BU student showcase with Valerie Hendrey.

I was born into a family of fishermen.  My grandparents fished, my parents fished with them, and then I came along and fished with my parents.  It’s the never-ending “circle of life” in my family tree.  I guess you could say I was born with the fishing gene.  I caught my fist bass at the age of 5 in a small pond behind our local shopping mall, and after that I was hooked.   But with school, work and other extra-curricular activities, fishing had to be put on the back burner until a few years ago.  I discovered that drowning a few worms was the ultimate cure to every bad day.  In December of 2010 I took my dad to Bass University in Chicago as an early Christmas present and my fishing has changed forever.

The Bass University taught me things about fishing that changed the way I look at the water.  Before Bass U, I had no problem with trying new lures or trying new techniques.  But after a few dozen casts I would get frustrated and bring out my trusty minnow bucket and a bobber.  After spending a weekend with Ike, Pete, Zona, Greg Hackney and the others… I have now developed the confidence and knowledge to keep tying on new things when fishing gets tough.  I learned that water clarity, wind, clouds and tides (I had to throw that in for Pete… that was the joke of the Bass U weekend) make huge differences in how the fish will react.  Now I use trailer hooks, drop shots, fluorocarbon leaders… things I never even thought about trying before.  I went from catching fish to catching FISH!  Not only do I catch bigger fish, but I catch more of them.  And the techniques I learned don’t just work for bass fishing.  I caught my biggest Northern Pike ever on a baby bass colored worm rigged wacky style!

A special thanks goes out to the Bass University team.  Not only did you give me a weekend that I will never forget, you gave me knowledge that someday I can pass on to my kids.  And you gave me a shot at finally catching more fish than my dad!