The First 10,000 Casts; The Big Reveal...

Time for the big reveal. I posted this pic on the Basscasters Club FB page;

By way of explanation, and not an excuse we have been in the house for 28 years and have used one side of the 2 car for storage. BTW, how my wife let me live after posting this pic is a testament to the woman's infinite patience with me. Above is the before.

Here is the after;

Okay, okay, I know it's not completely empty but it's a heck of an improvement and the room I needed. Why now? Glad you asked.

Let's go back to this past season's beginning. I'm back in after a 25 year absence and things have changed slightly and by slightly I mean A WHOLE LOT! I bought my first new reel and rod, a 6'8" Med Lt spinner and reel to match. Not a top end combo but definitely mid pack.

I'm standing on a dock in a local lake casting plastics with little idea of what I'm really doing outside of what I've seen on youtube and the Fishing channel when along comes this guy trailing a kayak to the dock and into the water. We exchange Good Mornings and then just start talking.

The kind of easy, comfortable conversation you have with a friend on the front porch or at the kitchen table sipping coffee. It was a chance meeting that hinted at more to come and it did.

I would run into Rich, let's call him Rich because, well that's his name, every so often at a couple of the local lakes. Rich passing by in a kayak while I stood on the bank in envy of all that water he was able to cover and we would always stop and talk. Usually way too long until we remembered to cast out a line.

I learned a good deal from Rich but soon the active season came to an end and we went on with our lives.

There are pivotal moments in time that can always be looked at as the real beginning of things and ours came in the form of a disaster at a local lake. My favorite for bank angling and where I caught my unofficial PB. This vital and beautiful fishery was drained down to choking by the town just as the temps were dropping to near freezing!

Everything in the above pic used to be under water by about 5 feet... :(

A bunch of local anglers got involved demanding answers and DEC involvement. One of those was Rich, my Kayaking friend who really jumped in and took point. Through this whole thing a group of us who knew each other from fishing apps and just waving as we past each other fishing started talking.

That was the spark that brought Rich to create the Hudson Valley Kayak Fishing Club with a plan to start a local Kayak fishing Tournament series right here in our backyard.

...and there's that Kayak word again.

It was time. I headed down to the Sport store having researched and picked out what I wanted. It needed to be sub $500 but geared toward fishing despite being pretty basic. I'm not going to lie, I was a fair bit nervous. This is a commitment. A resignation to all I set down for myself for the 2019 season.

I know, I know... Get to the point already. Fine...

I first had to pick up the straps and bungies I would need to secure it to the top of my truck, then spend a half hour figuring how best to fasten it all down. Then it was a giddy drive to the shop trying to not act like a 5 year old at Christmas. I kinda failed miserably...

Surprised by the weight and ease of carrying it I declined help from the sales person and carried it to the garage myself.

And here she is; The Future Beach Trophy 126

See that little tackle box set up there in the front. That's my favorite part. That's how I know its for fishing... :)

Took me a bit but I got 'er secured. Can't lie, felt pretty cool...

Here's a better shot of the yak in the driveway...

Here's a shot with rods in the rod holders... Just because.

And here's a pic of me sitting in the yak, in the driveway like an idiot taking a selfie...

So to get us back to the whole garage thing? Yeah... I did all that so I could do this;

What about the whole Goal change thing? Well, Rich, remember Rich? He has been able to set up a real, official, sanctioned Kayak Tournament series.

I am entering as many as I can this upcoming season with a goal of a Top Ten finish.

I have never been in a fishing tournament of any kind nor been in or fished out of a kayak. As I said last week; I can't do anything half way... God help me!

Next week tune in as I talk about that Lake disaster and some some amazing local fishermen and what they have been doing to help.