That's My Story

WHAT WOULD FRED AND RAY SAY?

Published Originally in Western Outdoor News the week of March 12, 2007

I am actually tapping this out on my laptop while in my booth here at the Fred Hall Fishing & Boating Show at the Long Beach Convention Center. Hijole! What a massive show this is! Everyone is here and it’s really a lot of fun. Great to see so many friends and make new ones and thanks to all of you who have come by the booth to say hi and that you’re enjoying the column or (laugh) to give me a piece of their mind about something too!

For us vendors, it’s almost like you better be here or you don’t exist! Sort of like the Academy Awards. Anyone who is anyone is here and there’s even a lot of other folks I’ve never heard of.

You’re who?

You’re where?

Your fleet runs out’ve where?

Since when?

Funny, I’ve never seen you there. Oh, your real office is in Des Moine, Iowa, but you “visit” Baja for two weeks out’ve the year for your timeshare and you’re retired now so you thought you’d give it a shot at a fishing fleet because no one has ever done it “correctly” before. But before you retired you fished Baja once a year for 10 years and know the waters backwards and forwards. You gotta start somewhere. You bet! Knock ‘em dead!

I exaggerate, but you get the idea. It actually is a lot of fun and the folks you meet in this industry are mostly just great down-home folks you’d love to have more time to share a taco, a cold one, and a good story.

But has anyone noticed the change in marketing the Baja?

I remember when operations used to advertise that they had “real drinking water” or “year-round pool” or (the real luxury)…ICE! That was a winner. Air-conditioning was a plus. So was a freezer for your fish. You were living high back in the day.

And you know what? Sometimes the air-conditioner just didn’t work. Sometimes the tap water in the room was a funny color or breakfast was a little slow. Heck, sometimes the generator at the hotel would conk out and…heaven forbid…they had to light up the place with candles! You just rolled with it and had a good time and accepted it was the Baja. They don’t call it “La Frontera” (the Frontier) for nothing. It was part of the charm and attraction.

Now, I see blurbs offering, “nanny services (don’t get me started),” “breakfast in bed,” “in-room aromatherapy sessions,” “real estate seminars,” “spinning classes,” “morning power-walk” and “fluffy robes” in each room. Etc.

I never met the legendary Ray Cannon, but I bet he’d be doing horizontal 360’s and my predecessor at Western Outdoor News, Fred Hoctor. . .I can hear his gravelly voice going off about this. Fuzzy robes? He would always give me an earful as if it were MY fault. Can you imagine either of those grizzly Baja vets in shorts and Nike shoes doing a “morning power walk?” What I remember of Fred was that “aromatherapy” better smell like a beer and lime and if either guy was walking fast it wasn’t for cardio. It was to catch a boat on the beach or because someone yelled “food’s ready!”

I have one long-time client who has been visiting for years. He still sports long hair in a pony-tail and beard. Looks a lot like a Harley biker straight off the Hollywood casting room because he did ride when he was younger, but is now a respected and successful businessman. He could cuss and fish and drink with the best of the Baja rats. He brought his wife with him for the first time several years ago. After fishing one day, I asked if he was headed to the pool for his usual happy hour like normal.

“Nope. I committed to go on a “de-tox cardio walk” with my wife. After that we have him-and-her massages and facials. He rolled his eyes, laughing smirked, and shrugged and tied up his 150 buck “walking shoes.” We both laughed out loud.

The Baja is changing. The people coming to Baja are changing. I’m trying to picture Fred Hoctor in a fuzzy robe. Or Gene Kira in a spinning class.

That’s my story. If you ever want to reach me, my e-mail is riplipboy@aol.com.