Mike Iaconelli - Good or Bad

[CamG]

Just wanting to hear your opinions...is Mike Iaconelli good for the sport of bass fishing?

[rrw4258]

Ike is absolutley good for the sport of bass fishing. He is by far the most fun angler to watch on the water. A lot of people do not like when he flips out over a big fish, but I love it when he does. He is great at finding fish, and can hold his own with the best of them, I think his results show that.

Ryan

[screwballl]

Almost any of them in the Classic and Elite series are good of course... but their attitude around people, some of them are not a people person but they can catch fish like crazy... so it all depends on the perspective you take.

[everettvet]

Well, my thoughts of Ike are different know that what they were when 2010 began. I got the chance to meet him in Nashville at Bass University and I talked with him several times throughout the weekend. I think he is great for the sport of bass fishing. He was great with the kids and everyone that was there. I told him on Sunday before I left Nashville the I was not always in agreement with the way he behaved on the water in certain situations (and yes I told him that). But after talking with him and seeing how he was around the kids and everyone else, he made a fan out of me.

[BigBassin144]

I've heard Ike is a completely different person off the water. I've also heard he is very good with his fans. I do think he's fun to watch fish, and he's one of my favorite pros.

BB

[jcw1503]

He is very good for the sport. I love seeing the emotions on the pros. He acts like we do. He gets mad if he loses a fish and exited when he catches a nice one. I hate seeing alot of the other fisher men look like robots out there. However, Ike has let me down this year. He said he was going to channel the excitement. He did not show as much excitement on the water during the classic. Hopefully he goes back to normal.

[cassidyta]

I think there is a difference between good for fishing with me on a weekend and good for TV. I think he is great for TV, but his act would get old if I had to sit in the boat with him.
The fact that we are even discussing this shows his value to the sport.

[CamG]

Most say he's good for the sport. Just playing devil's advocate here - even with all the temper tantrums, i.e. 2006 Bassmaster Classic (where he lost a MAJOR sponsor with a tantrum) and with last years Guntersville outburst where he was on National Television beating and kicking his electronics after a lost fish. He's still good for the sport?


I guess I asked the question, so I will put my 2 cents in as well.

Is he a great angler? Yes.
Is he one of the best ever? Yes

I really, really want to like Ike (and part of me really does). I enjoy his excitement (unless he is shaking a fish and yelling in its face). I don't mind the yelling and hoopla when he catches one of his "giants". I think he is great in person, as I've spoke with him at events several times. He does a lot for fans off the water.

I just can't get over the temper tantrums when things don't go his way. It's like watching a 5 year old in Walmart. And, this is not just on NATIONAL TELEVISION (although I think ESPN is mostly to blame here.) I have personally followed him on the water to his spots, and he is entertaining. Just make sure the kids who look up to him are not within earshot as he doesn't hesitate to use very colorful word choices when he's having a rough go.

Again, I'm on the fence whether or not he is good for bass fishing. I am enjoying what you folks have to say.

[Rebbasser]

While his conduct at seminars and interacting with fans speaks well for him, I think his on the water antics are bad for the sport.

Say someone knows nothing about bass fishing but is thinking about getting into it. They are flipping through the channels on Saturday morning see a fishing show. They stop to watch, and the first thing they see is a guy screaming like he just had his private parts wrapped in barbed wire and nailed to a boat fender. They think fishing is for idiots and take up knitting instead.

I'd like the guy a whole lot more if he didn't act like a lunatic when he catches a fish.

[rodnreel]

He does nothing but promote the sport and attract a younger audience. That is key to any sport. I agree with JCW1503, A LOT of other elite pros are too robotic. They show no to very little emotion on the water. Ike is always exciting, even when he is just talking about his presentations or strategy for a tournament. I'd have to say he's my favorite angler so I think he's great for fishing from both a business standpoint and showing that it's cool to be passionate about fishing.

[BassinNC]

I think he is one of the best and he is good for the sport. I like when he goes crazy when he catches a fish. On the other hand I hate how he acts when he loses one.

[CamG]

I've been reading Michael Jones articles for quite some time. Now, I definitely do not agree with all that he writes, but in this one he discusses a little on this topic (I happen to agree this time), and about another angler that I think needs to have his hands slapped a little for acting like he is "entitled".

http://www.thebbz.com/articles/article11.html

[keithdog]

Ike is quite the character. I sure as hell wouldn't want to be his fishing partner durring a tourney for fear of getting hurt in some crazy way or simply getting punched durring his over the top excitement episodes. Or getting smacked by a shoe when he break dances on his casting deck. But ya know, I've never seen him act like that except for when he's fishin for cash. From what I have heard from others, he's a pretty cool guy in person, quite different from his tourney personality. And he hosts a show about fishing in urban cities, like Chicago's harbour, the river at DC and so on. I've never seen him act like a lunitic on one of those shows. He only seems to loose it durring competition. So I think he is a pretty good guy deep down, just overly emotional when fishing in a competitive situation. He did seem a bit calmer durring the Classic from what little I saw of him. Maybe someone pulled him aside and talked with him. Namely his sponsors. If so, THAT was good for bass fishing.

[nova385]

The fact that people like us are talking about the guy is good for the sport.
The fact that he throughs a fit and kicks stuff, belive it or not gets people to watch him (and the rest of the anglers). I would have never seen a pro tennis mach until Jonh Macinrough(sp?) had a fit, makes it fun to watch-

[carolina-rig-01]

Off the water Iaconelli is a first class guy. He spends tons of time with kids and always makes himself available to fans. On the water his antics drive me nuts but that is his way of marketing himself and standing out in a business standpoint. Has anyone noticed the military medal he wears a lot of the time? It was given to him when he fished a Stren event here on Table Rock by a local guy who got the medal during a tour in Iraq. He gave it to Iaconelli as a way to say thank you for all you do for the sport and Ike wears the medal because he is honored that it was given to him by a soldier. How about when he was giving a seminar at a tackle show and on his way to his car he noticed a little kid having an epileptic seizure, Ike missed his flight so he could stay with the kid and make sure he was ok. Ike can cross the line a lot and bring a lot of color to the sport (at times too much color) but there is no question that he is good for our sport.

[MN Bass Man]

Ike is , without a doubt, my favorite angler. The way he expresses passion for the sport is one of the things I like about him. Not to mention he is a phenomenal fisherman. It is hard for me to judge him for his behavior when things aren't going his way, because believe me, if I was fishing for $100,000 or more, and I lost what could have been the winning fish, I'd probably be as bad, or worse.

[Vegasspider]

What sponsor did he loose? He is intense for real and the passion is real I think he can’t help it when it comes over him. I think most people are open minded enough to be entertained by him. I do find myself muting it when I know its coming. I wonder how many times he has fallen in the water over one of his fits? That would be a hoot to see. I took a swim this last weekend. Thank God we were docking. My son left the trolling motor dialed up and yep I did it, I stepped on the pedal with my back to the water and boom. 50 degree water gets your attention really fast…

[CamG]

Originally Posted by Vegasspider

What sponsor did he loose? He is intense for real and the passion is real I think he can’t help it when it comes over him. I think most people are open minded enough to be entertained by him. I do find myself muting it when I know its coming. I wonder how many times he has fallen in the water over one of his fits? That would be a hoot to see. I took a swim this last weekend. Thank God we were docking. My son left the trolling motor dialed up and yep I did it, I stepped on the pedal with my back to the water and boom. 50 degree water gets your attention really fast…

Ranger...it was the boats fault that his fish died. It must have been the American Flag's fault to, as he broke the pole and through it overboard.

Again, I'm sure that it happens more than we know out there, but like I said before, I mostly blame ESPN. They'd rather show the bad over the good simply
for THEIR promotion, not the sport's.

I appreciate the comments fellas. Like I said, I really want to like the guy. I think he does mostly good things for fishing, and I don't mind his excitement and passion for the game. Just wish he would try to contain some of the negatives.

I hope what I saw in the Classic is where he is headed this year.

[MallenManson]

Originally Posted by CamG

Ranger...it was the boats fault that his fish died. It must have been the American Flag's fault to, as he broke the pole and through it overboard.

Again, I'm sure that it happens more than we know out there, but like I said before, I mostly blame ESPN. They'd rather show the bad over the good simply
for THEIR promotion, not the sport's.

I appreciate the comments fellas. Like I said, I really want to like the guy. I think he does mostly good things for fishing, and I don't mind his excitement and passion for the game. Just wish he would try to contain some of the negatives.

I hope what I saw in the Classic is where he is headed this year.

I can't blame ESPN. They're catering to the audience

[CamG]

Originally Posted by MallenManson

I can't blame ESPN. They're catering to the audience

They are catering to a certain audience that would rather see the soap opera side of fishing - not so much to the audience who is there to watch bass fishing.

[MallenManson]

Originally Posted by CamG

They are catering to a certain audience that would rather see the soap opera side of fishing - not so much to the audience who is there to watch bass fishing.

That's true, but obviously the greater population of watchers want to see the drama. Otherwise, ESPN wouldn't work so hard to get those outbursts

[carolina-rig-01]

Originally Posted by CamG

Ranger...it was the boats fault that his fish died. It must have been the American Flag's fault to, as he broke the pole and through it overboard.

Again, I'm sure that it happens more than we know out there, but like I said before, I mostly blame ESPN. They'd rather show the bad over the good simply
for THEIR promotion, not the sport's.

I appreciate the comments fellas. Like I said, I really want to like the guy. I think he does mostly good things for fishing, and I don't mind his excitement and passion for the game. Just wish he would try to contain some of the negatives.

I hope what I saw in the Classic is where he is headed this year.

True that he lost the Ranger sponsorship but it wasn't a Ranger boat he was using when the livewell didn't work, it was a Triton. It was during the Classic back before B.A.S.S. allowed them to use their own boats for the Classic, back then they had to use Triton boats for the Classic because Triton was the official sponsor of B.A.S.S., which Skeeter is the official boat sponsor now but they are allowed to use their own boats for the Classic so it is a non issue for the most part. By the way, as it turns out the livewell didn't malfunction he just wasn't familiar with the boat and thought he had turned them on when in reality he didn't.

And I too hated the nanny goat thing he had growing on his chin, I kept expecting a bird dog to go on point and flush a covey of quail out of that thing. But he cut it off and auctioned it off for charity, and the winner was none other than Skeet Reese for $500. It's funny to me to think that Skeet Reese probably has Ikes goatee hanging from his rear view mirror.

[CamG]

Originally Posted by carolina-rig-01

True that he lost the Ranger sponsorship but it wasn't a Ranger boat he was using when the livewell didn't work, it was a Triton. It was during the Classic back before B.A.S.S. allowed them to use their own boats for the Classic, back then they had to use Triton boats for the Classic because Triton was the official sponsor of B.A.S.S., which Skeeter is the official boat sponsor now but they are allowed to use their own boats for the Classic so it is a non issue for the most part. By the way, as it turns out the livewell didn't malfunction he just wasn't familiar with the boat and thought he had turned them on when in reality he didn't.

Yes, you are correct.

[nofearengineer]

I think almost everybody agrees that Ike is a nice guy, who is helpful to beginners and others in general. I could even tolerate his outbursts, which may or may not have been toned down a little...we will see.

I am just concerned about the type of people he attracts to the sport. Most of the boaters I run into out on the lake are respectful, seem to follow the unwritten rules of courtesy, and are just generally pleasant.

Just close your eyes and picture a bunch bass boats full of ignorant, loud, reckless, disrespectful jet-ski types. Except for less jet-skis on the water, I can't think there's anything good down that road.

Anyways, that's the way I see it.

[MallenManson]

I think he's good for the sport but he seems like a major flake.