FIRST CAST : JOEL SHANGLE
THE LEARNING SEASON NEVER ENDS
If you dig deep enough into this “ Back to ( Bass ) School ” issue of MLF Bass Fishing magazine , you ’ ll come to one of the best quotes about bass fishing that you ’ ll ever hear : “ There ’ s nothing more fun to me than getting a new lure or new technique and making it work .”
That ’ s a quote in Joe Balog ’ s column on page 29 from MLF pro Mark Davis , a 35-year veteran of the tour-level tournament scene . If there ’ s anybody in the game of bass fishing who you could rightly excuse for not enthusiastically embracing the steep education curve that ’ s currently happening in the sport , it would be Davis . He ’ s been catching fish for a living since he earned $ 80 on his first day as a crappie guide on Lake Hamilton , Arkansas at the age of 13 . He ’ s banked over $ 2.5 million , won three Angler of the Year awards and is a proud member of the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame .
Davis knows a thing or two about catching fish in “ old-school ” ways . He ’ s made an admirable living and sent his kids off to college thanks to simple , tried-and-true things like plastic worms , spinnerbaits and gut instinct . I ’ m almost certain that if ever there was a professional bass tour where the anglers were given just a rowboat , two rods and a one-tray Plano tackle box to fish with , Mark Davis would find and catch bass faster than anybody .
Yet despite his acumen , experience and skill with multiple techniques , Mark Davis has been a star pupil in “ bass school ” over the past 20-plus years .
Although his brain is unquestionably jam-packed with knowledge and information about these little green and brown finned creatures we ’ re all obsessed with , Mark wakes up every morning eager to learn just a little more . It doesn ’ t hurt that his twin sons , Hunter and Fisher ( both 20 years old and in college ), took to bass fishing like ducks to water , and fished their way up through the TBF youth and high school ranks with the eager , open minds of youth .
“ Those two have kept my mind ‘ young ’ and open – they learn so much so fast , a little bit of that must ’ ve rubbed off on me ,” Davis once told me .
If you read a little further into Balog ’ s column , you ’ ll see another quote from Davis , addressing the steep learning curve of forward-facing sonar and similar technology : “ It doesn ’ t come natural to me ; I ’ m definitely challenged when it comes to technology . I ’ ve had to work at it , but without a doubt you have to embrace technology .”
That extremely honest quote speaks to Davis ’ dedication to the process of learning , and I think it perfectly sums up what the Bass Fishing magazine crew strived for while putting this issue together . We ’ re all eager learners ourselves . And while learning isn ’ t always easy , it ’ s darn sure worth it when you see dividends !
As you flip the pages of this issue , I urge you to absorb the lessons that veterans and experts like Larry Nixon , Mark Davis , Cody Meyer , Skeet Reese , Jason Lambert , John Cox , Anthony Gagliardi , Troy Morrow , T . J . Maglio , Rob Newell , Matt Allen and Tim Little are teaching . We ’ ve all enjoyed filling our brains with new information this issue . I hope you enjoy it , too !
joel shangle , executive editor
6 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2021