Pensel, key employees with the company, but our entire staff has grown tremendously over the last 5 years with experienced veterans and young newcomers breaking into the marine industry alike.

Many of our employees have decades of experience in the marine industry, and are multiyear mainstays.

We continue to be focused on old school, quality customer service, while also utilizing modern technology to make boat ownership more convenient and more fun.

In the coming years, we're excited to continue our growth into new boating markets while also finding ways to continue supporting organizations that protect Lake George and other bodies of water in the Adirondacks and Capital Region that our communities are so fortunate to enjoy. We are eager to participate in the electrification of recreational boating, whenever that happens, and to continue to find ways to make boating accessible for everyone.

Our History

From boyhood dream to 40 year career, a passion for boating has always been at the center of Boats By George's success

The Present

Learn What We're Up To Today

The Future

Learn About Our Long Term Vision

Explore them below!