Freshwater fishing tourney leads to fresh perspective on military service

Just because I write an outdoor column mostly about fishing doesn’t mean I am proficient at every type of angling. This past Monday spoke volumes about my lack of knowledge about freshwater fishing, something I haven’t done in years.

What prompted me to give freshwater a try? Awhile back, a gentleman by the name of Lee Steinberg contacted me, asking if I would act as the grand marshal of Hampton Lake’s Fishing With Heroes tournament to benefit the Lowcountry Foundation for Wounded Military Heroes.

Grand marshal, huh? All I could imagine was little ol’ me dressed up in an outfit festooned with sequins, maybe a top hat and cape … you know, kind of a James Brown look. So thinking this was my chance to really go stylin’, I said yes.

But as ready as I was to have this one shot at being a grand marshal, I was apprehensive about freshwater fishing for largemouth bass. Like most every fisherman, I cut my teeth by chasing bass and bluegills, but I seriously doubted that my old-school rubber worms with the tiny propeller in front would do the trick.

Secondly, I had never set foot in Hampton Lake, so there sure as heck wouldn’t be any home-water advantage. It wasn’t until I arrived for dinner and registration the night prior to the tournament that my grand illusions of fame came crashing down. This event wasn’t about me at all, but rather young men and women who served our country and, because they did, their lives were forever changed.

Having avoided the Vietnam War by the narrowest margin, it is nearly impossible for me to imagine what it’s like to be that age and be thrown into one of these conflicts. As I talked to one young veteran and heard his story, I tried to imagine myself in his shoes when I was that age. I couldn’t.

Even with the massive amount of testosterone that flowed through me in my late teens, I couldn’t fathom being shot at, much less wondering if my next step might trigger an IED. At least in World War II you had some idea who the enemy was. But in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan and no doubt most future conflicts, that luxury of knowing has gone forever.

I have always been a flower child of sorts, but even with my aversion to fighting and hate, I feel for these kids who volunteer to step into these horror shows. The closest I ever came to being shot happened when I was out duck hunting with my father-in-law. He had set his loaded shotgun down on a stool and his goofy golden retriever knocked it over. It went off and that shot missed my face my inches. I still get chills thinking about it.

It wasn’t until all these thoughts came front and center that I realized what an honor it was to be a part of this grand cause.

If you have never been in the Hampton Lake development, all I can say is it is one big lake. From start to finish, the tournament’s volunteers did it right, raising nearly $60,000. Meeting up at 7 a.m. Monday, off we went. Luckily, I wasn’t asked to run the boat, because if I had, you wouldn’t be reading this — I would still be trying to find my way back to the dock.

My boat captain was Hampton Lake resident William Meacham, accompanied by his wife, Linda. Usually when I go fishing, I rarely reel in fish because I run the boat, letting others do the reeling. So this was a new twist for me: With a package of newfangled worms and a couple of my tried-and-true lures, I fished.

I will tell you one thing about freshwater fishing: It’s a lot of work. I am used to saltwater fish that come to the bait, but in freshwater, the bait has to go to the fish. At first I thought it was easy when I caught a 3  1/2-pound bass on the first cast, but by the end of tournament I thought my arm was going to fall off.

But no matter how sore I was, my pain couldn’t touch the pain these veterans have endured and many are still going through. I didn’t get my sequin outfit, but you know what? I got a whole lot more. Oo-rah!

This story was originally published April 9, 2016 at 2:33 PM with the headline "Freshwater fishing tourney leads to fresh perspective on military service."