I’m living in a new world. This Classic thing is something else. I’ve never had so many guys come up and congratulate me as I did during the St. Johns and Okeechobee tournaments. There were past champions and some future champions, too. At times, it’s almost embarrassing. But I’m not complaining. It’s great. I love every minute of it.
Speaking of the Florida tournaments: How about the weight that Ish Monroe put together to win the Power-Pole Slam on Okeechobee! He did one heck of a job, I’ll tell you that. I know a little something about the Big O and what he did doesn’t come easy.
Even though I finished second, I’m not complaining. I lost to a great angler. And, besides, on the third day I caught a gigantic bag and made a contest out of it. At the same time I moved up in the Toyota Tundra Bassmaster Angler of the Year standings. That’s important. Every one of us is after that title when the season starts. That’s where it’s at.
I’m not saying that I’m satisfied with second place. I’m not. The Lane family wants to win, and I’m a part of that family. That’s what we’re about. I am saying, though, that you have to be realistic. This is a competitive sport, and all the guys can catch them. That makes it tough sometimes. You have to recognize that and learn to live with it.
But that was last week. This week I’m on vacation with the family. The kids are on spring break so we thought we’d all go to the beach for a week. We’re relaxing, eating, playing and just enjoying ourselves as a family. That’s as good as it gets as far as I’m concerned.
Did you know I can ride a boogie board? (Fancy people call them skim boards.) Well, I can. I’m not saying it’s pretty and I’m not saying I have a bunch of college coeds asking for my autograph. But I can do it. That’s what counts.
I’ll tell you what, this has been a year that I could hardly dream about until it actually happened. I have so much to be grateful for that it’s hard to find a place to start. Of course, the Lord comes first. I’m talking about a fishing place when I say I don’t know where to start.
As soon as I get back, we’ll start developing a plan to promote the sport of bass fishing with everyone, but especially with kids. We’re going to work real hard at that. If we don’t get them involved at an early age, all of us will be in trouble.
And, starting next week, I’ll try to start writing some things about specific techniques I use to catch bass that might help you in your fishing. I don’t claim to know it all — nobody does — but I do spend a lot of time on the water and have learned a few things over the years. It’ll be my pleasure to share them.