Dad and I fished our first tournament together when I was nine years old. It was a big team tournament on Lake Cherokee in August. That morning I can remember floating around at takeoff in awe of
the big-time bass boats and all the fancy gear those guys had. We were bouncing around out there in our little boat with a couple spinning outfits and a sack full of sandwiches for lunch. We might have been a little outgunned – but I didn't care; I was in a big-time tournament with my dad and that's all that mattered to me. We had a great time tooling up and down the lake trying different spots. We fished all day and never caught a bass – not even a short a fish. But again, I didn't care.
We came back to weigh-in empty-handed and the emcee brought us up on stage anyway and talked us up. I don't even remember what he said, but it was a big deal to me to be up there with my dad.
I just assumed that since we didn't catch any fish, no one else would have much either. Then these guys start rolling in there with 12 pounds, then 14 pounds, then 15 pounds and that's when I first became intrigued with how those guys could catch those fish on a day when I thought no fish were biting. That really sparked my interest in being able to catch bass in all conditions.
That one tournament with my dad is really what started it all for me and to this day, when I smell outboard exhaust early in the morning or hear a tournament emcee belting out weights on a loudspeaker in the distance, I'm instantly taken back to that special day with my dad.
Read Josh Bertrand, Bobby Lane and Bradley Roy's memories of On Fathers and Fishing here.
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