Dear Fishing

The Waterline | Column

Before Equalized Outdoors had a smallmouth logo, fishing was family, healing, and one of my first true connections to the outdoors.

My Grandfather with a huge catfish!

When most people think of fishing, it’s usually the thought of a single pole, with a worm, maybe a bobber, and the thought of passing time until a fish happens to find it.  And for me, that’s exactly how it started. 

With countless hours spent on the James River, waiting for a bite from a blue or channel catfish.  It wasn’t just idle time, though; it was time spent with men I admired greatly.  The men who would shape the version of who I am today.

You see, fishing for us was a family pastime, and it is one of my earliest memories.  I vividly remember the 7-foot or so, black-and-blue Shakespeare catfish combo that I received from Walmart as my very first fishing rod.  I remember hitting the aisles and pointing out rigging and sinkers to my mother because that’s what her father and brothers used, and I wanted nothing more than to be just like them.

I can still hear what can only be described as joy from these men, whom I usually saw in a more serious way.  Especially my grandfather, the WWII veteran with a heart of gold and a no-nonsense attitude, who every single person who ever met him revered.   

Yet, with a fishing rod in his hands, surrounded by his sons and now a grandson, he was typically all smiles.  The same goes for my uncles.  I credit my quick thinking and wit in the trash talk department to those early days of fishing with my family. 

Uncle Michael Teasing his wife live Blue Crabs

My uncle Michael, my namesake, was always a joy, and somehow, he always seemed to have the bite.  Even if nobody else did, and boy would he let you know it.  It used to make me so mad at the time, because I was quietly becoming competitive, but now I remember it very fondly.

Not long after he passed away, I returned to the very same pier in Charles City, VA, where I caught my first catfish all those years ago, and it was as if he was still there with me.  Fishing that day helped me turn the corner with my grief.  It felt like I was allowed to breathe and enjoy things again. 

Soon, I hope to return to that very pier one more time with my own son, in hopes that he will be able to catch his first catfish in the same place that I did. 

Fishing was, and still is, so much more to me than my initial entry into the outdoors. It is a safe space. It is peaceful, healing, and challenging all at once.

And if you have paid attention to Equalized Outdoors from the beginning, fishing has always been here. The smallmouth bass in our logo system was intentional. This was never just a hunting platform. It was built to be an outdoor platform, and over the next four weeks, I want to give fishing the space it truly deserves.