What Does an Etch-a-Sketch Toy Have To Do With Bass Fishing?

Most anglers probably would be left giving you one of those deer-in-the-headlights looks if you asked them that question. One who wouldn't, though, is former Bassmaster Elite Series (now MLB) pro angler Gerald Swindle. You see, he started keeping one of these National Toy Hall of Fame devices in his boat at the start of the 2013 season.

In case you're not familiar with this product, it was introduced near the peak of the Baby Boom era--July 12, 1960, to be precise. It consists of a thick, flat, gray screen in a red plastic frame. There are two white knobs on the front of the frame in the lower corners. Twisting these knobs moves a stylus that displaces aluminum powder on the back of the screen, leaving a solid line. The left control moves the stylus horizontally, while the right one moves it vertically.

So why, you may be wondering, does Swindle keep one of these toys Velcroed to the underside of his boat's dry-storage lid? The simple, straightforward answer is that it's a means of erasing the past, forgetting about the bad, and focusing on the next step to success.

Said Swindle, "It all started when a guy once asked me in a seminar how I became a 'junk fisherman,'" referring to his reputation for fishing numerous lures in a day's time. "I told him fishing is like an Etch-a-Sketch. No day on the water is ever the same. A lot of times, you have to erase thoughts of what worked yesterday and start with a fresh approach. That leads to fishing and mastering a wide range of lures."

Swindle's Etch-a-Sketch was a Christmas stocking stuffer from his wife, LeAnn, who gave it to him as "a reminder of the advice he had given that man in the seminar."

"When you're competing in an Elite Series event," explained Swindle, "you may have a day wedged among three or four that aren't good, and that's when I'll pull out the Etch-a-Sketch, draw a little somethin', erase it, and remind myself to start over...rather than dwell on what happened yesterday or last year."

It's all about maintaining a positive mental attitude for this native Alabamian, who has qualified for every Bassmaster Classic since 2010, except for the one in 2016. If a toy that sold for $2.99 in 1960 helps him achieve that kind of success, so much the better.

The accompanying photo and some information for this post came from a March 14, 2013, Bassmaster article by Alan McGuckin.