BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Thanks to his wife Amy’s hobby, Ryan Gard of Floral City, Fla., has won the chance to fish with seven-time Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year Kevin VanDam.
One of Gard’s 70 entries in the Ultimate Fish with KVD Sweepstakes was drawn out of the 590,000 submissions from 64,000 sweepstakes contestants.
“My wife doesn’t work, so one of her hobbies is entering sweepstakes,” said the 31-year-old Gard. “We are pretty diligent about entering some of the bigger (sweepstakes) as many times as we can per day or whatever the contest allows. She has always been real, real lucky, so I thought why not give it a shot. I guess it panned out OK.”
It actually panned out quite well for Gard, a partial owner of a pest control business and a lifelong recreational bass angler. Winning the sweepstakes entitled Gard to round-trip airfare to the fishing location, three nights/four days hotel accommodations, a rental car for the duration of the trip and $500 in spending money. The dates and location of his fishing trip with KVD will be determined based on VanDam’s availability.
Gard also won a Nitro Z-7 bass boat with a Mercury 150 Pro XS outboard motor, trailer, Minn Kota Maxxum 70 trolling motor and Lowrance Mark 5X depthfinder.
His grand-prize package also included assorted gear from GoPro and Strike King Lure Co.; a Quantum Tour TKD baitcast reel combined with a Tour KVD 7-foot, 4-inch cranking rod; Humminbird 999HD SI KVD model fish finder; Oakley KVD Polarized Flak Jacket and Batwolf signature series eyewear; a $1,000 Bass Pro Shops gift card; and a MotorGuide gift pack.
Ironically, Gard also hails from VanDam’s hometown of Kalamazoo, Mich. “When I was in middle school and high school there, he was always kind of a local legend to us,” said Gard, who has never met VanDam. “Anybody we fished with knew who he was, so it was exciting that he was the person to fish with in the sweepstakes this year.”
Gard indicated he looks forward to learning anything VanDam has to offer. “It certainly is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I am just looking forward to taking it all in,” he said.
Fans have another chance to get on the water with a Bassmaster Elite Series pro through the Fish With Randy Howell Sweepstakes. The winner will receive a fishing trip with 2014 GEICO Bassmaster Classic champion Randy Howell that includes round-trip airfare, three-night hotel stay, ground transportation, $500 spending money, a 2015 Triton 17TX with 60 ELPT Mercury four-stroke engine and a prize package of gear from some of Howell’s sponsors.
The Fish With Randy Howell Sweepstakes runs through March 31, and the winner will be selected April 9, 2015.