A Yamaha Outboards ad on the Elite Series online  coverage over the weekend got me thinking about why I fish.  Then an article in Wired2fish online magazine added to my thoughts. 

The Yamaha ad has a bunch of professional fishermen saying something along the lines of “if you want to relax don’t fish with me.”  And the article gave reasons why so many tournament anglers “burn out” after a short time.

I have been tournament fishing since my first one with the Spalding County Sportsman Club in April 1974 – more than 48 years.  For most of them I fished at least two tournaments a month, and for the past six I have fished at least three club tournaments a month.

Until a few years ago I fished many more days for fun and relaxation than I did tournaments.  A few years ago I fished 443 days in a row without missing one, fulfilling a childhood dream of fishing every day for a  year.

Many hours were spent sitting on my pond dock catching bluegill and bullheads.  I would sit on the docks at Raysville Boat Club catching small bluegill for bait to run on jugs and trotlines that night. And I spent hours dabbling jigs around button bushes for crappie.

    Maybe that is why I never burned out, all fishing was fun. Although I took trying to win every tournament very seriously, I did not “have” to win to pay my next entry fee or tournament expenses. Tournament fishing was fun even if not really relaxing.

    For the past few years I pretty much go fishing only to practice for a tournament or fish one.  And most of my practice is riding around watching my electronics, trying to find school of fish and hidden structure and cover. 

    I can still make a lot of casts and work hard to catch a fish in tournaments.  Sometimes it gets frustrating that my old body won’t let me fish as hard as I want to.  But I try not to think of it as a “grind” as many tournament anglers, especially young ones, complain about nowadays.

    I will keep fishing as long as my body will let me. But I will never let it become a “grind” trying to catch a fish. If it is not fun it is not worth the effort.