Making Memories W/ Beckman Nets – Online Contest!

More than a few memories have been made with the sagging of a Beckman Net bag… and Beckman Nets wants to hear the stories and see the photos that are memorable to YOU!

Many of our members will recall the Beckman Net photo contest from Fall – 2008. If not, this link will bring you up to speed >>> Beckman Photo Contest – Fall 2008

This time around Beckman Nets is opening things up a little. Last fall entries were limited to photos. For this contest participants can still send us photos but this time there’s a second way to get entered as participants have the option to share a memorable moment from seasons past with a story! Yeah, you read that right! Can you spin a yarn? Tell a good tale? Now we’re not looking for fiction but given that we’re all anglers it goes without saying that some of us (not me!) are prone to stretching of the truth. We accept that fact and any shared tale that starts to feel a little “tall” won’t be penalized or frowned upon by anyone here.

So here’s how this is going to work… PLEASE READ POINTS 1 – 6

1) Everyone that submits a photo (this is NOT a big fish contest) or shares a memorable story with us here at In-Depth Outdoors is automatically entered in a drawing for a NEW BECKMAN NET and other prizes donated by In-Depth Outdoors and Everts Resort.

2) Photos entered in previous contests may not be re-entered in this contest. If you’re not sure if you might have entered a particular photo in a previous contest, please see the link above in the first paragraph. All Entries are available for review.

3) Each contestant may enter ONE and only ONE Photo. Each contestant may also enter ONE and only ONE story. Submitting a photo and a story ups your chances of being drawn for that super slick Beckman Net.

4) All entries, photo or story, are to be EMAILED to [email protected] Any photo or story posted in the forums will be discarded. All entries will be displayed on this thread which will remain locked during the duration of the contest.

5) Include your IDO username with each entry.

6) Entries will be accepted through May 15, 2009 @ 11:59 PM. After that the contest is closed and the winners will be announced Monday AM – May 18, 2009.

So there it is. Go and do something memorable over the opener this weekend and come back and tell us about it. Or, better yet, have pics to go along with the story. Your Beckman Net will be there to help you close the deal should you be fortunate enough to stick that fish of a lifetime… but you can’t make memories sitting on the couch!

Here’s the winner of the Beckman Nets Fall 2008 Photo Contest.

Caitlin – 62Special

You gotta’ love that smile!

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #1

Username: Chris Bristow

Note from editor: the contest isn’t set up to award ‘bonus points’ for including Beckman in your submitted photo… but we should! Very nice.

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #2

Username: Bob Bowman

“This year is a mile marker for me as a father and a fisherman. I have been fishing with my son Alex for the past 3 years, and loving every minute of it. Teaching him about fishing and just the outdoors in general has been a blast. This spring my daughter Anna, who is 2.5 years old, started telling everyone that she was catching muskies in the Mississippi river by our home. Over dinner one night she was showing us how big her river muskie was with her hands, when she tells me, Daddy, I want you to take me fishing. So we sat at the dinner table and made plans to take the kids out fishing Friday after work. The day could not have been any better for taking the family out to chase panfish. We had the lake to ourselves and the fish bit very well in the late afternoon. Alex asks to have his picture taken with just about every fish he catches, and it did not take more then about 3 fish for Anna to pipe up and ask for a picture with her crappie. When Alex was 2.5 years old it took some coaching or should I say coaxing to get him to hold fish on his own. I grabbed the camera and turned around to help Anna with her fish, my jaw hit the bottom of the boat, she was lipping this crappie like she had been doing this for years. Its funny what little kids pick up on when there is a little sibling rivalry or competition. This spring has been a very memorable and rewarding one for me. I have had the chance to spend a bunch of quality time in the boat with my wife and kids, and for me that is what being a father is all about. I can’t wait until she really catches her first muskie!”

Send in those photos and stories from opener! Even if you didn’t get a good photo you can still get entered to win that new Beckman Net by spinning a yarn and sharing the tale. So even leaving the camera batteries at home won’t keep you out of this one! Let’s hear it. Or see it! And from all of us here at IDO we hope the 2009 opener was one of the best ever!

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #3

Username: mudlizard

“…both of us in this pic. have the same birthday may 10th, always on the mn opener weekend and we always fish this weekend together. What a way to spend your birthday!”

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #4

Username: CDN

“For the past couple years, Dillan has seen his father run north for the annual sturgeon fishing trip on the Rainy River in northern Minnesota. Upon his father’s return every year, Dillan would observe several photographs of fish topping 60” and his anxiety grew as he wanted to fight a massive prehistoric fish that roamed our waters.

It is now spring 2009, Dillan is almost 15 years old and he’s invited to join the crew to search out these beasts that roam the Rainy River. Dillan is pumped.

After a long drive north we hit the water on the morning of May 1, 2009. The weather is cool, but there’s a hint of sun mixed in with some passing snow and rain showers. We drive to a spot that has treated us well in the past that is away from the major crowds of boats packed in the bend in the river.

While we were rigging our rods for the correct weight in the rushing current we gave Dillan a word of warning about the sturgeon…”hang on for dear life, and don’t let go of that rod”. The expression on his face was priceless as I explained how long and hard he may have to fight a fish of this magnitude. He took our words with a grain of salt as he didn’t seem to understand until he experienced it for himself.

We wet our lines and now it’s a waiting game.

Within the first hour, Dillan gets a bite and the fight is on! It looks like he’s got a dandy, and it sounds like it from the grunting and heavy breaths we hear coming from his mouth. Dillan is half bend over using all of his body weight to fight this fish! After about a ten minute fight, the sturgeon is in the net and we are giving high fives and congratulating him. He was exhausted, happy and very excited to get the fish back in the water and place his line back in the water.

We snap a couple photos of the fish, and Dillan is begging to have his cell phone capture an image to immediately send a text to his Mom, sisters and friends.

Dillan’s sturgeon was a respectable 51 inches, and it turned out to be the largest fish of the trip.”

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #5

Username: playinghookymn

“This big girl was caught and released alive and well after a couple of photos. 29″ 9lb 8oz. This was a huge surprise on the St. Croix. I thought it was a Catfish by the way it ran. Normally, big Walleyes feel like logs, but not this girl. The wind was blowing and I drifted out of what I thought was the zone spot. She hit my night crawler hard, fed her the line and swept the hook set. We started in 23 FOW and ended the battle in 28 fow. I don’t know how long it lasted but it felt like it was forever. Using only 6lb test. I wanted to get a quick view of this fish until it turned sideways. My heart dropped and I knew from here out I had to be careful. The first time she approached the surface. I saw she was only hooked in the lip. Fed her line to make sure she was ready before I netted her. Being by myself, I knew I had to be careful. What a great Blessing. If I didn’t catch another fish this season that was fun and to watch her swim off for another day was just as exciting. Enjoy fishing and have a great and safe day.”

Thanks and be kind to fish.
Brian Jaroszewski

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #6

Username: FavoriteDaughter

“It’s not how many.
It’s not how big.
It’s who you are sharing the moment with.”

Favorite Daughter

Editor’s Note: Another “bonus point” photo with a Beckman in the background!

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #7

Username: Kooty

I’ve been lucky to fish from Lake Erie to Lake Oahe. I moved to Minnesota 9 years ago and I instantly fell in love with historic lake Mille Lacs after my first fishing trip. I’m not sure why it captivated me, but I guess that is why I call it magical. I don’t get to the lake as often as I’d like, but the fishing opener is guaranteed time. I am lucky to have been invited into a group of guys on the east side of the lake that are some of the best people I’ve met since moving here. Each year we fish for bragging rights, of course there is a bit of pride involved too. It makes for good banter at a minimum. We all pitch in Friday night for a fish fry/buffet of beans, salads and cold beverages. After eating, we sit around the bonfire and tell the same stories from years past. Some remain the same, some grow with age as any good story should. The group is as diverse as you can imagine, but at the soul is fishing. Some guys fish very hard and serious, others enjoy the socializing and fish less but it’s the fish that bring us together. If it wasn’t for this common thread, there is little chance I’d have ever crossed paths with many these great guys.

This year I was blessed with some of the best big fish, fishing I’ve experienced while rigging & corking. I’m admittedly weak when it comes to these styles of fishing and continue to ask questions and learn as much as I can. In my two days of fishing this opener, I never boated a “keeper” fish(under 18″ on Mille Lacs). However, I did get 4 fish over 26 inches in two days with a few other 21-23 inch fish in the mix. Over the weekend, I didn’t think we were doing that well. However, after returning and going through the mental rolodex, I realized just how much I take for granted when fishing Mille Lacs. How lucky am I to live within 90 minutes of a lake where you can spend a day catching fish of this caliber? I’m already looking forward to the fall bite on this magical lake!

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #8

Username: Shoot & Release

“December 23 was the first ice trip of last year for Wyatt and I. We tag-teamed on this pike via tip up. It was the 2nd flag of the day, the first producing nothing but a bare hook. This one didn’t have a chance, as all three hooks on the treble were buried in the corner of its mouth. I told Wyatt that the fish hit it so hard that the he knocked the minnow off the hook. When we got home, he watched me fillet it and low-and-behold, one full size sucker minnow filled it’s belly. He thought that was pretty cool.

I was a little bummed out when my flasher broke down, but my spirits were quickly lifted when Wyatt said, “We don’t need that thing… we’ll know if there are fish down there if my bobber goes down… or if the flag goes up again.” If it were only that simple!

After filleting the fish, Wyatt asked if we could have it for Christmas breakfast. It may have been the best Christmas breakfast ever, if I do say so myself.”

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #9

Username: bosman

“Sunny Sunday afternoon summertime river trips on the pontoon are as common as the surname “Smith” in my extended family. The trips first began in the summer of 07’ with the purchase of the 20’ party barge. Mind you the purpose of this boat was to simple enjoy EVERYTHING the river has to offer for a nearly retired couple with family & friends. The party barge makes for a pretty good anchor fishing rig however it’s the equivalent of Japanese Sumo wrestler performing the Cha-Cha-Cha as far as on the move techniques. Fishing off the deck also takes a little getting acquainted with when you are more accustomed to standing at or near water level. Positioned high off the water a false sense of superiority over what lurks beneath is only natural. Flipping an array of pan fish, dimensionally challenged game and rough fish up over the side is common practice. However larger fish carry a different ring. No flipping about it. For such a chore the party barge was equipped with a dip net. Not just any dip net, but a net that served as an “add in” to get some unsuspecting fool to bid a ½ dollar from the back row on a box of junk at a wagon auction. A baby blue net with two galvanized screws securing the loop to an aluminum two foot handle fitted fittingly enough with a matching baby blue butt cap.

I had an instant issue with this net since the maiden voyage in which that first net request was actually made and ole baby blue came out of hiding. It was obvious the net was NOT going to land anything much over a flipper size fish on the barge. I will also admit ~ a multitude of mischievous thoughts to loose or destroy the net, but just couldn’t find the devil in me to set fourth with such a thought. A costly error as you could have all ready imagined but will soon hear about anyway.

It was a steamy August early evening when we started at the north end of my favorite home town bay. A slight southern breeze was rolling some choppy 80 degree water against the grain. That combination of current & wind temporarily transforms the party barge from Japanese Sumo wrestler to Latino Ballroom dancer making semi controlled drifts a possibility. On the business end I had one of my favorite crank patterns tied on. We had drifted well over 150 yards in which I completed several dozen fishless casts running the crank from the shore line rip rap down off the steep break onto a 12 foot flat. I wasn’t discouraged because this pattern historically proved successful. It was just a matter of time. When the fish finally hit off the drop I knew it was a Pike and I new it was BIG as the TRS70MF went down hard! The rod was pulsating as the fish had complete control displaying an absurd amount of power peeling 20/8 Fireline off the Mitchell 308Xe! Clydesdales are synopsis with raw power but please add angry elder members of the Mississippi River Peter Pike club to that list! A true heavy weight prize fighter, it took what felt like an eternity for this fish to relinquish some ground. As I collected line between slow and steady lifts the fish surfaced some 10 yards off the bow. My jaw couldn’t have come more than inches from hitting the deck! I actually started to look for a set of legs protruding out of the sides of this “thing”! Louisiana swamp crock baby! Of course, when the fish seen the boat it took off with an impressive barrel roll & second run equaling the power of the first. By this time the captain was at my side repeating several French originated phrases…..with that stupid little baby blue butt cap dip net in hand! Now we were both repeating French originated phrases! What on earth are you going to do with that thing? Talk about hog tying a stone around a stick in preparation for a gun fight! After an epic battle exchanging blows with the fish he was well within netting range but the baby blue butt cap net was not up to the task. The head of this river goliath and about a 1/5 of his upper body was all that would physically fit in that net. A delusive diving attempt on the deck of the boat risking limbs and life to grab the tail of this monster proved futile as he started into another barrel roll catching the front running treble on the baby blue netting freeing himself. And yet once free, this fish did not dart off into the depths in a panic state but rather S L O W L Y sank making perfect eye contact with me belly flopped & disgusted on the deck until he finally disappeared into the murk below.

As others hoist fish of magnificent beauty into the air for show & tell I’m left to wonder if that lost pike thinks as much about me as I do he. The baby blue butt cap net has since been officially retired and now lives a lonely life in the rafters of a garage ~ just waiting for some unsuspecting fool to bid a ½ dollar from the back row again some day. Oh would I would have given to have my Beckman in hand that day.

Brett “Bosman” Weber
De Soto, WI

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #10

Username: riverrunt

“While I don’t have a tall tale to tell, this is one catch I will always remember.

After spending weeks practicing how to cast his Zebco 33 on an old beat up rod, my son Michael who just turned 3, finally got to try it out. This was a week of many firsts for him. His first eleven hour, one way, ride in the truck, from Davenport IA to just north of Grand Rapids MN. His first time choking on a licorice bite, which caused him to puke all over himself and the car seat after only five hours in the truck. His first boat ride, which thankfully was uneventful. His first time peeing out of a boat which he really enjoyed. Too many firsts to list. But the one that I will remember most, is with minimal help from dad, my boy cast his worm and bobber out to the weeds, watched the bobber go down, set the hook, and reeled in this monster bluegill, all by himself. Yep, this was my son’s first fish! He was as excited as a 3 year old could be and I was one proud papa! He even caught fish casting a jig and plastic. No need for a Beckman on any of these fish, but give him a little more time with dad and he will need one.”

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #11

Username: Denver

“My daughter Helen had been trying and trying to get me to take her this spring and I had to keep turning her down due to the weather. It is a hard thing to do when you are looking so forward to taking the kids out. Well I seen a day when the sun was going to be out and the temps climb into the 60’s so I got to take her out.

We started out trolling in the Wisconsin channel just below Everet’s Resort and I had another in 2 trolls so I told Helen to reel her line in so we could move on. While reeling mine in I hear her say daddy I got one. My response was I think you are hitting the bottom honey. She says no daddy here it is get the net. I look over and wow she has a 17 incher at the boat. What a surprise and her reaction was unreal. The walleye hit while she was reeling in. Made one more troll there and then headed down river.

We then went down and anchored in “Katrina” and had a few of the pro’s stop in and fish also. Tommy Skarlis comes up and talks to Helen and asks if she was beating her dad and Yup says Helen. She had our only walleye in the boat. He was very nice and told Helen that was great. After sitting there for 30 minutes I then went to trolling again in the back channel and all the sudden Helen yells daddy I got another one and it’s pulling hard on my pole “just recently got a great deal on a couple Lady Angler rods made by gander mountain. I look over and wow she was right so I told her to start reeling it in while in the holder. Then had her stand up and i handed her the pole she was reeling this one and and says daddy we are gonna need to net this one so we can measure it and put it on the wall next to yours. I said to her lets just see it first.

She gets it to the top of the water and all I could think was wow what a fish for a 4 year eleven month old young lady. I get it into the net and the lure flies out of the fishes mouth. It measured out at 23 1/2 inches. Nothing in the world could have been more exciting to a dad then the excitement of his kids first 2 nice walleyes and the only 2 walleyes in the boat that day. The best day I have experienced on the water with my daughter.”

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #12

Username: Whatsa

“My good friend Aaron and I have been fishing hard to get him a 30 ” fish for ten years. I have friends from Iowa that come up every year for a weekend to fish the Mighty Mississippi. Lucky for the guys from Iowa, each year for the last five years, one of the guys has caught that pig, not all 30 inchers but 29-30 inch fish. Aaron was starting to get a little frustrated with the Iowans luck……as Aaron would say how can they come up here and get a pig like that in two days of fishing when we fish 3 days a week all summer….. That’s fishing I’d say…… Aaron nicknamed himself Grey Cloud, saying he’d never catch that elusive 30 inch fish, so we decided to take a couple days off to hit it hard and try and get that 30 incher.

We started the day on the water around 5:30 a.m. by 10 am we had two 27″ fish and had lost one I figured would have been pushing the 30″ mark (DANG, I wish we had that super slick Beckman Net) it came to the surface and sat just out of reach of my net, for a good 10 seconds it sat there, Aarons eyes about popped out of his head, and with one flip, it was gone…..I could see the disappointment on his face! Aaron just sat down and looked at the sky and whispered why…..I could only imagine what he was thinking as he sat there in silence.

Well for the next three hours we pounded the water trying to get Miss Piggy to bite again, with nothing to show for our efforts. I decided it was time to change things up. We moved to a new spot and fish for an hour, again with nothing. The wind had really started to blow and I told Aaron after an hour lets go back and hit the spot, I feel good about the heavy winds, so we flew back to the spot. On the first pass the rod loaded up like we stuck a log, drag was screaming and the pole bent in half. Finally the tell tale THUMP, THUMP head shake of Miss Piggy. To see the look on his eye and the smile on his face when that fish came to the surface, knowing he had her on, was priceless.

For about 5 minutes it looked like the circus was in town me reeling in lines and try to keep the boat on line with the wind blowing like a mad man, the wind was doing every thing he could do to help Miss Piggy get off. Grey clouds nickname was in jeopardy and a new one was in the making (THUMPER the rabbit from Bambi) after the second sighting Aarons leg started shaking so bad it was Thump, Thump, Thump on the floor and fast, I don’t know how it moved that fast. Miss Piggy had dove back to the bottom and pulled about 15 foot of line back out.

I told Aaron to just relax take two steps back and lift straight up when the line counter read 10 feet. The third sighting popped her up log enough for me to slide the net under her…..He said call me Grey cloud now…..I said WHO……THUMPER. Then he sat down smiled from ear to ear and looked at the sky and whispered Thank You.

What a day on the water, all the trips, all the early mornings, all the stars finally aligning on this day, Who knows with that new Beckman net it’s possible he could have had two 30″ fish in one day, maybe next time.

Memories that will last forever!!!

Whatsa”

Editor’s Note: You don’t need that 8′ handle on the extendable Beckman very often… but when you do it is a lifesaver! Great read. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #13

Username: Perch_44

“Well, this story is not about the big fish, but more about life and how things can change over time.

For opener this year, the fishing was ok, and there was some very nice fish caught, but what is more memorable is the fact that Mille Lacs for opener is something that myself and a few close friends shared for quite a few years, and with families, schedule conflicts and life in general, we have not been able to get together for opener for quite some time now. This year the moons and stars lined up and although we were still missing a couple people from our “crew”, four of us made it up to “The Pond” for opener again. Most of the weekend we fished two per boat and only seen each other on shore, but sunday afternoon the other two came out to where I was anchored on the mud, tied up to my boat and put the bobber lines out. And although not a fish was caught all afternoon, we spent the better part of the day just telling stories and hanging out like it used to be up there. It was probably the best day of fishing all weekend in my book, as we got to share some laughs enjoy the weather and enjoy each other’s company. I’m starting to realize now in my life with my friends and family that people are getting older, having families and having other things in their lives, and not every weekend can be spent hunting and fishing anymore. So, you have to cherish the times you get together…regardless if Ol’ Marble Eye decides to take your bait or not…”

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #14

Username: Jake

“My best memory from summer 2008 was definitely when “the boys” got back together for a camping and fishing weekend on the river. That trip was capped off Saturday night after everybody had spent a long day run n’ and gunnin looking for fish……our three boats anchored up on a wing dam right next to camp, bumper to bumper, and proceed to boat 8 different species of fish (not including bottle bass) as we sat there and BS’d about times past. Species included walleye, sauger, small mouth bass, sunfish, rock bass, sucker, sheephead…..and my first, only, and PB shovelnose sturgeon. A nice one too!

Perfect weather, great company, awesome fishin, and my favorite river in the world!!! “

Makin’ Memories w/ Beckman Nets – Entry #15

Username: Rugbystar

“Here is a 23 incher, first time I’ve fished for Bass exclusively in 12 or so years. Had a local Kids and Dads tourney and I pinch hit for one of my buddies who had his last day of Master’s classes.”

From all of us here at In-Depth Outdoors… we thank everyone that took the time to share their favorite experiences and love of our sport. We took a little different slant with this contest hoping that people would take the time to share a little more of themselves with each entry… and those that participated hit this one out of the park!

From stories of time spent with kids, to gut wrenching moments waiting to scoop a big walleye to reminders of how important time spent with friends and family truly is for all of us to remember these submissions were incredible to read and I hope many, many of our visitors here to IDO take the time to do so as well.

BIG-BIG thanks need to go out to Beckman Nets. Their slogan is “A Net of a Lifetime” making their support of our “Making Memories” contest a perfect fit as memories bind us and are never lost. Without Beckman’s support In-Depth Outdoors would be unable to host giveaways of this type so when you or one of your fishing buddies is looking for a new net, a net that will last a lifetime, point them to the best net made >>> BECKMAN NETS

We’re no longer accepting entries. Voting on the winner(s) will start Tuesday May 19 and wrap up on Friday May 22nd. Look for the announcement on the voting procedure to be posted on Monday May 18.

How to select the right Beckman Net… for the serious walleye angler:

Submitted by Jason Halfen –

Your landing net is a critical, but often overlooked, link in the chain of equipment that a successful walleye angler needs to pursue his quarry. The latest baits, the most sensitive rods, and the best equipped boats are significantly less useful if hooked walleyes escape before having the chance to star in CPR photographs, or serve as guests of honor at summer fish dinners.

I have owned several landing nets during the time that I have dedicated my time on the water to the pursuit of walleyes. Each of these has had its own drawbacks: mesh that was too hard on fish or too hungry for hooks, a hoop that was too flimsy to support the weight of a big toothy critter, a handle that was too short to reach out and grab a lightly hooked fish far from the boat, or yokes that found ways to work themselves loose at just the wrong time. Happily, all of those sub-par landing nets are now in my past, and I am convinced that I now own the best…and the last walleye landing net that I will ever need. That net is a Beckman.

My own particular Beckman net is model BT222863, a member of the Beckman “Walleye Special/Pro Walleye” family. This net features a 22 x 28 hoop that is big enough for pig walleyes as well as the pike or musky that we encounter with regularity. The bag of this net is treated to be hook resistant and easier on fish slime, scales, and fins than conventional, untreated nets. I really appreciate the extending handle on my Beckman net, which gives me a full 9 feet of reach. This allows me to scoop fish that come to the surface far from the boat, as they often do in current or when trolling crankbaits or spinners. The extending handle still collapses down to a very managable size, making my Beckman easy to store between fish or when underway. My Beckman’s precise construction, quality materials, and lifetime yoke guarantee ensure that it will be scooping fish in my boat for years to come.

You can find this net online at:

Beckman Nets – Walleye Pro BT222863

well…i have to vote for myself! Perch_44

ENTRY NUMBER 2. GREAT SMILE, AND YOU HAVE TO LOVE A GIRL WHO GOES FISHIN’!!

Vote for Bob Bowman!

Bob Bowman and Anna’s Crappie!!!

WHAT A SWEETHEART! #2 ALL THE WAY!

My vote is for CDN

i vote for # 11 you go Helen

I vote for #11 Helen

I’m voting for CDN, Entry #4 as well.

Joel

I want to vote for photo #11