Sports Product Review

March means spring. And though there is probably plenty of winter remaining for much of country, we decided to do one final winter review on the final day of February focused on what could be considered the epitome of winter sports—ice fishing. This from the Wisconsin Educational website:

“Imagine this. You bundle up and walk out onto a frozen lake on a clear and crisp winter day with your sled full of fishing gear and the fishing license in your pocket. Once you find the perfect fishing spot, you drill a large hole completely through the ice until you can see open water. Now, you unpack your sled and find your special lures, jigging rods or tip-ups to catch the fish. You will probably want to get out your portable seat to sit on so that you can look down the hole to see what's happening. Once your line is set, you'll need to keep a close eye on it or watch for the flag on the tip-up to see if you've caught a fish. When your hands get cold, you grab for the thermos of hot chocolate you brought along, mmmm, just what you need to warm up. You end up eating fish for lunch out on the ice, cooked on the small stove you brought along. What a great day of fishing!”

I ice-fished with my dad as a kid. I don’t recall him owning anything as fancy as the Mora Hand Auger sold by Strikemaster, (www.strikemaster.com). But the time we spent chopping a hole in the ice and dropping a hook into the blackness below was less about catching fish, and more about being together, overcoming the elements and learning that success takes patience, perseverance and willpower. It was difficult to imagine that there was life below that frozen lake. But my dad used to say, “Having vision means you can see the invisible.” And when the first fish came up, out of nowhere, and was lain next to the thermos of hot chocolate, it was easy to remember that spring was never far away.

Source: Strikemaster