New Story Contest for Driftmaster Crow Foot System - July/Aug 2013

[Slab]

Our previous contest, the Driftmaster “Good Deed” contest went so well I want start another similar contest.

Last time the contest was a general fishing related “Good Deed” contest. This time I would like you to share a true story about something nice you did for a loved one. This does not have to be fishing related. Lets hear new stuff, you can not submit the same story from the last contest, sorry.

If this contest inspires one member to do one good thing for a loved one, it will be well worth it. And don't forget, you can still “do it”. You can do something nice for a loved one during the time frame of this contest. You just have to submit it before it ends.

"Something nice you did for a loved one" Contest

• Post your story in this thread.
• Include at least one picture, even if it's simply a picture of that loved one.
• The contest will go through July and August of 2013. Ends the last day of August 2013.
• The contest will be judged by my family members, my loved ones.
• Please do not submit a story you already submitted in the previously held “Good Deed” contest.

The prize is awesome, I actually want one, it will be the following from Driftmaster:


New "Crow Foot" design along with the double seat mount (seat not included).

This is a crow foot with "stalker" style rod holders. The benefit is a more stable and more adjustable base (stainless instead of aluminum round bar). The double seat mount is new for us as well. With this, you can have two people fish eight rods and the only mounting is a 3/4 bolt that screws into the seat pin hole. This is a prototype.

It would retail for roughly $400-$500 and is a really nice prize.

I want to include the following note from the owner of Driftmaster:

"Thanks to all the Crappie.com loyal contributors for your support of Driftmaster rod holders. This month's prize is a new-and-improved version of our Crow Foot system. It attaches to a seat pedestal mounting plate and therefore requires no mounting. It has a stainless bar mounted lower to the deck for extra stability. This unit also has more adjust-ability because the crow foot brackets that clamp to the trolling bar can be slid back and forth along the bar, moving the rod holders closer or further from the user.

Also in the prize package is a double seat mount that attaches to the same plate, allowing two people to fish the system. The double seat mount is 3/8 steel with 1 1/2" diameter steel risers on each end. The height of the risers allow the seat to be placed directly into them with no seat extension needed.

To create quality rod holder systems to help you catch more fish, I need feedback from people who are much better fishermen than I am. That is where you at Crappie.com can help me out. The Driftmaster prizes for the contests are mostly new designs, some of which are in the Field-Testing stage. Your feedback is appreciated and can be sent to [email protected] .

I appreciate all of you,"

David Baynard
Black River Tools
Driftmaster


Thanks everyone, let the contest begin. Go do something nice.


Disclaimer: Prizes and Rules subject to change without notice.

[jangle]

Last spring my dad and I were turkey hunting together. We hunted all morning and finally got some birds to work. Well. We works a pair of toms into range but I knew dad didn't have a hood shot so I waited and the toms went off again. Thinking we had lost them I hit the call again and they answered. So dad gOt into a better position and I decided to leave my gun behind and jiat call the Tom to him. Well I gOt the birds into range and dad shot... And missed! Buy It was still an awesome hunt and I had just as much fun calling the birds in and watching the almost kill

[pschmidt]

It all started with a little run at the Illinois lottery , I had hit a little lottery on Thanksgiving morning that when it paid off we would have a down payment for a house and a used boat since we always have to bank fish . They said it would take 6-8 weeks before we would get the check so that put us around the beginning of January . We had money put up for our kids for Christmas and the grand babies however my wives Daughter lives with a guy that has two kids ages 8 and 10 . As Christmas was approaching we found out that her Daughter and Boyfriend did not have the money to buy Christmas presents for his two kids and that they would get them something after the first of the year due to his paycheck cycle however that was not sitting well with me because they are 8 and 10 and what would Christmas be with getting nothing from your Dad . So I lost a lot of sleep over this for about 3 weeks trying to figure out how to make this happen . So I just could not come up with the extra money for nothing . I had to work Christmas eve till Noon and on my way home I stopped at the gas station right by my house the same one I won the lottery at and bought a $20 scratch off ticket and a soda , I stood there and scratched the ticket and about half way down the ticket I got a WIN ALL symbol , each spot was $40 and there 25 spots which totaled $1000 dollars , I jumped and ran to the truck , I called the local lottery office in Fairview to see if they were open because it was Christmas eve and they were , I went home to get the wife who was baking pies , told her we had to go so she had her Mom take the pies out of the oven . We went to the lottery office , got our check , went to the bank and cashed it and headed to get presents for these two kids . This was the best Christmas ever because these two kids were so Happy with the presents they received from their Dad . What an awesome Christmas and Thank you God for being with me on the way home .

[Sawdustsavage]

I must share with you a story that is so dear to me. This isn't a family member even tho he was family to me. The gentleman's name was Al. He was in his late seventies when I met him. We both fished the same spot for salmon. I got to know him and his wife well. Her name was Emma. They were the nicest folks you could ever meet. The years flew by. When Al was about 82 his daughters and son-inlaws decided he was to old to fish. I told him to not worry I would make sure he was able to fish as long as he was able to. We fished for several more years. About 3 years after that he had a stroke. We were planning a deer hunting trip that fall. I knew from talking with Emma that his right hand was very weak. I went in to the hospital to see him. He was really down in the dumps. He was looking foreward to that hunting trip. We were going to go to Eastern Oregon hunting. I gave him a rubber ball and told him we probably wouldn't get to go there but the local season was quite long and if he worked at it we may be able to hunt before it was over. We did and he killed a nice little buck the last day when I was taking him home. We checked out one last spot on the way and it worked. I have killed many big bucks and bull elk. None thrilled me near as much as him killing that little buck. We did make it to easternOregon the following year and he got a nice mule deer. We hunted and fished to gather for a few more years. Those years are very dear to me. If any of you know anyone that is considered too OLD. Please take time to help him enjoy these sports as long as they can. You will be rewarded much much more than any thing money can buy.
i didn't write this to win a prize but to give you one.

[magnum500]

My dad passed away in 2008. He and my mom for the last twelve years of his life spent the entire summer at the summer house in Michigan. The year he passed he wanted to go so bad but was too ill to go. He loved that place. After he passed my mom just felt she could not go there without him. But last year she mentioned that she might want to go. That was all I needed to hear. A friend of mine and I took off to Michigan and opened the house so that it would be ready for her to come. We were there for one week and with the house ready we made the 14 hour trip back to South Carolina. I was here for one day and got my mom in the truck and made the trip back north. I did not tell any of our neighbors that I was bringing her up so it was a surprise to them when we arrived. The tears were flowing when they saw each other for the first time in five years. My mom cried when we got to the house because it was her and my dad's favorite place. We were there for ten days and she was so happy that she was there and able to reminisce about the time she spent there with the love of her life. I am so glad we made that trip. It was the last thing she needed to do say goodbye to my dad. I am so glad we made that trip. We all need to remember that small sacrifices on our part can mean a great deal to others.

[RetiredRR]

March 1924 ~ April 2008 Photo taken Valentine's Day 2004

Dedication to the outdoors.

She was one of 11 children and her passion was softball, but fishing fed the family many meals and she was good at putting fish on the table.
Her favorite brother shared her passion for fishing and they could not catch all they wanted so they decided to dig their own private fishing hole.
They hooked the team of draft horses to the grader blade and started going in circles. Time was precious and the chores were many but they were
dedicated and they eventually got their fishing hole dug after many months of grading. Stocking the pond was the hardest part of their ordeal, as it
was hard to put fish in a pond instead of on the table. They fed dried cow patties, grasshoppers and corn from the crib to get the fish to grow. Catfish
and perch were the first fish stocked. This project was done on their family farm in one corner of the property that was rarely visited by grandpa.
The boys were responsible for mending fences and taking care of the crops as well as hunting for table meat. The girls worked the garden and fields as
well as the house work and sewing of clothing for the family. Then everyone grew up and married and moved away. But mom never lost her love for fishing.
I grew up on rented properties most of my youth and we were always involved with livestock, fishing and hunting and growing large gardens. Time flew
from the time of my leaving home to the first property purchase my wife and I made. Twenty-two acres with a creek on the north side and lots of fish in
the creek. Opportunity knocked and I had the chance to have my own fishing hole dug and mom lived on our property and I stocked the new pond with
blue gill, bream and 2 channel cats. That is all we needed to get started. After a couple of years I built a dock and the pond filled and the fish grew and
mom was ready to fish and she did everyday until she couldn't fish alone anymore. I would get her on the back of my ATV and take her to the dock and
she would fish until her arms grew weary and we would go back to the house and I'd clean fish. She fished everyday she felt like fishing and she would yell
out everytime she had a good one. She would always say this was what she lived for and there was no better way to live. The two channel cats multiplied
into hundreds and they were fed well and allowed to reach two pounds before being harvested for table fare. Mom taught me a lot about fishing and hunting
and how to fish and shoot. She could out fish and out shoot all of her siblings. Strike a match at 20 paces, iron sites, offhand in the middle of a cow trail
and you could say you were good. Spin a cloths pin on the cloths line without destroying the cloths pin and you were good. Dad was there, but he didn't
hunt or fish. Memories are what we leave behind and adventures are what we look forward too. All are gone now except for one 90 year old uncle and he
was a great crappie fisherman and he is my last link to family history. He retired a couple of months ago and is in relative good health. He loves to remember
and looks forward to our family reunions every October. Tight lines and no regrets.

[Tundah]

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the Eastern Caribbean. Sounds like a tropical paradise? In many ways it is. Beyond the palm trees and white sand beaches, it is a developing nation, struggling with its recent independence, poverty, and classism. This was my assignment given in 2003. I joined the UnitedStates Peace Corps. Founded by John F. Kennedy, the organization fulfills its mission in three areas: the transfer of skill andknowledge to the host country, the learning of the foreign culture,and the sharing of that foreign culture with fellow Americans.


A picture from the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest film set.

My formal assignment was in small business development, assisting small and micro enterprises with just about all of the business fundamentals. While this occupied part ofmy days, I soon discovered so many areas to contribute, including education. I found myself tutoring groups of children in Sunday school after church services. Word spread and next came adult education. As projects came and went and I travelled all over the island nation, one thing remained constant, “The Bounty” cafe,where I would regularly get my lunch. That is where I met her, the most extraordinary woman I've seen. After finishing my service with the Peace Corps, I remained in country for another year. During this time, I courted my future wife.

I frequented her house for some of the best home cooked meals ever created. As time went on, a little face popped through the open front door on a regular basis. Little two year old Amanda, a girl who lived in the village, took a liking to me, and started climbing me like a tree while hootin' and carrying on full of laughs and giggles. The bond was instant, though the road ahead was long. Amanda's mother abandoned her and soon passed away. My courtship turned to marriage and sweet Amanda became a family addition.


We moved to the States and it took quite some time for Amanda to adjust. We went through lots of good times and a fair share of rough patches. Last year, the recipe came together. I turned to fishing as a new hobby to help relieve my stress from work. To help with the learning curve, eager Amanda has been by my side ever since – encouraging me on our successes and making me laugh on our less than productive outings. Our future looks brighter than ever these days!



How dare that bass steal the minnow from Mr. Crappie!

[Gindog]

them some good stores guys. I wish I was a story writer

[LMBarnett]

My wife's grandad spent his entire life fishing, he even tells stories of fishing off the Navy boat during his time of service. Well as you can imagine, at mid 80's people start to think that they might be too old to go out on thier own fishing, so now he invites me on guided fishing trips with him and my father in law. They are pretty fun trips.

Last spring Nimrod had a neighbor that was in hospice and was trying to figure out how to help out Ms. Fern with her medical bills and came up with the idea of having an auction for fishing trips. The winning bidder would pay thier bill to Ms Fern, or make a donation to the local hospice organization or caner treatment facility in her name. As you can imagine several of the Arkansas boys stepped up and volunteered thier boats and time also. Well, I won one of the trips, and I am taking my granddad-in-law on a fishing trip Saturday morning that was organized by a couple of great Crappie.com members.

Thanks Nimrod and ArkansasBowHunter for organizing and donating time and effort.

[SLABMAGNET]

Well after working 3 12 hour midnights, my son wanted to go to home depot to get a few bags of dirt for his small scale gold operation...he saw this and wanted to build it with me. We pulled it off in about 8 hours...best part was taking down the old siwngset, i was charging up my saw zaw he grabbed his little shovel and started banging on the old swinset trying to crash it down.