What it means to be a Pro

[wicklundrh]

You take the boat off from plane. You are 300 yards from the channel opening. Your truck, trailer, and air conditioning are in sight. It is now well past 4pm and you have been up for nearly 12 hours. You are sunburned in places you didn’t know you could be sunburnt. You put in twenty plus hours of pre-fishing and spent sixteen hours over a two day period trying to best sixty of the best walleye anglers in the world. You are happy that you decided to launch in a different location as the tournament location was utter chaos. You have no idea where you are in the running order and really don’t care. All you want to do is load the boat, throw on the cover, grab a cold drink and a snack from the cooler, and hit the road.

Getting closer to the entrance of the channel, you look over. Standing on the bank is a man, a women, and two young boys. Both of the boys are fishing. You ask one of the little guys if he is catching anything. First it was nothing, then it was two! You ask how big they were. He holds up his hands. You tell him that you always start with your hands wider apart! His first lesson in being a fisherman. They see your boat with all the cool gadgets, the stickers on the side, and two men wearing matching sponsor shirts and life jackets. You smile with the fact that you are leading by example.

The boat is on the trailer now, the work is almost done, the finish line in sight. Your mind wanders back to the boys on the bank. You remember being that young. You remember how far you have come and how you got to where you are. You have sponsors that pay to put their name and advertising on the side of your boat and on your cloths. They pay you to advertise and represent them in the best possible manner.

Reaching in one of your bags, you pull out a few packages of soft plastic baits. Many of which are not even on the market yet. Although it is nearly 200 yards to where the family is fishing and enjoying their Sunday, you make the walk over. You strike up some conversations with the boys. You give each of them some custom H2Ohammer baits. You talk to the mom and dad, snap a quick photograph, and make the long walk back to the truck.



Being a professional isn’t always about winning or collecting a paycheck. Being a professional means that you represent yourself and your sponsors in the best possible light. Hopefully the guys from the BASS tournament that was at this launch took notice of the guy that took time out of his day to walk over and donate some things to the future generations of our sport. In 20 years, these little guys might not remember my name, they may not remember my face, but they will remember that, once upon a time, a fisherman with a pretty cool boat, some neat gadgets, and some stickers, took time out to come over, single them out, and give them something!

I post this on Crappie Dot Com because many of my sponsors are either members of this great site, or member sponsors of this site and their names are on the side of my boat. This gesture was on behalf of all of them. This is how I represent each and every one of you. Regardless of wins or leaderboard outcomes, my sponsors come before anything else. I wear your stickers with pride and do not do anything to tarnish your name. Whether it is driving on the road, at the dock, on the water, or speaking with young men and women, I want people to see the person behind the sticker. There are tons of products on the market today and I represent a small portion of them. I cannot make anyone purchase something. My only hope is that, when the time comes, they remember the guy that gave them his spot in line at the dock, a little extra room on the water, some soft plastics that the fish are biting on, or some planer board clips because theirs were broken. They will remember what I stood for. As a result, they will know that this is what the company on the side of my boat also stands for!

In case you are wondering who and what is on the side of my boat:

Two big yellow Crappie.Com stickers (hopefully I made two members for life Ed)
Two yellow “Off Shore tackle” stickers. NickD and his father Bruce are both crappie.com members and member sponsors!
Steve Ash construction (also a crappie.com member)
H2Ohammer (Brian is also a crappie.com member and it was HIS soft plastics I gave to the young boys)
Ron Royal Carpet (Ron is a “lurker” on our site, hopefully he will see this and introduce himself)
Engel Coolers (I am currently working on getting them as a member sponsor for crappie.com)
Fish Sniper Tackle (I am the original owner. After meeting another crappie.com member, I sold my business to his Marine Corps veteran son)

[Gobob]

Awesome job most get wrapped up in their little world. A few like you carry the torch. Thank you.

[armyman]

You represented your sponsors and yourself well!

[crp4570]

There is cool and too cool for school. You sir, are post graduate suma laude cool.

[skeetbum]

I have always tried to remember that when we show up somewhere with a name on a shirt, boat, or tackle box, that there are folks paying attention. Unfortunately, I'm human and carry an attitude and forget to be the best I can sometimes. Young people especially look on with awe, like a TV hero come to life. My word for this is Ambassador. We are ambassadors of our sport and represent it every time we connect to the trailer or step out at a convenience store. Reading this will help me remember to behave a little better going forward.

[Redge]

Great job representing good people, and good products! Thanks for that.

[Just Steve]

Rich I couldn't be happier having you advertise for my business ( Steve Ash Construction ), you show class in everything you do and set a example for all of us to follow.

I'd be proud to be one of your sponsors again next year!

[johndeere5045]

Awesome story!!! Thank you for your kindness

[ccollins]

This is very nice and makes me think. I am no pro and have no sponsors but gonna try my best to put together a few pkgs and when I see some young kids on the bank doing there best I'm gonna walk up and do the same sounds like a great blessing. I can remember when I started fishing with nothing but a stick , spool of line and a hook.

[Babweiner]

Great post, way to represent the true nature of the sport that brought us all together. May your actions bring others to do unto others as you have done. Fishing is about sportsmanship, camaraderie and respect not only for the great outdoors but our fellow man. Thanks for sharing the great example and bringing it back into scope.


~J. Babcock