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jignpig.
Im not sure if this is the proper place to post this, if not just tell me. I was fishing a tournament Saturday at Kerr Lake. I had been fishing in my first spot about 30 minutes when I heard boats coming. I looked up and here comes Mike Iaconelli, he pulled right in front of me (within a good casting distance) and proceded to cut me off. Later in the day as two other guys fishing our tournament were fishing down a bank Ike approached from the other direction and informed them that this was his area and not to fish it. I have never thought much of this clown to start with and this just reenforced my thinking. I really dont think Ike the Jerk is a very good representative of BassCat or any other sponsor. I heard that his co-angler from Saturday made the statement that Ike acted like a whining crybaby(cursing) all day even smashing the front light on his boat in a moment of anger and that he was embarrased to be in the boat with him!!
Sorry you had an experience. Lately it has been the other way around with locals coming up to the pro boats and getting gps points, or hammering a spot after seeing the pro catching fish there. Unfortunately more and more people are using the water and fishing is getting tighter. Common courtesy would say at least a long cast away from another boat. But with tm in the water and not being anchored, there are no other rules saying stay away 50 yards. I have met Ike only once and he was very open, talking fishing and tips. Again, if it did happen, sorry you had an experience, I am sure it will be mentioned to him.96 Eyra/12 Mercury 175 Pro XS with 2015 single axle trailer2017 Victory Gunner
Did you talk to him or tell him that you were fishing this particular area and that you were fishing a Tournament? If not then was he supposed to automatically know what your intentions were? If you did not speak up and stand your ground then, what happened, happened. Mike has an unbelievable competitive spirit and when he gets in the zone there are few things that can distract him. Everything else is heresay!(My sisters brothers best friend said this!) Ever been to one of the Elite weigh-ins?? Wanna know who is the last guy signing autographs and hamming it up with the kids? Mike I. I think the mitigating factors far outweigh the aggrevating factors for BassCat. How many forums are you going to post this on??Last edited by BlackJack Baits on September 23rd, 2008, 2:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I am going to have to agree with Black Jack Baits on this one. I was not there and can not speak for Ike but I can say if you ever get the chance to meet him and watch how is with the kids I think your impression would be a bit different as was mine. I think he is good for the sport and good for Bass Cat. This is all too common that every tournament someone complains that he or she cut me off because they brought a better sack of fish to the scales. If a persons whole tournament is decided on one little stretch of bank then he did not do his homework. I am not saying what he did was right or wrong because I was not there but you did post this to see where some of us stand. You may be surprised at how many people complained about you fishing a point or bank that they were going to fish or that somebody felt you cut too close to them. There is plenty of water and plenty of fish to not let a little situation bother you in a tournament. If your whole day was ruined by this then you were not focused on the job at hand to begin with. You pull up your boot straps go someplace else or follow him up the bank and fish hard enough to catch the fish you are after and not let anyone else ruin your tournament. The elite guys contend with amatuers and camera boats all day being closer to them than anyone has ever come to you and most smile and go on.They have a million times more pressure on them to succeed.
There are no doubt difficulties with sharing public water for a dedicated tournament and public recreational or small tournament anglers. These guys have all sorts of challenges and Mike had already competed on that water for Three (3) days. We understand he spent a good part of his time in Nutbush and the areas around that would be congested on most Saturdays. We are not taking up for the alter ego “Ike” as that has been discussed here often both before and after our commitment to Mike. There are always going to be complications and people getting cut off in these events by tournament anglers. This is a tough line and Mike probably felt after using the 2water for three days he3 deserved it. They face all sorts of complications and these guys are tuned into their focus point. They dont often notice exactly who is around them, or who has watched them over the past week. Thus they often feel someone is horning (shoe horn) in on their water during the event from knowing where theya re fishing. This is not always the case and the scenarios are to many to discuss here. The folks in the need to know are aware of the incident and it has already been addressed. Please do consider the overall complications of a part of this as Mike (Ike) had led that event for three days prior to Saturday on that body of water. HIs finishes of 6th twice and this win place him overall on the Angler of the Year level of that series and in a good position for the Championship. He had plenty on the line for a win there and emotion plays into all decisions as do the strategy of the event. Some of these complications will continue to arise as long as they have to share public waters. If we were sharing Bristol Raceway with Dale Jr. or Tony we would definitely see similar opinions of their actions. As for the part of this that has been addressed, we have no comment and the “Pierce family” is aware of some of those actions. That part is a drastic improvement in this character over that of days prior to BCB and we continue to mold that. Though in the process we dont want to loose the competitive nature of that individual. Even T.O. is a different person today and this is no different than that comparison. Thank You ALL, BCB
I really dont care if he had been on the water for two days or two months there is still a simple thing called COMMON COURTESY!!! As for talking to him about cutting me off DUH he isnt blind just a jerk. We as tournament anglers get ripped enough for being inconsiderate, we dont need the so called Elite anglers making things worse. There are two IKES here the fake one you see on TV and at shows and the real one on the water. Just ask his Co-angler on Staurday about his cursing,whining and stomping the front light on his BassCat. You can defend him all you want but we all know the truth. If you want hom representing your product thats your right and I respect that right but not Ike.
Personally…If I was fishing a tournament and Ike or any other pro pulled up and cut me off…Id probably not even notice it! Id just sit back and watch what he was doing. Im sure I could have learned from him. But then, maybe Im more tolerant than most. Most lakes are pretty darn big and I know, If it was me…I wouldnt be fishing in any kind of tournament that paid out big bucks anyway. But then maybe your tournament was a high dollar one…in that case Id be ticked, but its also the way it goes. In lifes big picture, what happened is relatively insignificant.
courtesy – “excellence of manners or social conduct; polite behavior” irony – “a technique of indicating, as through character or plot development, an intention or attitude opposite to that which is actually or ostensibly stated.” Judd Lasiter
Dk239, Mike iaconelli is a passionate, if not OCD type individual when it comnes to tournament fishing, and ultimately is responsible for his behavior, not BCB. They have a business arrangement, as Mr. Iaconelli is a professional angler, but, BCB takes things many steps further with this arrangement, and both Mike, and the folks at BCB have made a commitment to making things better for each other by not bailing on their man when he overreacts occasionally, or his “passion” gets him into trouble. This i respect, if nothing else, i do respect their commitment….. What i personally do not respect is someone coming on the site to simply complain about Mr. Iaconelli, when a simple e-mail to the head honcho would have done the trick. There was no need to publicly call them to the carpet on this one, when the outcome would have had as much , or more effect done privately. IMHO, D. You , or anyone, are always welcome on the owners board. But it does look a bit bad for youre only posts to be negative,,,,troll maybe ? How do we know ???Last edited by dbasketman on September 23rd, 2008, 6:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
basschaser wrote: courtesy – “excellence of manners or social conduct; polite behavior” irony – “a technique of indicating, as through character or plot development, an intention or attitude opposite to that which is actually or ostensibly stated.” Judd Lasiter Judd, do you have a definition for “rude”? Compare and contrast to “road rage?” BTW, I was one of two that voted for you while you were at the GAF!96 Eyra/12 Mercury 175 Pro XS with 2015 single axle trailer2017 Victory Gunner
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