“And I’ll rise up…”
Dateline: Backstage Lake Champlain
“I will never, NEVER throw in the towel…”
Chris Lane
2012 Bassmaster Classic Champion
He held gently to my left bicep, and moved closer.
I could see his face get tighter, his dark eyebrows moved closer together; he was close enough that I could see his pupils dilate.
While his voice was calm and steady, and while his grip was gentle, and while we were surrounded by dozens of people it was as if he somehow sucked up time and all those around us, the fans in the seats, the families backstage, even the birds in the air seemed to freeze.
And there was just Chris Lane and me alone in the crowd, his back bent, his neck bent, his face was close to mine now, I could hear him breathe, I could see him breathe, see his nostrils flair in an out…I knew he was calming himself…I’ve seen this moment before, it is when the offensive linemen make one last wiggle of their fingers in the Astroturf before…hike…
“db I will never, ever, ever, EVER quit.”
And so you know in the time honored tradition of full disclosure here is the exact text of the question I asked Chris that elicited that response:
“Hey man, how you doing?”
I think Chris Lane wanted to talk.
‘…I’ll rise like the day…”
“If you fall, fall on your back. If you can look up, you can get up.’
Les Brown
Throughout the year I’ve been asked at just about every event this question, “Hey what’s the matter with your buddy, Chris Lane.”
And no matter who asked the question I always gave this same response, “Hum, seems he’s human.”
Make no mistake, and I’m calling it right now right here, Chris Lane, and also his brother Bobby Lane are destined, destined to someday be inducted into the Bass Fishing Hall Of Fame.
They are that good, and will always be that good.
Chris gets a little bit more of the press because of his Classic win, but both play the game as any sporting event should be played:
With talent.
With determination.
And with flat out fierceness to win.
I don’t play Fantasy Fishing because I don’t bet on friends, but if I did these two would be in my top five picks just about every tourney.
As I stood there with Chris on Day 1 of the Lake Champlain gig he was in 98th to 100-something place in the Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year race.
“db, sometimes things get really really good, or sometimes things get really really bad, you know what they call that…”
“Uh, huh.”
“…they call that life.”
And in my head I knew he just answered my first question…yeah, he’ll be fine, he’ll be just fine.
“…I’ll rise unafraid…”
“If at first you don’t succeed, you are running about average.”
M.H. Alderson
In Major League Baseball you can fail at hitting the pitched ball two-thirds of the time and still be a star.
Joe Namath is a Hall of Fame NFL Quarterback and he only hit his receivers half of the time (50.1 percent completion record).
Then there’s this, the strikeout king in baseball held the record for 30 years amassing in his career 1,330 failed attempts at the plate, the record for whiffs lasted until the 1964 MLB season.
The batter with the 30-year record…Babe Ruth.
The batter who broke Ruth’s 30-year record…Mickey Mantle.
“db, I’ve learned to be realistic, no one bats a thousand, lets be honest, yeah I have a huge responsibility not just to catch fish but to provide for my family, to provide for my sponsors, to provide for my fans, yeah there is a lot resting on my shoulders but you know what, bottom line, no one bats a thousand.”
Don’t tell that to John Paciorek though.
Um yeah, John’s career batting average is…1.000.
In 1963 with the Houston Colt’s .45s, his one game in the majors he had three hits and two walks.
1.000 batting average.
He never played in the majors again and no one in the MLB has ever batted 1.000 with at least two at bats in history.
That’s one out of the 15,213 players who have ever played the game.
So, other than the Paciorek dude, no one bats a thousand because no one is perfect.
Even considering Mr. Paciorek.
“…and I’ll do it a thousand times again…”
“When you’re riding, only the race in which you’re riding is important.”
Billy Shoemaker
“I know this db, I know I’m capable to win any event whether I’m in first place or last. Each day presents itself as new and it’s up to me to make the most of it, the day, the moment doesn’t know what place I’m in.”
Pretty much every Sunday on the tour when all the tackle is tackled Chris plays golf with many folk but normally with Bobby and my on the road roomie, Paul Elias.
They won’t admit it, but I’m pretty sure the winner’s couple of bucks goes around between them all season long.
“I’m a big golf fan db and I was watching Jordan Spieth on the PGA tour and in 2015 I learned a lot watching him on the tour when he wasn’t doing very good. He said something once I took to heart, he said something like ‘trying to be perfect isn’t going to happen it’s just best to go out and do your best and what happens, happens,’ and that hit home with me.”
To which I said exactly this to Chris, “Dude you are so right and not everyone can understand this trying to be perfect thing, in the entire history there’s only be one perfect person on the planet.”
“Who was that?”
“Jesus Christ.”
Amen brutha.
“…high like the waves in spite of the ache…”
“Make sure your worst enemy doesn’t live between your own two ears.”
Laird Hamilton
In sports, and in life, it is never about anything but you!
It ain’t about the ball or the bat, it ain’t about the hoop or the shoes, it ain’t about the stick or the puck…it’s about you.
Competition begins and ends within the competitors.
When I stood on the sidelines I never looked at the scoreboard I looked into the eyes of those on the field and trust me the eyes told the score truer than the board.
Chris Lane finished the Lake Champlain event in 1oth place…10th place. God bless this man for “not throwing in the towel,” when all looked lost (he finished up some to 95th place in AOY).
God bless Aaron Martens for not mailing it in and coming from 19th place to first.
To athletes everywhere, big and small, rich and poor, if you don’t play to win every time you take to the field of play, stay home.
To all of you in the stands the only value of any sport is the lessons we learn from it, the lessons in life we take away from the game, years from now you will have no idea what Aaron weighed in to win the tourney, you will though remember he came from 19th to first to do it though.
Remember this as well, and some will think I’m crazy for thinking this, but when it is all said and done I will remember this tournament in my mind as Chris Lane’s best.
Yeah best, I said that.
Best because of the lesson we should take from it, that lesson being we saw the measure of the man right here on Lake Champlain.
The measure of the man who from a PGA golfer learned to play through.
Play through life the best you can, never “throw in the towel,” know that in the end it simply isn’t about the fish, the waves, the weather, blah blah blah…
In the end it is about you.
It is about your talent.
It is about your character.
And above all, it is about your heart.
Thank you Aaron Martens for your heart.
Thank you Chris Lane for your heart.
Thank you George Herman Ruth for showing us it was never about the ball or the bat…
…but the measure of the man at the plate, “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.”
Every launch no matter what place you are in, brings you closer to your next win.
It’s up to you.
“…I’ll rise up.”
Andra Day
Rise Up
db
“Kites rise highest against the wind – not with it.’
Winston Churchill