Kim Hiss

An Interview with Kim Bain-Moore, First Woman to Compete in the Bassmaster Classic

Online Editors — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:52:05 -0400

Mum started taking me fishing in a backpack before I could walk. Every weekend my family was on the water for saltwater panfish, Australian bass, carp—whatever. My father ran a fishing circuit called the Australian Bass Tournaments, which was around 100 boats, and the championship prize was a trip to the U.S. to compete as a co-angler in a BASS event. So I learned about the U.S. scene and started dreaming about going there and fishing the Classic one day. Finally, in 2000, we put the money together and I packed my things, then found myself in one of those crazy moments—an 18-year-old standing in the San Francisco airport with a big ol’ Plano rod tube and a backpack, looking for a guy called Norval Pimentel to pick me up.

I caught my first largemouth in America with Norval on the California Delta. He told me to “grab a junebug Gitzit, Texas rig it, and flip it into the tules,” which was just gobbledygook! And the bite was so different—usually the fish in Australia hit a lure so hard they set the hook on themselves. The biggest difference between U.S. and Australian bass fishing is that American bass have a much bigger mouth and they jump. Aussie bass have sharp gill plates and sharp spines. They’ll cut you up bad if you handle them like a largemouth.

That first day I caught an 8-pound bass. It’s still my biggest largemouth to date.

In the early days the biggest challenge was getting around on Amtrak and Greyhound. We drive on the other side of the road in Australia, so I wasn’t comfortable renting a car. When I made my first BASS Open Championship at Toledo Bend, Texas, in 2003—I was the first woman to do so—I flew to Houston, took a shuttle across town to a box store, and waited six hours for the Greyhound bus, which took me to another station, where a friend drove me to the lake. But the minute I stepped on the water, I wasn’t thinking about anything other than my next cast. I’ve been fortunate to have that focus—it comes from your passion, I think.

The moment I qualified for the Classic [at the 2008 Women’s Bassmaster Tour Championship] was pretty emotional for me. It had been a big year, and I’d been putting in a lot of hard work to do my best on the water. There were three days of intense competition, and then the words: You’ve won. You’re going to the Classic. Suddenly the hard work and support of my family and the funny stories getting around the country flashed before me, and I thought, “Wow, this is what I was working toward and it’s finally happened.”

One of the challenges in the Classic was having only 10 rods in the boat—usually my main string will be around seven rods, but I’ll have at least 30 in my rod locker onboard, each for a slightly different purpose, plus a few backup outfits. Most of the time my spinning reel and baitcaster are spooled with Grand Slam braid, then I’ll tie on a fluorocarbon leader, about a rod-length, with an Albright knot—that’s something I brought from Australia. If it’s a power bite, I’ll be swinging a Reaction Innovations Sweet Beaver; if it’s a finesse bite, I’ll use a Flirt Worm.

As for being the first lady at the classic, people have used the word pioneer, but I’m a little sheepish about that. I was just proud the ladies had the opportunity for somebody to go. It’s been a long time coming and it certainly adds to the tournament and helps to grow the sport.

The dynamic between the fellas and me was interesting. Some guys were so focused on the tournament, they weren’t concerned with me. Others were tremendously supportive, like Skeet Reese, who saw me catch a couple fish and was whooping and hollering louder than I was! Then there were some guys—just an angry, sexist few mumbling and conniving in the background—who didn’t agree with my being there because there hadn’t been a lady in the past. But just because it hasn’t happened before doesn’t make it wrong.

For me, there’s no real difference in competing against men or women. Of course, when it’s men you’re conscious of the fact that you’re the only lady. But when it comes down to it and you’re on the water, you’re so focused on what you’re doing, you’re not really paying attention to what everyone else is doing.

To succeed in a lifelong goal, you have to keep it in the back of your mind all the time. Then when you’re making decisions, you consider how they’ll affect your goal. I use a trigger word as a password on my computer, so every day I think about what I’m doing toward my dream. Also, you really have to appreciate the journey, the adventure, and you can’t be too desperate. I feel the same way about hunting. I enjoy the walk in the bush, even if I don’t shoot a deer that day.

My goal is to do well and maybe qualify for the Classic again, but I’ll be very proud of whoever goes. The more ladies who walk across that stage, the better.

Parting Words

Joe_Cermele — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 12:55:56 -0400

As I bring FSHuntress to a close, I want to thank you again for your wonderful participation in the women's blog, and for your support over the last week. I hope we'll channel the enthusiasm for the online community we've built into our local hunting communities, and get more women -- and kids and men -- into the field. Programs like Becoming an Outdoors Woman, the NRA's Women on Target and the NWTF's Women in the Outdoors are out there to help us do it.

In terms of parting words, I thought I'd leave you with an interview I did last January for the Wisconsin Public Radio Show "To The Best Of Our Knowledge." We talked about being a female hunter and some of my own personal field experiences, and I hope you enjoy it.

This country has a great history of women hunters, and every time we step into the woods as responsible sportsmen who value habitat conservation, healthy game meat and the importance of passing it on, we do our part to advance that tradition. Good luck and good hunting. --Kimberly Hiss

It Takes All Kinds

kimhiss — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 08:29:56 -0400

First, I want to thank you again for your continuing support. It means so much, and I look forward to seeing all this energy in other F&S blogs and message boards.

I'd promised to write in this home stretch about what I love best about hunting. But what can I say that would cover it all? I love what we all do -- connecting with the outdoors, taking responsibility for the meat I eat... I love feeling a part of the tradition of American huntresses, which stretches back to those black and white, turn of the century photos you see of skirt-wearing, rifle-toting sportswomen. Then there's the connections I've made with other people -- like my grandfather, who never would have started telling me his own old hunting stories had I not taken up the sport myself. It's a link I never imagined sharing with him, but it's made our relationship all the richer. There's also all I've learned along the way, from skill-based lessons to cultural realizations.

One thing I've been happy to realize is that the tradition of hunting--although the non-sporting public may only see as far as a stereotype--takes all kinds. I was lucky to enter the field for the first time with other women for a mule deer hunt. We were a group of twenty-something's and grandmothers, democrats and republicans, newbies and seasoned sportsmen. It was great to see such a range of experiences within even just one small group of huntresses. I've since hunted with anyone from pregnant women in South Carolina to Amish carpenters in Pennsylvania. And of course there are so many different kinds of hunters I've not yet had the pleasure to meet. I like thinking about the fact that hunting can be a common link between otherwise diverse groups of people. While we may all love it for our own equally-diverse reasons, the point is we all love it. -K.H.

Next Chapters

kimhiss — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 12:36:25 -0400

It's hard to know where to begin. Your support has been nothing short of overwhelming, and I still can't come up with a way to sufficiently express how much it's meant to me. I'm very glad the blog has become a place of so much heart and energy, and I'm sure all that enthusiasm for getting more women and kids -- and men for that matter -- into the field will continue throughout the F&S Web site.

On the bright side, there certainly is life beyond FSHuntress, and on a personal level I'm looking forward to more writing -- including a feature in F&S magazine this July (spoiler alert -- it involves bass fishing and Greyhound buses).

And The Huntress Club message board is up and ready for stories, debates--whatever. So I hope all this great energy can transfer there.

Again, thank you so, SO much for your support, both for me and for your fellow readers. This is a wonderful community, and I'm looking forward to keeping in touch through the pages of F&S, and elsewhere on the Web site -- not to mention keeping in touch next week when I continue to post through the end of the month. -K.H.

Home Stretch

kimhiss — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 09:40:08 -0400

Unfortunately, it's time for me to share some sad news. I found out last week that--due to budget issues--the Field & Stream women's blog will be no more.

Of course, I've loved writing as FSHuntress since the blog launched in summer 2007. What started as an enthusiastic core of women readers has grown into a close and supportive blogging community. I think we've all enjoyed getting to know each other as we shared our many field stories involving children, husbands, first turkeys, biggest deer, and even gimpy hogs. Since the Web redesign, it's been great to welcome more men to the blog and to hear about the women hunters in their lives (or the plan to add women hunters to their lives--good luck with that!). Of course, there have been a few dud posts along the way, and we haven't always agreed, but overall I've come to appreciate the hunters on this blog as the finest of sportsmen -- passionate, responsible, and absolutely committed to getting more women into the field. I've felt privileged to number among you.

As the blog now enters its home stretch (it will continue through the end of April) I'll be closing out with a few stories and thoughts on what I love best about hunting. Beyond that, I'll look forward to seeing you around the other F&S blogs. But for the moment, I'll just say thanks for reading, and I've loved getting to know you. -K.H.

A Male Perspective

kimhiss — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 10:11:45 -0400

I just came across this hunting column from an outdoors writer named Ed Noonan of Schenectady, NY's Daily Gazette that I thought I'd pass along. He says right up top that he usually focuses his pieces on men, but this particular column is dedicated wholeheartedly and enthusiastically to women.

I thought it worth a quick link for the guys in particular. Some of you have asked how to get the women in your lives more involved, and although Mr. Noonan doesn't have any earth shattering suggestions, he does offer a pretty good summary of a number of the programs out there (while some of the info is specific to NY, it's at least a good jumping off point). He also sprinkles in some stories of his own experiences with women in the field--he's been a guide with the NRA's Women On Target program--including one woman who was 7 months pregnant.

I don't know how many readers are actively trying to get any non-hunting women in their lives in the field, but for those of you who are, Mr. Noonan might offer a helpful guy's perspective. -K.H.

Life Is Good

kimhiss — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 08:20:51 -0400

I love quotes. And the ones having to do with hunting are among my favorites. So on this beautiful day in the Northeast that promises to get more beautiful through tomorrow, I thought I'd simply welcome the weekend with the words of one of the country's most famous women shooters.

"Any woman who does not thoroughly enjoy tramping across the country on a clear, frosty morning with a good gun and a pair of dogs does not know how to enjoy life."

Well said, Ms. Oakley. --K.H.

(Trying to) Feel Good About Tax Day

kimhiss — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 08:57:07 -0400

We've arrived once again at the formidable April 15, day of tax collection and postal service misery. While I hope you and yours have enjoyed a hassle-free tax season, there's no getting around the fact that the payment of income tax is not the most satisfying of experiences--especially in our current bail-out culture when it's hard to feel confident about where our money is headed.

While speaking of citizen's contributions to the greater good of the country (we hope), I thought it a perfect time to take pride in a similar system--sportsmen's contributions to the greater good of our natural resources. Bothered by the sense that my tax dollars are being sent off into the ether, I tried to at least learn more about the tangible results of my duck stamp dollars and sporting good manufacturer excise taxes.

First I took a look at the Federal Duck Stamp Program. According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, since 1934 Federal Duck Stamp sales have raised a total of over $700 million that's been used to acquire over 5.2 million acres of habitat for the National Wildlife Refuge System. If you want to see where your duck dollars are going, you might check out this state-by-state breakdown on the FWS Web site of the programs that have benefited from stamp sales. Using Arkansas as an example, the FWS lists seven national wildlife refuges that have received funding from the sale of 2.83 million Federal Duck Stamps in that state since 1934.

In addition to Duck Stamps, I did a little searching for the tangible contributions that taxes paid by the firearms industry have made. According to the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, since 1991 manufacturers contributed over $3 billion to wildlife conservation through the payment of the federal excise tax. Since the excise tax was begun in 1937, over $5.5 billion have been collected.

I certainly hope my federal income tax dollars this April 15 are also being put to good use. But for those of us who need a little assurance about what we're paying into these days, hopefully we have some preserved acres and well-populated fly-ways as our answer. -K.H.

MI Crossbow Regs to Benefit Women?

kimhiss — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 09:36:22 -0400

In my news reviews this morning I was reading some additional stories on the new crossbow regulations approved by the Michigan Natural Resources Commission. This article in The Voice discussed the new rules just a few days ago, and included a claim I thought worth noting.

The writer stated, "Opponents of the old law [to limit crossbows to those with a permanent disability] took issue with how hard it was to get a crossbow permit, even for the elderly and people not strong enough to pull back a traditional hunting bow, including some women and youth hunters." The new regulations expand the use of crossbows, saying they may be used:

- By anyone 50 years of age or older during the Oct. 1 - Nov. 14 bowhunting deer season statewide.

- By any hunter age 12 or older during any hunting season in Zone 3 (southern Michigan), including the bow hunting season.

Of course we're all aware of the arguments in favor of allowing crossbows to be used by disabled or elderly hunters. But what do you think about the point made by some that crossbows may be more suitable for women? I know some instructors feel that women might have an easier time shooting a crossbow. But of course plenty of women hunters don't agree with their usage. -K.H.

And The Gear Goes To...

kimhiss — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 09:10:12 -0400

After a short break, our trusty little Gear Giveaway is chugging along on its mission of finding good homes for great gear. This week's winner is reader "2Poppa," who's been a frequent contributor of comments, links--and even poetry.

With the warmer weather upon us, 2Poppa will be getting an assortment of soft plastics from Poor Boy's Baits. He says his daughter has been asking him, "When are we going fishing dad?" We better get those lures in the mail so she and her brother can hit the water!

So congrats to 2Poppa, and a big thank you to Poor Boy's Baits. And I look forward to announcing another gear winner within the next two weeks. -K.H.