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Reflecting On Our Sport

Friday, December 19, 2008

In the late 1990’s I was introduced to bass tournament fishing when my wife told me that her friends husband wanted to know if I knew the difference between a jig-n-pig and a Carolina rig, and which one I preferred.  You see, before that day I was a bank fisherman who sometimes went out in the canoe and fished for bass, blue gill and perch.  Ten years later, I help run the fastest growing amateur bass tournament organization in the United States.  In these ten years I learned about catch & release, the teachings of Buck Perry and the many accomplishments of many anglers, which in this short time has brought me almost full circle to my roots of fishing with my dad and grandfather when I was quite younger.

It is interesting to see how the sport of bass tournament fishing has evolved in just the last ten years.  During this time, have there been changes which have taken the pure fun of bass fishing out of our sport?  There have been changes, more organizations have sprouted out, more money has been injected into the sport, manufactures have been born and grassroots bass tournament fishing has slowed.  To me grassroots bass tournament fishing is the club level sport, where the sport is grown from, where kids are introduced to the sport and carried forward.

Grassroots bass tournament fishing is why I chose USA Bassin with my bass fishing partner Jimmy Lowe, and brought it to New England.  Next year when you are fishing your first fishing tournament, look around and see how many kids are in the event or fishing for fun as your compete in the event.  Where are they? 

Early this year I received a call from Jimmy, who told me a person by the name of Gene Ellison had called him and wanted to speak to him about USA Bassin.  I called Gene and he was very pleasant to speak to and took the time to hear about USA Bassin’s grassroots background and family friendly format.  We planned a meeting, where I learned he was a pro bass angler who entered the sport later than most and has a goal to introduce as many kids to our sport as possible.  In Gene’s words, he wants to put a million fishing rods in a million kid’s hands.

Since that meeting, I have fished with Gene and he has been USA Bassin’s number one voice in New England.  I have seen first hand Gene work with kids and teach them about the sport.  At New England’s regional championship, Gene took time to speak to one of our teenage anglers who was competing in the event and gave him a 30 minute(+) lesson on drop-shoting, resulting in a five fish limit the next day. At our Bow Lake event he spoke to a kid and provided him with a smile and words of encouragement to pick up a fishing rod and go fishing.  I watched Gene run a fishing clinic in Gardiner, Maine and provide a large group of children with brand new fishing rods and lessons which I hope lead them to fish as well.

Gene is a determined and competitive angler, who approaches all events to win and continually adjusts like all good students of this sport hopefully do.  Gene is the first and now former President of the Professional Anglers Association (PAA), currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame and makes personal appearances year round to promote our sport and bring kids into it.  Finally, Gene’s accomplishments and passion for our sport did not go unnoticed by his peers, so this past summer at a Lake Pickwick event Gene was awarded the Life Time Achievement Award from the PAA.  The first time this award has been given out.  An award that KVD says may not be given for several more years.  Thank you Gene for you support for USA Bassin and introducing more children to our sport.  Fishing Tips For Taking A Kid Fishing: http://www.nefreshwater.com/article10.php.

So, what will it take for you to take a kid fishing?  You could bring your daughter or grandson to an event and they could fish with you.  You could have the family come to a weigh-in.  Or you could leave that $40,000 bass boat at home and take that canoe off the rack outside your garage and hit the local pond.   Carry our sport forward and have fun.

Happy Holidays

Bill Schwarz