Home › Forums › Bass Cat Boats › My fishing cup is starting to fill…….
em beez.
Fishing has been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. I enjoy the fellowship, competition of tournaments, the industry, the vendors, and the gamut that revolves around the sport. I wanted to fish professionally for the last 30 years and am realizing that it is probably not going to happen. The stars just arent aligning where I stand and my dreams have remained exactly that……dreams.I recently became involved with High School fishing in our little town. Some folks and myself constructed a fishing team out of creek waders, pond giggers, and kids comprised of novice skill sets who are excellent at backlashing reels. Nonetheless, we have got ourselves a team. We have meetings on Sunday evenings where I put together power point presentations for the youth to give them visual acuteness of what they can expect on the water. Yes, I am probably a boring person to listen to in front of a projector screen. However, the kids look, listen, delve, and learn……at least I think they do. My personal boat tournament crew consists of three boys: 1) William – a 9th grader who is self renowned as “the greatest pond fisherman on his own pond. 2) Jacob – an 8th grader who could be a cage fighter and is deadly on shoreline sycamore branches. 3) Jared – an 8th grader who is a methodical fisherman and great at picking backlashes. Our first tournament was spent trying to catch crappie, retrieving lures in sycamores, and picking backlashes. The weigh in found us a spectators only.These boys have a combined 1 year experience fishing from a boat, and that experience comes from just one of them. We are not expecting to make the cover of BASS Times any time soon but we are expecting to take solace in our endeavor. Our 2nd tournament together over the weekend was a monumental peak. We went from zero fish in the boat on the first derby to Sir Edmund Hillary, in my opinion over the weekend. We brought a total of six keepers out of a possible 9 to the scales and each boy placed in top 40 out of about a buck 50. Oh, by the way, Sir Edmund Hillary ascended Mount Everest.Ill keep this short and get on to my point. I always wanted to be a professional fisherman and have spent the last 30 years trying to reach the summit while suppressing the disappointments caused by the path. What is a professional fisherman? I am learning what it means to be a professional and my boat team is rapidly educating me on what it is. I am a winner, a professional, a tutor, a mentor, and most importantly a steward of the sport. I may never grace outdoor literature holding tournament winning fish…..in fact I am pretty sure of that since I balance my checkbook weekly. My hopes are that one of these boys do someday and they mention me somewhere in the article. That would be my chance to shine and my cup will spill over, releasing fishing dreams.Thanks for taking the time to read this,Sincerely – Matt Beckler
Solid. Thanks for sharing. There are all sorts of professionals in all walks of life. You dont have to have all kinds of equipment branded with your name on them. One never knows when someone else holds them in high regard as a “professional”, but just being there and having a genuine story can make the most unassuming person a star in someones opinion.. Good job!96 Eyra/12 Mercury 175 Pro XS with 2015 single axle trailer2017 Victory Gunner
Congratulations and thank you for educating our youth!
I love it! You should take notes and write a book about what youre experiencing… Ill buy it! The “Tech” profession that I am in has become a very shallow and unrewarding as it has become very bureaucratic with much of it outsourced or sent offshore. My wife is an elementary school teacher and though all teachers are drastically underpaid, I see firsthand the intrinsic rewards that she takes from building up, nurturing and developing the wee ones that are our future and am envious of her. We have 2 high school aged kids and I have on several occasions taken their friends who havent much experience on the water to the lake or to the river and it is incredible to see them catch fish. HOFNOD (Hooked On Fishing Not On Drugs) is another experience that I helped with when my son got involved in it during Jr. High but the high school doesnt do it. Even at the adult level I and a co-worker used to arrange annual “team building” excursions where my whole team at work would go to Beaver Lake or float the Elk River in SW Missouri for a day together and I have helped grown adults of many different cultures and nationalities, from Mexico and from India, who have never fished a day before in their lives catch a fish for the first time. The experience is priceless and I want more, but lack the time and ability to do more.I for one gave up a long time ago worrying about “winning”… its the journey that matters and that is where the fun is! Anyway, enjoy your adventures, and I for one would appreciate and enjoy periodically hearing about some of them, and maybe steal a few ideas along the way.Thanks for sharing and may God bless the effect you have on young lives!DekeLast edited by Deke on April 22nd, 2016, 1:36 am, edited 1 time in total.
Great read Matt keep up the good work
The pinnacle of the sport 25 years ago was fishing professionally. The industry has evolved and I am finding new summits to reach. As luck would have it, this particular climb is genuinely rewarding. These kids are not full of machismo yet and my orchestra section seat watches purity unfold.
Ive dreamed of being a pro for a long time. But after getting to know some of them and talking to them its not as glamorous as it seems. I HAVE THE UPMOST RESPECT FOR THESE GUYS THAT MAKE IT as they bust their tails to get it done traveling all over the country. A lot of time spent away from family but what bothers me the most is the reward for it all. Its just not enough money in our sport and IMO a guy that gets all the way to the ELITES shouldnt be worried about I need to cash a check or fishing for a check. I feel a lot if the good ones are having to hold back and not take risks. I think the high school and college fishing thing is awesome but these kids need to realize its not a pretty picture at the top. It almost seems a guy is better off with a good job fishing opens and ever starts and jackpotting clownshoes like me on the weekends instead of going to the highest level. Didnt mean to high jack Matt I think its great what your doingLast edited by High Cotton on April 21st, 2016, 1:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
The true test of a man is not what “he” individually achieves but what “he” uses to help others achieve. You sir are doing just that. My wife and I also love to fish (though we never thought about the pro circuit) and we very much miss our Cat, but we have been able to help others (as we wanted) and feel that we are making more of an impact in doing so. We hope to have another boat some day in the future, but we look forward to helping others every chance we get.You can hold your head high sir, for we should ALL aspire to do the same.
Very well written sir.13 PIV w/ 200 MercIG: WarriorRiverCustomRods
My generation did not have the luxury of high school and collegiate competition. The aspirations of “making it” were not clouded and the journey seemed tangible. It seemed easy and viable……just be a good fisherman was all I knew to do. You are correct that my teachings are two folded and that these boys/girls need to know the business side of the industry. These kids are afforded an excellent opportunity to learn all facets. But first things first, I gotta get em throwing bait casters.
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