Most people who make New Years resolutions, center them around physical and mental health or maybe some sort of spiritual growth. I think we all can agree that those are truly the cornerstones of life. My new year resolution centered around one this thing year and it wasn’t personal growth.
It was centered around the growth of Lake Darbonne Life. This blog/website/whatever you call it, is my baby now and its success depends on me doing my thing.
When I acquired this site from Kinny Haddox, I had begun to dabble more in the fishing world. See, for years I’ve been a die hard hunter. After hunting season, I’d lick my wounds and relax until August but in January of 2023 I was winding down in order to do that some routine over again when my life changed. Thats when Dale Taylor approached me about doing something I’d never thought about before. Ever. Emcee’ing a bass tournament weigh-in.
What. In. The. World. Would I talk about? “Anything,” Dale said. “I’ve seen you on the Facebook live scoring deer and talking to the hunters, I know you can do it”. Justin Bailey agreed and encouraged me to try it, so I did.
Hands down being the emcee for the Louisiana Team Tournament Trail has been one of the best things I’ve ever done. I love it. Seeing the fishermen and ladies, giving them a hard time and laughing with them, and celebrating big bass and big bags made 2023 one I’ll never forget.
But when I bought LDL in July, I was a bit worried. I can talk about fishing but can I write about it? Can I find subject matter? I know a few folks well but I really don’t know anyone outside of the trail I bumped my gums at.
That’s where my New Year’s resolution came in; “I’m going to make an effort to be at at-least one tournament every weekend. Doesn’t matter the style of fishing, I’m gonna make at least one. Might be a tournament about catching Casper Goo, but I’m going,” was my plan.
And the first one of 2024 was perfect. The Northeast Louisiana High School Anglers tournament on Lake Darbonne in Farmerville.
It was cold as a wedge and I’d spent the morning cleaning out my shop and listening to Greg Terzia interviewing a few guys for the upcoming Media Bass trail that happens in our area. After lunch I threw on my “good boots” and headed to the spillway to take a few pictures and shake a few hands.
Walking up to the weigh in trailer, the north wind cut like a razor and I was glad I had my outer shell to cut the January breeze. “I swear it’s gotten colder as the day’s gone on,” someone said in passing. I had to agree.
As I approached the trailer, John Carter smiled and met me half way. After some casual conversation, he asked me something that I never saw coming. They needed a fill in emcee for the event. Talk about timing! Let me tell y’all right now, I was glad to help!
I watched as young angler after young angler came up to the trailer, frozen to the bone but smiling and just happy to be there. There was even a team of young ladies who weighed in three quality fish and every one of them talked to me when I stuck the microphone in their faces. And if you’ve ever had much to do with young folks, you know how big of a deal it is to get them to say more than “yeah” and “naw”.
The best part to me was something you might not expect. I was so busy being focused on what was happening behind the trailer with the anglers, that I never paid attention to the front. And when I turned around, I could not believe what I saw. As cold and miserable as it was, the front of that trailer was full of families there to watch these kids and they were stretched from end to end. It blew me away.
See, a lot of weigh in these days, don’t have much in the way of spectators coming to the events. Even the major trails seem to struggle sometimes to get a turnout. But this event did not struggle. At all. Momma’s, daddy’s, brothers, sisters, cousins, and kinfolks were everywhere. And I loved every minute of it for these young people.
Before I left, I wanted a picture with all of the ones who received a plaque. It was a great time, even though I couldn’t feel my ears when I got in the truck.
The NELAHS Anglers are going to be at Toledo Bend for the SAF High School State Championship and Junior State Championship on January 27 & 28.
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