What a wonderful world!

[Tim King]

Well fellas, and ladies, I just got home form Springfield and the World's Fishing Fair! It was one of the best experinces of my life! I met Mac yesterday and he is one of the nicest guys I have ever met.( Mac, I think I might have the wife convinced into letting me come up and catch some smallies!) I got to see several different pros,(yes Scott I saw and talked to Penny Berryman. I got my picture taken with her and she put her arm around ME! I will post it for you as soon as they are developed.) I got to talk to Kevin Vandam and he signed my new Nitro hat. The wife and I talked to him for a while and he is really down to earth!, as were all of the pros I talked with.



There were wonderful seminars and the sale prices were phenomenal!! I couldn't believe I still had $20 bucks left when I got home!( how did you do Mac?) I got a first hand look at the Avalanche and I can say with most certainty that it will be my next boat! It would have been this weekend, but the wife wouldn't let me bring it home!! It truly is an awesome boat and it just might redefine the boating world once the idea catches on!! The people at Tracker have really outdone themselves this time.



If you ever get a chance to go to this event I would HIGHLY recomend it.



Doug, sorry I didn't get your e-mail until I got home. Let me know how to get ahold of you and next time I am in town maybe we can hook up.



Tim

 

[Bill McElroy]

Hi Tim,...Thank you for the kind words,....it was GREAT to meet you and your lovely wife too,..best of luck to you both with the "new arrival" at the end of this month! I had a blast at the show this weekend. Did a ton of rod handles and even more hats and shirts,...people sure do eat that up,.....the mgt at BPS was very pleased,...and several of the reps and other Pro's all came up and watched and complimented me on what I was doing,.....very cool!! Hank Parker was really killin' me,..that dude is unbelievably funny,....I promised him a signed and framed cartoon, featuring his Classic winning spinnerbait and unfortunately I just have not had time to get to it!!....Well,..he reminded me ALL weekend how he was STILL waiting for it, and how every day the UPS truck goes right by his howse and NEVER stops and there he stands,...looking forward to that picture more than anything,..and I have just ripped his heart out by not having that done yet!! (I will get it done THIS WEEK!!!) That was sooo funny,...people standing around were really crackin' up!! I also did a special hat for Johnny and he saw me in the restaurant upstairs and he came over to our table (I was having lunch with Zell) and thanked me personally for the hat and told me how much he appreciated my efforts and was really glad i was there,.....that made my whole weekend!!! Had my pix taken with him too,....can't wait for that! Kevin stopped by my table,,...as did Woo and Tom Mann Jr, Rick Clunn and his wife....like Tim mentioned,...nicest bunch of folks you'll ever meet!! It was a great weekend, but I am VERY tired today,....will be going to bed early tonite!!! LOL Anyway,..thanks again for stopping by Tim,..I'd love to go Crappie fishing with you in KS, and Mini and I will treat you to a weekend on 'Clair for some super-toad smallies,.....come on up as soon as you can.

Tight lines,...

Mac

 

[Bill McElroy]

BTW-,......I forget to mention that Doug Patillo stopped by friday too,....we chatted for quite a while, then after closing he and another buddy and I went out for a couple "pops",.....he's a super nice guy!!

Nice to put a face to a person after mothns of posting and on-line chat and then FINALLY getting to meet them.....very cool!!

 

[Rich Stern]

OK, Mac, you made your point. You can name drop with the best of 'em!



That's a who's who list of the bass fishing world, all courting you in a single weekend! Hope you'll still remember us little folk when people are saying "Hey, that's Bill McElroy!" at these events.

 

[Tim King]

You know what I thought was funny? When the guy from Quantam brought the rod over and was going to introduce you to kevin VanDam and Kevin said "Hey how you doing Mac" and shook your hand. The look on the other guys face was priceless. Kinda like Holy S*&t these guys already know each other! I just hope someday they will be tending to your every needs and wants just like they do the other pro's, cause you deserve it!



Tim

 

[gone bye bye]

Well Michigan isnt that big.....and neither is the fishing industry!



Mini

 

[Bill McElroy]

You guys are KILLING me!!!..LOL......I'm just trying to capitalize on what I do best,....and that's treat people nice and give them more than they ask for!! When Mini and I signed on together at the BPS store in MI, our personal goals were to "Raise the bar for State Team guys all over the country,...we were going to work harder and put in more hours than any other store's Pro-staff in hopes that it would pay off someday"..well... our plan is working perfectly and we're starting to earn our rewards!! I've known Kevin for a few years, but only in the last couple has he gotten to know what I can do to really help him....I did his personal Xmas card a couple years ago and when he asked me to do the illustrations in his new book this past fall,.....then I knew it was really paying off!! THAT rocked!! I don't want to sound like a "name dropper",...I'm just as blown away if not more, than you guys by all of this,...I'm as much of a fan of these guys and gals as anyone!! It just blows me away to have their respect and to have them compliment me for what I do,....I'm completely blown away by that. But the biggest thrill by far, is seeing the genuine joy on someone's face when I do a little drawing on their hat or rod handle and they walk away just beaming!!...and PLEASE believe me when I say this,...I will NEVER get a big head or ego over this,..that's ridiculous,...artists are a dime a dozen and there are a gazillion out there that are far better than me!!!! I'm just a regular guy who happens to have found a niche that makes a great promotional tool,..it provides immediate recognizable sales feedback for my sponsors and it allows me to be as creative as I want to be!! It makes people happy and it allows me to be somewhat successful combining my two favorite hobbies,...art and fishing. I am completely at ease, confident and comfortable when I'm in my "element" and that is a key to being truely happy...ultimate success is just a by product of that. Occasionally my buddies will say stupid stuff like,.."Now if you were only as good at catching fish as you are with a pen you'd be the MAN!!!!"...I just say,..."Why??!!!,...I'll make more $$ with a pen in my hand than YOU or I EVER will with a rod,...and I don't HAVE to fish in the crappy weather if I don't want to!!"....That usually shut's em up!! LOL!! But seriousley, I really appreciate everyone's support and kind words,..it's nice to be recognized for doing something worthwhile and I sincerely appreciate it,.. it's just my way of giving back to the sport that has given me so much...it's the least i can do!! Thank YOU!

Mac

 

[Sam Elkins]

Mac your a great guy and really good for Tracker/Nitro and the sport of fishing. You hard work is paying off and it looks like YOUR becoming the name that us little guys get to "name drop" now.

 

[Adam Murray]

Mac...I think that's a perfectly legit explanation and I, for one, use that story as a guide and personal motivation to help me achieve my fishing goals. I'm sure all of us have had the dream where we hoist the Classic trophy over our head. My personal favorite is the one that Hank Parker asks me to take time out of my busy touring schedule to shoot a show with him and Rusty Wallace. Will any of this ever happen? Who knows, probably not...BUT, it CAN happen and you're the living, breathing proof of that!!



The only question I have is, when you filled out your application for the National Art Institute Academy, did you draw the turtle or the pirate??

 

[Bill McElroy]

LOL....I drew the pirate!!, and in the reply I got from them,...they told me I wasn't good enough!!!,.so,..with the hopes of healing my broken heart my grandparents took me to houghton lake fishing for a week. Funny how things have a way of working out!!!

Mac

 

[Adam Murray]

No kidding! You'll never believe this, but my family use to rent some places on Houghton Lake every year and that's where I started fishing.



Also learned to swim there...saw some cool, older kids (probably 8 or 9 years old) using the diving board and SCREAMED for my parents to let me use it. To get me to shut up (and teach me some sort of life-lesson) my daddy finally let me. Most fun I've ever had...until I actually hit the water and realized I didn't know how to swim!! Learned how REAL quick!



Lesson learned...make sure you tie the little drawstring on your swim-trunks real tight. Looked pretty stupid learning to swim with my shorts around my ankles!

 

[Bill McElroy]

HA!!,...We always camped at the state campground,....we'd fish by the old "Osprey nest" in a huge stump and tree filled bay!! My grandma would take us down to Reedsburg dam so my cousins and I could goof around on the spillway there,...we'd run under the water fall and stand between the water and the dam itself.....the water would push our shorts down too!!...had to hold on tight when we ran back out!!..LOL Those were the days!!!

 

[Adam Murray]

Whaddya mean, "those were the days"?? I was talking about last summer!!