The Bass Fishing Team began meeting mid-Feb. and plans to start heading onto nearby lakes as soon as possible, considering the ice. The anglers (an angler is any fisher who uses a rod and line) have been conducting one to two indoor practices and meets per week during the six weeks before their official season starts; learning how to quickly tie knots, effectively cast and stay safe while fishing. Shortly after spring break, the team plans to begin their official season and regain Antioch’s honorable fishing reputation.
Like most sports, bass fishing has regional, sectional and state competitions. In addition to this, a large component of the fishing season is the weather. For senior Bradley Jurs, wind, rain or any other kind of weather conditions play heavily into what kind of approach is needed for a fishing tournament. Therefore, the bass fishing team’s pre-season practice is extremely important.
“Fishing can be very relaxing but when I start catching the bigger fish and have a chance to win in tournaments, it gives me this unspoken feeling that drives me to keep dominating,” Jurs said. “The main reason I like tournament fishing is because all it takes is 5 bites that can win you something big, and knowing that this cast can be the one is nerve-racking.”
It is assistant coach Alexander Mann’s first year working with the Bass Fishing Team as well as his first year at Antioch Community High School. Mann joined the team to gain a better understanding of bass fishing and to meet more of the student body from outside of his classes.
“On a personal level, I really enjoy fishing but I don’t know much about it,” Mann said. “Truthfully, the students here and certainly the head coach [Brad Rubin], know a lot more about bass fishing than I do; so in a lot of ways it’s a great experience for me to learn.”
The Bass Fishing Team also offers a unique social opportunity to students, who can meet anglers with similar interests in a typically-solitary sport. After spending hours on a boat together, fishing acts as a binding agent– turning teammates into friends. Junior Christian Filipek is one of Antioch’s anglers who has made several friends through the Bass Fishing Team.
“What I like about fishing is that you can hang out with your friends and meet new people,” Filipek said. “When I’m out competing, there’s no better feeling than catching that final fish that wins you the tournament.”
The bass fishing team, like most anglers who fish to compete, practices catch-and-release. Their hope, according to Mann, is to catch each bass again when it is larger. At any bass fishing competition, the goal of each team is to catch the heaviest weight of fish, but fish are almost always returned to the water to maintain the fragile ecosystems of lakes.
An important aspect of fishing is how anglers respect the body of water they fish on. Fishing can directly put endangered species at risk, but also indirectly affect a fishing ecosystem with lost equipment or bait that threatens local marine life. While recreationally fishing, it can be easy for lines to get torn off on rocks and sticks within the water. Fishing lines can take around 600 years to decompose and release toxic materials causing damage to the fragile organisms of any body of water.
According to Submon, to be more environmentally conscious, an angler can use stone or metal weights instead of lead; use hooks made of biodegradable materials; use wooden or cork buoys instead of plastic; use artificial baits that do not contain lead; choosing not fish near bird nests and collecting all of their trash before they leave.
The anticipation surrounding their upcoming season grows as the ice on the chain of lakes melts, and the team is excited about their approaching success.
