I just wanted to take a moment to thank all the people who fished with me in 2020, and made it a season I will never forget… When Covid hit, I was definitely nervous about how the future would play out. All kinds of thoughts ran through my head… Am I going to lose my flying job? Will people have the means and want to hire me as a fishing guide? Can I responsibly afford this boat? What’s going to happen with tournaments?

As the initial Covid lockdowns started to lighten up, it was clear that I wasn’t going to be flying anytime soon, so I decided to lean on my guiding and fishing business, as it was always my backup career plan. The response was astounding, with so many people wanting to fish! The time away from flying enabled me to run the full National Walleye Tour and be guiding just about everyday. My business went from slug speed to silver bullet speed overnight. Somehow in the midst of this horrific pandemic, I found myself living the dream as a full time fisherman, father, and husband.

For those of you that know me well, you know I don’t sit still very well. Without fishing or flying, I think I would have to get checked into the asylum. Today, I am especially grateful to the people that fished with me in 2020: my clients, co-anglers, tournament partners, traveling fishing buddies, family, and friends. I salute you. My heart goes out to those who have grieved during this pandemic, especially those in the airline industry who have lost their jobs. If this is you, give me a buzz, fishing trip on me in 2021. I still don’t know what the future holds; it looks like the airline industry is bouncing back, but I’ll never forget how fishing led me through 2020.