COLUMN : BALOG ON BASS FISHING
PHOTO BY KYLE WOOD
PHOTO BY BRETT CARLSON
Bobby Lane
PHOTO BY JESSE SCHULTZ
Chris Lane Arnie Lane
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
For more than 20 years , Joe Balog has made his living in the fishing industry on and off the water . A successful tournament angler from the Great Lakes region , Balog now lives in Florida , where he continues to work in product design , marketing and outdoor media when he ' s not chasing trophy largemouth .
growing up a lane
In fishing , as in life , family is everything
W hat would it be like to grow up in a family in which everything revolved around bass fishing ? To get the itch as a young man and run with it , grabbing the obsession and never letting go . A household filled with sibling rivalry and stories of the ones that got away . To find out , we can only ask the Lanes . Chris , Bobby and Arnie Lane are the result of an unbridled love of tournament bass fishing , beginning in the wilds of Florida where the boys were left to be boys . It was the mid 1980s , and the Lane brothers – each just a year or so apart in age – were entering their teens with a sense of adventure and a passion for the outdoors . Growing up in Lakeland , the three were close to dozens of famed waters filled with big bass .
“ It gave us the opportunity to walk or ride our bikes anywhere and fish ,” Chris recalls . Later , “ it was a jon boat strapped to the top of an old BMW , headed to a pit somewhere ,” remembers Bobby .
“ East , sleep , fish , but with no sleep ”
Each of the three boys equally credits their
father , Robert – also known as “ Big Bob ” – and grandfather , Bill McLain , for introducing them to the outdoors . The bass fishing bug hit hard .
“ It was eat , sleep , fish , but with no sleep ,” according to Arnie . “ We just couldn ’ t wait to wake up and go .”
Despite jumping in with both feet , there was no luxurious path to a fishing career for the trio .
“ It was no silver spoon ,” Arnie continues . “ It was all hard work .”
Bobby confirms that bass fishing trips were treated as rewards for good behavior . “ Keep your grades up ,” his parents would say “ and you can go to Kissimmee next weekend .”
In any case , the boys all agree that their brotherly predicament likely allowed them room to roam .
“ There were three of us ,” Chris says , “ so our parents would just let us go anywhere .”
18 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | FEBRUARY-MARCH 2021