Friday, June 8, 2012

Mattsabasser Driving to Fish-Tips: Why that bumper sticker may be a bad idea.


Reaching some of the best fishing areas often requires a bit of driving. The journey to and from the fishing hole can be quite perilous. There may be a lot of fishing tips out there but few that offer advice intended to minimize trouble while traveling from Point A to Point B. I shall make an attempt to fill this void with “Driving to Fish-Tips”.

Driving up the mountain to scout out a spot of blue on the map that I have had circled for some time now. A car pulls in front of me with a bumper sticker that says, “Fish Fear Me”. At that moment my mentality is altered and I put the gas pedal to the floor. As I watch his headlights fade in my rear view mirror my paranoid mind starts rationalizing the moment of reckless behavior.

“Tipped your hand, buddy.” My lips mutter while the truck rolls into the dirt pullout that barely fits one vehicle.

The other vehicle comes around the bend, slows down and practically crawls past me before speeding off in disappointed anger. At this juncture I feel a mix of jubilance and guilt. Eventually reality sunk in that there is only one fishing spot on this road and it is a very small section of water. Private property on both sides makes this 100-foot stretch barely big enough for one person. Had I not noticed the fishing bumper sticker (and extremely paranoid when it comes to fishing) that angler would have easily gotten the jump on the spot. This is just one example of how a bumper sticker can cost you.

When I bought my Xterra from the previous owner it was littered with bumper stickers of various music groups such as Widespread Panic, Pink Floyd and Bob Marley. One sticker supported a medical marijuana outlet west of Boulder. They all trumpeted possible drug use attracting unwanted attention from others on the road. Before getting new tires, an oil change and overall check-up…these stickers had to go.

Political bumper stickers can also cause trouble. It may seem like a small thing to show support for your candidate but realize some people are very serious about this issue. If they are on the opposite side of the political spectrum, they may not agree with your stance or the bumper sticker. If they practically sideswipe your car on the way to work, give you the finger and a painful scowl…this could be why.

In closing we can admit that I am not a fan of bumper stickers for a few reasons. Some folks adore these printed out plastic label vehicle decoration statements. They don’t make your car go faster and they don’t make you a better angler. Before plastering them on your vehicle ask yourself how this may come back to haunt you.

A good fishing trip will always benefit from fewer problems. Hopefully these Drive to Fish Tips help anglers reach the water and return home to fish once again. Good luck and good fishing.

4 comments:

The Reverend Fowl ™ said...

....had 'Panic tickets in Phoenix, was so-so.

Mark Kautz said...

Two things I never discuss, politics and religion. One thing I never put on my car, bumper stickers.

Mark

cofisher said...

I've been re-thinking my attitude about stickers. Why advertise, the crooks have the upper hand as it is.

Coloradocasters said...

There are a few stickers that DO pay off: window stickers received from donating to your local law enforcement, stickers or license plates noting military service and anything from your local fire department. One guy fixed his broken bumper with DOW bumper stickers a few years back and now I really wish that I had gotten a picture of that. The real problem boils down to this: Does anyone care if you heart your dog, cat, horse, goose, llama or whatever? Anything else you put on there is going to questioned by some A-hole at some point and the last place you need that kind of static is when you are driving. Besides, I am just going to have to take all that crap off when you sell that hunk of junk to me.