Kevin's Member Event Experience

[Kevin]

I'm sitting here, trying to think of a good way to communicate my incredible experience at the Member Event without writing a full-blown novel. I'm not sure I can do it justice in a single forums post... but I'm ready to give it a shot...

As many of you probably heard, I had the longest drive to Kentucky Lake at 16 hours. Google Maps/Mapquest said 12.5 hours, but with a boat in tow going through some big mountain ranges of Western MD and West Virginia, it took considerably more time. My total driving time to and from Kentucky Lake was about 32 hours. During the 16 hour ride to Kentucky, all I could think about was the fishing that lay ahead. During the 16 hour ride home, all I thought about was the great people I left behind. Even if I had caught back to back 30 lb limits, the fishing would have been an afterthought in recollection of the event now.

This is a good time for me to state a little "disclaimer". You are going to hear me say things like, "the nicest people you've ever met" or "the most generous guy I've met" and so forth. I've read these same lines from others that attended, but whatever you do, don't take these as just generic niceties or compliments based on courtesy. We mean these statements in every literal sense.

As you may have heard, there was some bad luck floating around that weekend. We had cars in sinkholes, men overboard, cell phones lost and cameras broken. We had trips to the hospital, pants that were split, attacking wasps and broken trolling motors. Somehow, we all managed to have the time of our life. Misfortunes became laughs, and an incredible display of good attitudes all-around was present.

I'm not quite sure how to chronicle my experience, so I thought a running commentary from day to day might be good... here we go.

Thursday: I arrived at Big Bear Resort sometime around 8 or 9pm. Pretty exhausted and fighting a headache. Picked up my keys for the Lake Cottage at the closed office. The resort is pretty large, and I was walking around trying to find an ounce of reception so I could make a phone call. Little did I know I would have zero reception from anywhere on the resort for the remainder of my stay.

I got a chance to briefly meet everyone that had arrived that night at the campgrounds and had a great time putting names with faces. I went back to my lake cottage at around 12am, and this was when the trouble began.

You may have seen JB's "bug party" photoshop job. Well, when I got back, I pulled the sheets back on the beds in both bedrooms only to find some living critters. Apparently the previous occupants had left the windows open. With the resort office closed and it being 12am, I ended up covering the living room sofa with my clean bathroom towels and slept on the 3 foot sofa until the next morning. I give Big Bear thanks for moving me the next morning into one of their nice and spacious townhouses... problem solved (at least for now ).

Friday: After moving into the townhouse, I went to the state ramp and launched the boat and moved it over to my slip rental at Big Bear. I got a late start and was lucky to see Brian (S4il) fishing the shoreline near the marina. I remember thinking about how far he had come with no presumption to get to go out on a boat. If it wasn't for my move into the townhouse and my late start, I doubt I would have seen Brian that morning fishing. I asked him if he wanted to go fishing with me and was glad to have him come aboard to join me.

Brian (S4il) is one of the coolest and most courteous people I've ever met. He told me it was his second time ever on a bass boat, so it was a real honor for me to share in his experience. Brian is an absolute fishing machine. This guy can grind with the best of them. He was absolutely relentless at putting together a pattern and ending up catching four fish, with two just under 4 lbs. Perhaps he'll post the photo here so people can see.

My headache from the previous night's 3 foot sofa slumber had carried over to Friday. While it didn't prevent me from fishing, we ended up going in early because I was starting to feel sick. When we got back, Brian bought me a soda that miraculously cured my horrible migraine, what a life saver that was! Then, Brian left with his father and came back 30 minutes later to give me something. It was a Thank You card for taking him fishing, and inside a $50 gift card to one of the nicest local tackle shops I've been too. I told him no way could accept this and tried my best to give it back to him, but I could tell he would have nothing of it. Little did he know the honor was mine, and now I was feeling REALLY bad for coming back in early. My headache was all better at this point and even though my catches weren't so hot, I was as happy as I could be having met a true friend for life. That's the kind of guy Brian is.

Friday Night: I ended up staying at the Marina for quite some time, talking to all the members coming back in from fishing. As it started getting dark, I took out all my rods and tackle and headed over to the campgrounds to meet up with everyone for a late-night BBQ around the campfire.

I tried to chat with everyone and was so impressed with how friendly and easy-going everyone was. I had met Zooker, John & Lisa, Adam and Ron the night before, but between the migraine and 16 hour drive, I felt like Friday Night was the first time I was getting a chance to meet these great people. I'd like to talk about a few great conversations and meetings I had that night...

Denny (Denny_K)... I really enjoyed talking to Denny. He was so laid back and easy going, I could have chatted with him all night. We had some great talks about fishing techniques and tactics and he got me pumped for hitting the water.

JB... If you want to feel like you're on vacation... hang out with JB! This guy oozes relaxation. Besides being a great guy, JB puts out a "vacation" vibe like no other. I can't imagine anything rattling JB, and I love folks like that!

Zooker... That night I ate some of Zooker's brats, and let me tell you, they were GOOD. I don't know how he keeps them so juicy even after grilling, but man were they good. Zook is a gentle giant in every sense of the word. I had talked to Zooker on the phone before, but even if I hadn't, I bet I still would have felt like I had been friends with Zooker for a long time.

WTL... I wish I had more time to spend with Billy. I can't believe I didn't get some time to talk more with WTL. He is such a staple of BassFishin.Com and has contributed so much. I remember when I first saw WTL at Kentucky, I couldn't believe I was right there with "WTL". I was star-struck. The little time I did get to talk with him, I could immediately sense a great personality and I hope I can make up the time I missed with you and perhaps do some fishing down the road together. If I had one regret from the trip, it was not spending some time with WTL. I wanted to and hope I get the chance in the near future.

I met many others that night, but their story is perhaps best stated later in this post.

I stayed up till around 1am talking to JB and Denny and headed back to the townhouse to sleep.

Saturday: No rest for the weary, right? I woke up pretty late (considering fishermen) and got out to the boat to go fishing. No one was around, everyone had already gone out on the lake. I was ready to hit the lake all by my lonesome.

But here came Woody idling into the marina from the lake. I think it was his batteries that had died. The previous day, Woody had hit a stump and fallen overboard, losing his cell phone and damaging his digital camera. To make matters worse, his trolling motor had quit working and he went out the previous night, purchased a new trolling motor and installed it same night. You'd never know all of this by looking at him or talking to him. Woody is one rare individual as I'll soon describe.

So as Woody was getting settled back in his slip, I offer for Woody to go back out with me in my boat. He hops in with his tackle and we head out to find some fish. As I'm running around lake, I spot one shoreline that caught my eye and we quickly start boating some small fish. Since we got a late start and had only a few hours before we were to head in for the noon-time cookout/weigh-in, we abandoned the small fish pattern and went searching for some bigger bites. For the next few hours, we tried a little bit of everything and only found more small fish.

If JB is the king of "cool", then Woody is the king of "positive spirit". Woody mentioned he had some children, and what lucky children they must be to have such a positive father. With all the bad luck Woody had had, I didn't hear him complain once, and never did I see his smile wane. Day two had met me with yet another extremely compatible co-angler. Little did I know what impact Woody would leave me with the following day. More on that shortly.

Saturday Noon: Me and Woody come back in to dock up for the noon cookout/weigh-in. Woody had some trouble charging his batteries and I was glad to help troubleshoot it with him. We found out it wasn't Woody's batteries or charger, but rather Big Bear's electric receptacle that wasn't working. Can't Woody get a break? Me, Woody and Brian hopped in my truck and headed over to the cookout at the campgrounds.

There we enjoyed some good food and I got to further get to know many of our members. JB and Denny had done quite well on the water and won the Baitmonkey award with a 5.5 lber. Not only does JB ooze coolness, but apparently he catches fish! Nice going JB!

I talked to a bunch of people but this was really the first time I got to talk to Kory and Britney (husband/wife... carolina-rig-01). Though fishing had been overall tough for everyone, Kory had at least been very consistent with some nice keepers each day and I enjoyed talking to him about his fishing and learning about what he was doing. I also got an opportunity to get to know Kory's beautiful wife Britney, who is about 5-months pregnant if memory serves me correctly. Britney was so down to earth, like Kory, at this point I was starting to wonder when I would meet a person that wasn't unbelievably pleasant and a pleasure to talk to.

Everyone headed back to their boats to hit the water for the 2nd part of the day. Woody, now charged up with new trolling motor to boot, headed out in his own boat... leaving me to hit the water by myself. Wishing Brian was around to join me, I idled out of the marina with a game-plan to get a big bite.

I ended up pulling up on a heavily wind-blown point (a favorite pattern of mine) and throwing a dropshot with a 6" Margarita Mutilator Roboworm. I ended up catching tons of small fish, which was okay, because it at least told me bait was there, which I was graphing on my sonar. I then picked the point apart with a football jig and spoon, only to catch one 2+ lbs and losing a much nicer fish on drop shot. The wind was blowing at this point at a sustained 20-25mph with gusts over 30mph. Some serious winds came up and threatening clouds rolled in, I headed in just to be safe with plans to head back out.

I guess everyone had the same idea as me, because everyone else was coming into port to let these clouds pass. We all got to talking and I never went fishing again. Couldn't care less, I realized the highlight of this trip was the people. I fish all the time, and will be able to fish anytime... but rarely do I get a chance to meet people like this.

Saturday Evening: For those of you who attended, you're probably wondering why I haven't mentioned John and Lisa Seaver thus far. But I thought my commentary for Saturday Evening would be the best spot to go into the depths of these two awesome individuals.

The big "Saturday Night Fish Fry" was happening at 8pm at the townhouse just a couple down from mine where John/Lisa Seaver, Daniel (MississippiBoy) and his wife Louann, Adam and Ron (Bcklsh/BassinBandit) were staying. So I grab my truck and start taking all the rods and tackle out of my boat for the night. I had a lot of stuff in my townhouse that I needed to get for the get together that night. It was close to 8pm and the sun was going down.

I got to the front door of my townhouse and pulled out those plastic cards that you swipe in the door to unlock the door in hotels. So I swipe the first card, and no luck... doesn't unlock the door. Uh oh. I had another card and pulled that one out to swipe... no luck again. I can't get into my townhouse. The resort office is once again closed.. I'm locked out.

Here comes my friends to the rescue. Kory and Britney were the first I told about me being locked out and immediately they took charge and were helping me try to find a way in. We tried ziplock bags and grocery bags on the cards with no luck. We couldn't discern whether it was the cards or the card reader. Either way, I wasn't sure where I'd be sleeping that night.

Britney was so helpful in helping me find an emergency Big Bear Resort contact number. We found one! Me not having any cell service, she called for me, but alas, NO ANSWER! The way luck was going for everyone, I wasn't shocked the least bit. Through all this, I couldn't help but laugh about it. How could I possibly get upset? I was with friends I knew I wouldn't want to say goodbye to the next day, if I had to sleep in the spider-filled bushes so I could continue to have a good time with these folks, then so be it.

At this point, word was getting around John and Lisa's townhouse that I couldn't get into my townhouse not 50 feet down from them. So before you know it, I have Adam (BassinBandit), Brian (S4il) and Jeff (KingFish) walking over with me to try figure out some way in. They took control and before you know it, they were pulling screens off windows and trying to pick locks. They were committed to finding me a way in. Adam spotted a window above the deck stairs that was unlocked. We pulled the screen and sure enough the window slid right open. One leap of faith off the deck railing and I was in! Brian has photos if you're wondering.

Now that I'm finally in my townhouse, I quickly grab my box full of tackle to bring over for the tackle raffle. We put everyone's name in a hat and drew names for all kinds of fishing products. My favorite was the raffle between the two pregnant ladies, Britney and Louann. The winner, Britney, won a child's size sublimated tournament jersey, with all kinds of fishing logos on it. The tackle raffled ranged from low-priced spinnerbaits, to the highest-end 8" swimbaits. I had a blast with the raffle and hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did.

I think the quality of the food has been covered by nearly everyone else. All I will say is, these guys can cook!

I witnessed two living Saints that weekend. And these Saints go by the name of John and Lisa Seaver. As many of you know, Lisa has gone through more than most of us with her kidney and subsequent kidney transplant. Her strength and recovery has been an inspiration to us all, and it was such an honor for me to meet her and John. John and Lisa are the epitome of good Samaritans. I was in awe of how hard they worked to make everyone around them happy. I can honestly say that the event wouldn't have been nearly as fun without their hard work. I witnessed two people put everyone else before themselves and hopefully I can repay them for their devotion and efforts.

John is one of the most unique individuals I've ever met. I haven't spent a lot of time in Alabama, but if everyone is like John, I need to look for a house down there. This guy is the life of the party. His positive energy had everyone in high spirits and he had me cracking up the whole time. Everett (everettvet) came to meet us at the Marina Saturday afternoon (I'll talk about Everett shortly), and Everett is a veterinarian. When I mentioned to John that Everett was a veterinarian, the first thing out of John's mouth to Everett was, "What you know about Sasquatch?". This was John Seaver... never a dull moment and always putting a smile on your face. The Lord didn't make many John and Lisa Seavers, he should have though.

This was also the night I really got to know Adam and Ron (BassinBandit/Bcklash). I felt so bad for Adam... the day before he had broken one of his rods in half. But of course, when he told me, he was laughing and saying, "at least it wasn't my Kistler!". I was surrounded by the most positively uplifting people. Adam and Ron (Ron is Adam's father), felt like family the moment I got to meet them. I could tell Ron and his son had a great relationship and man, it feels good to see fishing be a part of that. I got an opportunity to talk to Adam a lot that night and we talked a little about everything. If any of you need info on Las Vegas, Adam knows everything! He's going to Vegas shortly, and boy, do I wish I could go with him... I know I'd have a blast with Adam. Adam and Ron live in Virginia, so they aren't too far from me. I hope I can see them again.

I also got to know Anthony and his father Jeff. Two more role-models of mine as father/son. I can tell Jeff is a great dad, just like Ron. It's really great to see fathers encouraging their son's fishing. Anthony (BigBassin114) is mature beyond his years, both as an angler and as a man. I'm sure Jeff is one proud father, because I was proud as owner of BassFishin.Com to know I have someone of Anthony's caliber as a member. Anthony fried the fish that night and I could tell he's had a lot of experience cooking. He knew how long to cook each fillet and was really good at it...something I'm particularly terrible at. Being from Ohio, I was extremely impressed with both Anthony's and Jeff's knowledge of all those northern quarry we lack down here. I got the immediate sense I was talking to true outdoorsmen. I also noticed Anthony wore his BassFishin.Com t-shirt every chance he got, which made me prouder than I don't know what. What an honor for me to see that on someone like Anthony. I just hope he continues to be an integral part of BassFishin.Com for years to come.

The girls that night really deserve such a massive ovation beyond what I can type. Not only can these girls fish, but they can really cook some good food and throw a party. I didn't get much of a chance to get to know Louann, Daniel's (MississippiBoy) wife, but she was so pleasant to me. I also didn't get much time to talk to Daniel.. I wish I could have, because what little time we did spend together I could tell Daniel was as nice as they come and an comedian too. It seemed that when Daniel spoke, whatever he said, was hilarious. It was so nice to see him and his wife and finally meet them after being such great contributors to the site.

Everett, as I mentioned earlier, lives in Paducah and visited us at the Marina in between shifts as a veterinarian. I really enjoyed talking to him about his profession (not everyday you get to talk to a vet) and hear some funny stories. I wish he could have joined us for the other parts of the event, but we certainly understood his obligations to family and work. He even offered to drive down from Paducah the next day just to give me a hand with getting my boat back on the trailer. The dock at the state ramp was completely flooded, so without a keel gaurd or a buddy, it's pretty tough. Everett was a great guy.

Of all the great people I met, there was one I can't remember the "real name" of. But I don't feel too embarrassed because I think he'd know I enjoyed my time talking to him Saturday night and even enjoyed fishing within spotting distance of him that Saturday as well. And that is nofearengineer. He's an electrical engineer and struck me as a very smart guy. I enjoyed learning about his work and was so glad he came down to see us all.

I have already briefly mentioned Kory (carolina-rig-01) and his wife Britney, but it was this night that I really got to know them. Just like the other girls, Britney was so willing to help me with anything. I was really touched by her efforts to help me get into my townhouse that night. When I heard her and Kory had slept on the sofas in John's townhouse the night before, I felt so bad because I had the townhouse just down from them with 2 spare bedrooms/baths. I told them I'd have it no other way but for them to stay in my townhouse that night, and lucky for me, they agreed to stay there. Me and Kory stayed up late that night talking fishing in front of the TV. Kory impressed me so much with his knowledge for fishing and techniques. There is no doubt we could have talked for hours and hours more if it hadn't gotten so late. I knew I'd have a tough time saying goodbye to Kory and Britney the next day.

If there was one person I got to spend the most time with, it was Woody. As I had mentioned, he had fished with me on Saturday. But on Sunday, me and him teamed up to get our boats from the slip back onto their trailers at the state ramp. We were the last ones at the resort on that Sunday after everyone had left and we spent the day together pulling our boats out and cleaning up our rigs.

If you remember, Woody was the guy with all the bad luck and the big smile on his face. To say me and Woody became close friends that Sunday would be an understatement. You know, I think all those bad things happened to Woody that weekend on purpose. I know it probably sounds odd, but Woody was a role-model for all of us, especially me. He might not have known it, but I think I speak for everyone when I say we all came away with something valuable from Woody. This man's positive spirit was infectious and I'm not sure it will ever fade away in me. I'll never forget Woody and his outlook on life. I said above he has children, and what lucky children they must be to have Woody for a father.

There were a lot of sad goodbyes, but I couldn't have been more happy on the 16 hour ride home. What a lucky guy I was to be a part of something like this. How lucky I was to have met these people. My memories of the fishing will most certainly fade, but my memories with these friends I'll always have and never forget!