Opening Cast – September 2023

The Opening Cast

by Richard Simms

I am well-into my fourth year as the Editor of CrappieNOW Magazine. When he interviewed me for the job, I told Publisher Dan Dannemueller from the get-go that, “I am NOT the best crappie fisherman around. I would rank myself as average, at best. But I know people.”

Those “people” include lots of epic crappie anglers and especially, a long list of journalists who in turn know LOTS MORE “people.” That’s the beauty of CrappieNOW. It is a collection of the best-of-the-best, written and photographed by the best.

I am continually amazed at how often stories provided by our writers inspire me to do stuff. It began years ago when Brent Frazee wrote about night fishing under the lights. His story inspired me to “just do it,” revisiting long gone days of my youth catching crappie under the lights.

There are many other examples of crappie fishing tricks I have added to my own repertoire since then. The most recent came just today.

As Editor, I obviously get a “sneak peek” at stories from our illustrious writers long before you do. As I read the September issue musings of my friend and fishing expert, Keith “Catfish” Sutton, I instantly KNEW, “This is something I am going to do soon.”

This month Keith shares tips, recipes and inspiration on how and why you need to plan for a shore lunch on your fishing outings “shore lunch on your fishing outings”. I have a newly-minted grandson (two-and-a-half years old). His patience threshold may not be there yet, but I will wait anxiously for the day to take him fishing one morning and then cook our catch on the lakeshore.

In the meantime, I’ll be looking for an excuse to do the same with friends and family. Again, I’ve done it but it seems as if it has been a lifetime ago. With Keith’s easy planning preps and recipes, there are definitely shore lunches in my future.

Richard Simms, Editor

“The outdoors is not a place, it’s a state of mind.”