Fishing Machine

Around 2 or so years ago, I finally realized the direction I was beginning to go. I had sort of a feeling that I wanted to take fishing to a competitive level. But I didn't really know whole heartily. If you can feel me on that? It was then, that I knew I had to have a boat. I needed a boat! Telling my wife was like telling her that all the malls had closed... forever. I hate it when she does that. Makes me feel bad, and feel like I can't approach her. Can't she see I'm working on something here? Anyway, regardless of her initial reaction, 2 years later and I'm sitting in my boat.

June 28, 2008, I wake up and step out of my hotel room front door in Lake City, SC. The hot, humid air just lays on my skin as I rub my eyes. I look across the street at a palmetto tree and smile thinking to myself; ''I'm here''. I had waited so long to have a boat I could say was mine. Today was the day it was to come true. I had driven all the way from Delaware the day before and got there that night. I was so amped up that I barely got any sleep. But I wasn't feeling it. I was still amped. I went back in to jump in the shower, packed all my stuff, and went down to the front counter to check out and have some complementary breakfast. I was bursting at the seems trying to take my time. My efforts were futile as I'm cramming a bun down my throat and stirring my coffee at 12,000 RPM and out the door. All for no reason. I had no certain time to be there. Just AMPED! Could have done without the coffee that morning.

Pulling into the parking lot at Marshall's Marine, I had barely even stepped out of my Ford when a voice said; "You must be Bob." In a thicker southern accent than mine. "Sammy Floyd" he said. "Pleased to meet you." I returned the flavourful gesture and replied; "Good to finally put a face with the voice Sammy, I'm Bob". We stepped inside an expansive sprawl of everything boating, walking past an aluminum bass boat that I could have turned my nose up at. "Let's go see your boat man"; Sammy exclaimed. We walked through a room with Tritons and Rangers lined up side by side, from wall to wall. The glitter paint, gleaming in the showroom lights like a 4th of July fireworks display. One spot closest to the door was empty and I remember thinking to myself "That's where my boat was". We kept walking clear out the other end of the ginormous building that housed what seemed like 100 boats, coming to a paddock with more... You guess it... boats. Across a gravel lot I could see Sammy was leading toward an aluminum building resembling a shop of sorts. "Now you gonna want to pull your vehicle right around the back of that build'n, jus'on the right side". "You see dat ramp dea ?" "Das where we gonna test'er out"; Sammy instructed as he pointed to a small impoundment, man made, for such an occasion. On further inspection, I could see the "pond" was no longer than about 125 yards. I went back to my Explorer and drove it around as instructed, backing up to a big garage door. I could see it. In my rear view mirror was the boat I had been plotting for weeks before. I stepped out of the Explorer as Sammy was already hooking up the boat. I had no words for what I was seeing. It was even more pretty than the photos on the website. "Now jus drive around that side and back'er up". Getting the boat in the "pond'' was easy and Sammy pulled up to the dock and I hopped aboard. After showing me all the gadgets and what not, he showed me just how quick she would get on plane from a dead stop. What we call in the bass boat world, a hole shot. Starting at the very end of the pond, Sammy aimed the bow at the other side and punched it. For about a second I was looking at sky, then the front deck, then the opposite bank as it QUICKLY got closer. Charging forward to about 15 or 20 yards from the bank, he let off just as I was about to bail, stopping fairly quickly and leaving a huge wake in our path that devastated the banks on our left and right sides. "That was only about 55''; Sammy said over the idling 225 Mercury Optimax outboard. "It'l do every bit of 75 with more space"; he said smiling directly at me. "Fa Sho''. Where the hell on the water in Delaware, was I gonna go at 75 mph? If the entire state was water, I could get from one end to the other in about 30 min. longways. Thinking to myself; "Oh well, the power is there if I need it." After getting the boat trailered and all the paperwork squared away, I had hoped that Sammy and myself would grab a bite to eat for lunch but time did not permit him. After all, he was at work. When it was all said and done, I was the PROUD new owner of a 2003 Ranger 521VX, white with burgundy glitter trim colors, grey carpeted with matching leather seats. Sammy and I said our goodbyes saying "The next time we see you; you'll be on TV with that boat". I don't think he knows just how right he is.