Dirtyeggroll Posted March 6, 2020 Posted March 6, 2020 What's your day-to-day work/home life like (other than tournament/practice days)? How do you structure your time as a pro angler? I don't imagine everyday is the same, so give can you give us a few examples of your time commitments as they demand you? 2 Quote
James Niggemeyer Posted March 10, 2020 Posted March 10, 2020 During the tournament season my time commitments are quite high on a monthly, weekly, and daily basis. Something I’m continually trying to refine is time management abilities. Prioritizing the most important things and keeping them first over the things that I want to do can be a challenge. You’re exactly right everything is in a state of flux in regards to the day to day. I would love to give you some sort of a day-to-day example however each week can be totally different. Here is a month snippet of my calendar: February 13 left home for Florida FLW Feb 14 arrival mid day Feb 15 set up camp and Attend meet the Pros event 5-7pm Feb 16 practice begins Feb 19 registration and tournament prep Feb 20 day 1 of tournament Feb 23 last day of tournament Feb 24 drive home 14 hours. Feb 25-27 home (unpack, laundry, spend time with family, clean boat, tackle prep) Feb 28, 29 & March 2 guiding trip on Lake Fork March 3rd leave for Birmingham Al Bassmaster Classic Expo March 5th Classic Expo set up March 6-8 Classic Expo Evening of March 8th Classic Expo breakdown with GEICO, Strike King and LEW’s March 9th 5am drive home to Texas 2:00 arrival March 12 leave for 3rd FLW Pro Circuit tournament **People would be really surprised at how much time pro Anglers spends working on Tackle preparation. (Rods, Reels, line, bait organization etc.) for and between events. Hope that gives a little insight into the day to day of one of the more busy months of the year. I appreciate all the questions. Good fishing! 2 1 Quote
Global Moderator 12poundbass Posted March 10, 2020 Global Moderator Posted March 10, 2020 That’s a crazy schedule James, I don’t know how you guys do it. 3 Quote
Dirtyeggroll Posted March 11, 2020 Author Posted March 11, 2020 12 hours ago, James Niggemeyer said: During the tournament season my time commitments are quite high on a monthly, weekly, and daily basis. Something I’m continually trying to refine is time management abilities. Prioritizing the most important things and keeping them first over the things that I want to do can be a challenge. You’re exactly right everything is in a state of flux in regards to the day to day. I would love to give you some sort of a day-to-day example however each week can be totally different. Here is a month snippet of my calendar: February 13 left home for Florida FLW Feb 14 arrival mid day Feb 15 set up camp and Attend meet the Pros event 5-7pm Feb 16 practice begins Feb 19 registration and tournament prep Feb 20 day 1 of tournament Feb 23 last day of tournament Feb 24 drive home 14 hours. Feb 25-27 home (unpack, laundry, spend time with family, clean boat, tackle prep) Feb 28, 29 & March 2 guiding trip on Lake Fork March 3rd leave for Birmingham Al Bassmaster Classic Expo March 5th Classic Expo set up March 6-8 Classic Expo Evening of March 8th Classic Expo breakdown with GEICO, Strike King and LEW’s March 9th 5am drive home to Texas 2:00 arrival March 12 leave for 3rd FLW Pro Circuit tournament **People would be really surprised at how much time pro Anglers spends working on Tackle preparation. (Rods, Reels, line, bait organization etc.) for and between events. Hope that gives a little insight into the day to day of one of the more busy months of the year. I appreciate all the questions. Good fishing! Thanks for the detailed reply! I suspected something similar to this. Very busy with up to weeks at a time without a day “off” or at home. In high school I wrote an report on NASCAR and one component of it was the “day-to-day” lives of the drivers. Back then I was surprised to find out just how busy they were (PR, prep, travel etc). I suspected something similar in the fishing world, which you have confirmed. Thanks for the info. If a follow up questions is ok, what kind of professional demands do you have in the “off-season” is a less busy time of year? What would a similar stretch of time look like? Quote
James Niggemeyer Posted March 28, 2020 Posted March 28, 2020 My wife laughs at the idea of the existence of an "off season", which typically begins around September . Here is a snapshot of what goes on once the tournament season concludes: *When late September rolls around the tour events are completely done on typical years, however we may still compete in an FLW or BASS Open after that. *Around this same time in recent years I've participated in a multi day sponsor related event, such as filming a television show for Strike King Lure Co. or Lew's. *Also during this same time I will be working on preparing to sell my current year model Ranger Boat, which means traveling to the Ranger plant in Arkansas where they will go over the boat, remove the wrap, reapply all factory decals, badging, etc. When they are finished it always looks AMAZING! *Advertise my boat for sale on various on-line locations. *Sponsor correspondence increases through this period regarding the the new year on the horizon, which may take weeks or months of emails and phone calls. *Various 1 to 2 day travels for events that come up for sponsors, etc. *Coordinate jerseys, truck and boat wraps in hopes of not waiting until the last minute to get them done. *Simultaneously I will be ordering a brand new Ranger boat for the upcoming tournament season and agonize over choosing colors that a buyer would like. *Ordering a new boat requires ordering a huge list of products from sponsors such as an engine from Mercury, Powerpoles, electronics from Lowrance, Atlas jackplate plus additional items for the boat from TH Marine, batteries from Bass Pro Shops / Cabela's, Gator Guard Keelshield etc. etc. and having them sent to Ranger, time coordinated, so when the boat is ready to begin production it's all on the floor in Flippin' Ar. *Produce consist content for my Youtube channel, social media outlets like facebook, twitter, & Instagram. *Organize, organize and re-organize fishing tackle for the new year and in light of the new tournament schedule. *I will do a handful of guided fishing or instructional trips during the late summer and into the fall, because I am physically home to take people this time of year. *Spend time pounding on the computer keyboard and wishing I was on the water. *During the tournament season MANY items on the home front are moved to the back burner and this is time to address them and attack things that need attention. Yard work, home up keep, clean up the garage, tackle room, office and most importantly try to make up for lost time with family and friends in some way shape or form. *Work on a calendar for the next year that begins to fill up fast with tournaments, sponsor commitments and events such as ICAST and the Bassmaster Classic. *Because I camp at each event I need to make RV park or campground reservations for specific tournaments scheduled to compete for the upcoming year. *Spend time on the water refining and experimenting with new baits or techniques, but mainly just staying sharp. That is a snapshot of some of the things that take up a good portion of the "off season" 3 Quote
Dirtyeggroll Posted March 29, 2020 Author Posted March 29, 2020 Thanks for the lengthy and detailed reply. Excellent. Quote
ajschn06 Posted July 31, 2020 Posted July 31, 2020 I know this is an older thread but just curious- why the new boat every year? I know pro's obviously need the latest tech and everything, but can't you just upgrade your fish finders/trolling motors and whatnot when necessary? Quote
Super User MN Fisher Posted July 31, 2020 Super User Posted July 31, 2020 15 minutes ago, ajschn06 said: I know this is an older thread but just curious- why the new boat every year? I know pro's obviously need the latest tech and everything, but can't you just upgrade your fish finders/trolling motors and whatnot when necessary? Considering that the main sponsor of said pro is paying for the boat and the pro just 'borrows' it for tournaments, it's kind of a moot point. 1 Quote
ajschn06 Posted July 31, 2020 Posted July 31, 2020 6 minutes ago, MN Fisher said: Considering that the main sponsor of said pro is paying for the boat and the pro just 'borrows' it for tournaments, it's kind of a moot point. Wasn't aware- thanks. He said he had to go through the work of listing, selling, and reordering anything I just figured it'd be easier to keep it for a couple years! Edit- and the fact that he was concerned about resale when selecting color threw me off too! Quote
The Maestro Posted August 13, 2020 Posted August 13, 2020 On 7/31/2020 at 1:46 PM, MN Fisher said: Considering that the main sponsor of said pro is paying for the boat and the pro just 'borrows' it for tournaments, it's kind of a moot point. I don't think that's how it works for the majority of these guys. Pretty sure they get the boat at a reduced price but it's their responsibility to sell it at the end of the season. It's probably different for the few really big name/high profile pros. Quote
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