Entry 27-5

Emily Shaffer

Shaffer's Advice for Newcomers

Editor's Note: Emily Shaffer of Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, won the 1995 Bass-N-Gal World Championship (the Classic of the women's bass-fishing circuit), and since has caught the largest bass ever weighed in at a Classic (male or female) weighing 9.01 pounds. In 2000, she won her first Women's Bass Fishing Association (WBFA) tournament.

Question: Would you take a newcomer to fish in a pond the first time, or would you take them to a lake?

Shaffer: The first time I take them fishing, I'd rather be on the bank so I don't have to worry about any other boat traffic or anything like that. When you first start out and get in rough water, some people may get a little sick unless they've done it before. I like to be on the banks so I can show them the proper way to cast and the proper way to flip. Then when you get on steady ground, you can change hooks, and you can show them how to change the blade on the spinner bait, retie it and not have to worry about any kind of motion sickness, hopefully.

Question: Once a woman starts catching fish and wants to go further, what advice do you give her about buying a boat? Should she get a johnboat or a larger bass boat?

Shaffer: I'd at least get her one that is 17-feet long to start out with, and then she can progress from there. I run a 21 footer, but I fish on large bodies of water. Find yourself a nice-sized creek with a ramp in it, and make believe that is the lake. Learn how to present your baits there, and duplicate that. If you catch them on little stumps, go, find your stumps, and catch bass off your stumps. That is the way I fish a lot of times. I find a good-looking creek and dissect it.

Question: Can you think of any other tips as far as learning how to fish or a woman wanting to become a pro?

Shaffer: Don't rush it as far as sponsorship goes nowadays. It is hard. I'm not going to say it is impossible, but it is hard. Probably a very small local tour where you may have won a tournament with a 3-pound bass isn't enough. All sponsors want to sponsor someone who has won a title or a big tournament or a national title. But until you get a title, every time you go out on a body of water, you will learn something.

Question: Give me a pro and a con for being a woman fishing pro.

Shaffer: A pro is that there aren't very many of us. And I can't really think of a con. Perhaps, traveling by yourself is a con. I don't see how these guys go the amount of time that they go. Behind every good man, there is a good woman. And there are many good women out there because there are a lot of guys, who do this. For me, it is reversed. There is a good man behind me who is helping me.

Question: How important is your husband's support?

Shaffer: It is very important, especially when I have had a bad day. He can talk me out of it and give me the confidence back that I need. Used to I would get so ill when I went out and didn't catch anything or didn't find anything. But you have eliminated water; you go out and try something different the next day. He keeps my head straight.

Question: If you didn't have the good support for yourself do you think you would be able to bass fish for a career?

Shaffer: I don't think I could have done it a while back, but I could now. Because my husband taught me so much that it took him 20 years to learn, he just accelerated my learning and my ability to fish so much. I am very fortunate and very blessed.

 




 

© 1996-2008 Strike King Lure Company