“I was friends with the old owner, Jared (Gendron). He had started another business and when we started chatting it turned into something,” Peterson said.

Peterson has been working on ATVs on the side for many years. His interest in ATVs, he said, stemmed from his older brother, who was a mechanic. Peterson tells of how when he was really young, his brother used to put him on a machine to get him to sleep.

Peterson has a wide variety of past experiences that prepared him to own Redline Sport & Marine. He attended Northern Michigan University, earning an associate degree for HVAC. He has worked for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and, most recently, as a technician for a gas company.

Peterson also is president of Upper Peninsula Recreational Off-Road ATV Riders, or UPRoar, the local club that takes care of the trail system in Dickinson County.

THE CREW AT Redline Sport & Marine. From left are owner Ben Peterson, Duran Carlson, Dan Hulce, Dan Shaughnessy, Ryan Ritchie and Ryan Schmidt. (Jim Paul/Daily News photo)

When Peterson took over Redline Sport & Marine, he made no sweeping changes other than carrying more inventory on the showroom floor and beginning to sell motorcycles.

Peterson jokes that his main role at Redline Sport & Marine is janitorial, but he dove into the business end, handling the books and doing whatever else he can to assist his crew of five employees.

Peterson said customer satisfaction is paramount at Redline Sport & Marine.

“We definitely have a good reputation for providing the customer with what they ask for and we give them options,” Peterson said. “We are not really pushy in the sales department. We try to work with customers — that is what sets us apart.”

Redline Sport & Marine is the area’s only CFMOTO dealer and have been selling the ATVs, generators, motorcycles and side-by-sides since 2012.

CFMOTO is a Chinese-owned company that has its American headquarters in Minnesota and will soon be manufacturing its products in Mexico. Peterson said CFMOTO products are durable and come with a one-year factory warranty, with extended warranties available.

“We have had really good luck with them and they are not what you would expect from a Chinese manufacturer,” Peterson said. “They give the customer a chance to get out on the trails without spending every dime and they will compare to a lot of the major brands, if not exceed the major brands.”

Redline Sport & Marine sells Suncatcher pontoon boats and G3 fishing boats. G3 Boats is a Yamaha company that manufactures in Branson, Missouri. Peterson said G3 boats are extremely well built, with double-riveted hulls and very versatile floor plans plus a Yamaha motor, which he said are the best.

The service department at Redline Sport & Marine is a source of pride for Peterson.

Redline Sport & Marine offers ATV, motorcycle and marine repair and maintenance on any manufacturer and any year of equipment. Peterson said not a lot of repair shops do that anymore, they only service what they sell.

Redline Sport & Marine has extensive experience repairing Arctic Cat, Honda, Kawasaki, Polaris and Yamaha UTVs as well as all makes of motorcycles, plus inboard and outboard boat motors manufactured by Evinrude, Johnson, Honda, Mercury, Mercruiser, Suzuki and Volvo.

“Even if you came in and looked at a boat here and decided to go with another manufacturer, we would still service that boat,” Peterson said.

As far as servicing boats, Redline Sport & Marine offers dockside service — they will fix a boat on location. In addition, Peterson said they will take the boat out in the fall, winterize, shrink wrap and store it and in the spring get it completely ready to go at the dock.

Redline Sport & Marine is at 1700 U.S. 2 in Norway and is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays.