Pro-Angler
Gene Ellison Hopes to get
Kids Hooked on Bass Fishing
- August 5, 2008
By Michael Di Natale
Gene
"The Fishing Machine"
Ellison is a man on a
mission. The professional
bass angler wants to spread
his sport to a new
generation of children,
giving them the chance to
discover the joys of fishing
that he himself was unaware
of until after he'd hit
middle age.
A Lynnfield resident for the
past 17 years, the angler
intends to put a million
fishing rods into the hands
children. It's a lofty goal,
but so far Ellison estimates
he has reached 60,000
children with the help of
his sponsors. Not bad for a
man who's been a pro angler
for only three years and
fishing for eight.
"Getting kids into fishing
is a huge goal for me. I
grew up in Somerville and
there was not a lot of
access to water. To make a
long story short, I've often
thought to myself, 'I wish
I'd gotten into fishing many
years ago.' One of the ways
I deal with having wanted to
fish when I was younger is
to make sure I'm very active
in getting as many young
kids into bass fishing as I
possibly can," says Ellison.
"One of the goals that I've
set for myself is to be the
guy who puts the first rod
and reel into the hands of a
million kids."
The idea came to Ellison
almost five years ago and
word has only spread in that
time. Ellison gets email
from fishing clubs across
the country requesting help.
When he's able, he speaks to
his sponsors who usually
come through with equipment.
"I'll get one or two emails
a day. I don't want to
present myself as the Pied
Piper, it's just as time
goes on a lot of anglers
around the country get
asked, 'Hey, can you help
us?' and they say 'You know
there is an angler I know
very well. Here's his email
address.'"
In addition to charitable
work getting equipment to
kids who need it, Ellison
has worked with the
Massachusetts Wildlife and
Fisheries Department on the
organization's family
fishing festivals which are
held regularly from early
spring to late fall.
At these events, the MassWFD
will set up shop and allow
families that don't own rods
or reels to receive
instruction from certified
anglers and have a hands-on
chance to try fishing.
When his tournament schedule
doesn't conflict, Ellison
enjoys attending these
events as an instructor,
introducing others to his
passion for the first time.
So far this year he has
attended seven such events.
The work is reminiscent of
Ellison's prior experiences
coaching children in hockey,
soccer and baseball.
"The nicest part about bass
fishing is to take good
friends along. Family, a
buddy, you're spending
quality time outdoors
enjoying the relationships,"
says Ellison. "Having
coached [youth sports] for
27 years, I have been
looking for ways for kids to
get outdoors more and kids
and parents to spend more
quality time together,
that's what I'm striving
for."
With his desire to help
children guiding him
forward, Ellison intends to
bring his own brand of the
fishing gospel to kids in a
new, exciting way this fall.
While top bass fishermen
don't have the same profile
as professional athletes in
our major sports, more
people will start to
recognize this man from
Spearfield Lane later this
fall when he joins the cast
of Camo Country, a fishing
and hunting show broadcast
on the Comcast Sports
Network.
Ellison will co-host the
program with Tim LaJoie by
overseeing a fishing
component of the program
which is new to its upcoming
eighth season. The program
is lesson-oriented and aimed
at kids.
The pair hooked up after
Ellison was contacted by
LaJoie through his website
thefishingmachine.net. Ursus
Media Group produces this
show and wanted to add a
fishing component to this 7
year old program. After they
heard about Ellison through
word of mouth, the two
parties met and quickly
found their ideas were in
sync.
"I'm not enamored with the
TV stuff. The motivation
behind this effort is to get
kids into the outdoors. If
that doesn't happen I won't
be doing this very long."
said Ellison.
The show will be broken down
into a hunting segment and a
fishing segment, followed by
a demonstration in the field
with a child. Episodes will
be filmed on location in
various New England areas.
Ellison says that 12 of the
26 episodes have been shot
so far.
The program will also be
broadcast on several network
affiliates in New England.
Ellison's move into
competitive bass fishing was
a striking one given the
humble ambitions that began
his hobby, but it could not
have been unexpected given
his competitive nature.
"My wife had suggested that
I do something
non-competitive - that
should be in quotes-
'non-competitive' with my
son Phillip," explains
Ellison. "She mentioned that
Phillip enjoyed fishing and
that perhaps I should
consider doing that with
him."
Ellison wasted no time
wading into the hobby. He
and his son attended a
tradeshow in Worcester.
There the Ellisons met Shaw
Grigsby who was the event's
featured professional bass
fisherman.
"Shaw is a fantastic
ambassador for fishing ! On
that day he was making a
presentation by casting into
a huge tank and showing
anglers how to fish. He
needed a volunteer from the
audience and Phillip
raised his hand. So Phillip
got a chance to fish with
Shaw and I got the chance to
meet Shaw. Today we have
remained good friends,"
explains Ellison. "Before we
left that evening we bought,
with Shaw’s help, rods,
reels and a bass boat."
The boat, according to
Ellison, was just a little
tin boat, a 17 foot Tracker
equipped with a 40
horsepower Mercury engine,
and perfect for the
situation. Neither he nor
his son knew much
about boating and with an
aluminum hull boat the pair
didn't have to be afraid of
running it into the ground.
But, when Ellison and his
son began fishing he soon
realized there was a lot
more to the sport than he
had originally considered.
In March of 2000 Ellison
attended a two-day
presentation on bass
fishing. The event featured
some of the top anglers in
the world who lectured and
Ellison became a diligent
student.
Following the course Ellison
could be found most weekends
out on the water trying out
new techniques, working hard
to become a better angler.
"Phillip and I started going
out on Saturdays and Sundays
and the poor kid, I made him
stay in the boat for eight
or 10 or 12 hours because I
wanted to learn this sport,"
says Ellison.
His own over-enthusiasm may
have cost his son his
original passion for the
sport. Looking at it now,
Ellison realizes that he
burned out his young son,
who was 11 at the time, by
bringing him out on the boat
for such long periods of
time. When he meets families
now he advises that parents
only taken their kids out
for an hour or two at a
time.
Ellison moved into
tournament fishing not long
after joining his first bass
fishing club. He had joined
a local club in Woburn on
the recommendation of one of
the pros who spoke at the
previously attended two-day
workshop. Within the club
Ellison was able to develop
friendships, share
information and find people
who would drive his
competitive nature.
In tournament fishing you're
on the clock. Most derbies
begin between 6 a.m. and 7
a.m., putting most anglers
in the water before 5:30
a.m. From that point on you
not only have to find fish,
but the biggest fish.
Ellison likens the sport to
detective work, searching
for clues as to where the
fish are positioned and how
best to lure them out.
In a tournament, you're
allowed to keep five fish in
live wells in the boats.
These live wells are sort of
like an aquarium. The fish
are kept healthy during the
day and released after the
tournament.
"It's very, very competitive
and to me, a fascinating
sport," said Ellison.
Only a few short weeks after
joining the club Ellison was
enrolled in his first
fishing tournament at Long
Pond in Lakeville, MA in
April of 2000.
"As I look back I did better
than I gave myself credit
for at the time," said
Ellison who finished 15th
out of 23 in his first
event.
He caught five fish that
weighed in at 8.5 lbs. For
Ellison though, it's not so
much that he didn't finish
last as it is he didn't
zero.
"I'm not embarrassed to tell
you at all that there have
been a lot of tournament
days where I came in with no
fish," says Ellison.
"Zeroing, from an ego stand
point, can be real tough.
This is the most humbling
activity I've ever been
involved with in my life."
The move to professional
fishing came five years
later after entering his
first pro tournament in 2005
at Lake Guntersville in
Alabama.
"I caught fish every day. I
finished in the bottom half
of the tournament and the
last day of the tournament I
caught an 8 pound, 13 ounce
fish while partnered with
Alton Jones of Waco, Texas
this year’s World Champion.
It was the biggest of the
day," says Ellison. "That
was a thrill to fish with a
great man like Alton Jones,
and to catch a lunker of
that size, wow."
Gene entered that event
without any sponsors.
However, he started calling
potential sponsors and
building relationships with
them prior to the event. A
fine salesman, Ellison was
able to set up some meetings
and left the event a
sponsored pro-level bass
fisherman.
The top purse at a pro event
is usually around $100,000
though top, world
championship events can
present the winner with sums
of $ 500,000 or $ 1 million.
Still, fishing in not
Ellison's primary means of
income. He has held down a
lucrative day job running a
successful investment firm
for the past 25 years. Today
Gene is affiliated with
Commonwealth Financial
Network and is one of their
top producers.
As a pro, Ellison attends
four to five pro-events a
year, heading as far west as
Texas and as far south as
Florida for tournaments. He
also participates in more
than 20 additional smaller
events in the northeast. A
pro event usually runs for
seven days; three days of
practice and four of
competitive fishing. The New
England events usually run
for one or two days over a
weekend.
One day Ellison hopes to
qualify for one of bass
fishing's top events. Until
then he'll continue to
compete and improve while
sharing his passion with
anyone who will listen with
open ears.
Bassmaster News
Marine USA Expo
Come join us as we celebrate "Fishing and
Boating" with Roland Martin and Hank Parker !
Gene
"The Fishing Machine"
Ellison is a man on a
mission. The professional
bass angler wants to spread
his sport to a new
generation of children,
giving them the chance to
discover the joys of fishing
that he himself was unaware
of until after he'd hit
middle age.
