View Full Version : Rent a Bass to become a "Sharpie"


Ed B
04-01-2013, 09:46 AM
I saw this in the Herald News. This guy’s business makes you an instant Sharpie with a phone call. He shows up in a van with some big bass and the latest fishing gear. Suit up and get your photo taken. He has a photo shop in Foxboro too. Amazing stuff today never ceases to amaze! - :confused: :smash:



FOXBORO, MA - New for the 2013 season, Rent-A-Bass LLC enthusiastically announced plans for a striped bass rental and photo service available for today’s busy young professionals and active lifestyle trendsetters. With a fully stocked travel van and a completely outfitted photo studio in Foxboro Massachusetts, Rent-A-Bass can provide a professional photo session with jumbo-sized striped bass for anglers who don’t have the time or desire to catch fish of their own.
“An ever present problem with catching fish today is waiting for that text message or phone call so a fishing buddy can tell you where the striped bass are, when to go fishing, and what to use,” said Carl Homer founder of Rent-A-Bass. “We take that frustration right out of the equation with our new service. Just give us a call or book an appointment online and the stripers will come to you. We will meet you with our travel van at a designated location or we can do a photo session at the shop in Foxboro. Our van and shop will be fully supplied with fresh jumbo stripers and all the latest gear, tackle and outdoor fishing wear. The client can suit up in waders or wetsuit, drytop, headlights, boga grip, pliers, grab the latest custom rod and reel combo, then we’ll toss you a big striped bass so you can honestly tell everyone you caught it, and do a photo session. The whole process takes no more than 30 minutes and the fisherman will get a photo disc and prints right there for his or her own use.”
“It’s really the next step in the evolution of fishing,” said Homer. “The days of the lonely surfcaster trudging over miles of sand or casting the rocky shores for countless hours searching for the elusive big cow have been gone for some time now. We’ve seen the development of the current fishing trend with the cell phone circuit and internet fishermen, and we’re taking it the next logical step. This is the future of fishing and we plan to be in early to capitalize with our new service.”
Homer explained that Rent-A-Bass will be carrying in the van and at Foxboro freshly iced large striped bass supplied by their east coast contacts from Virginia to Massachusetts.
“Imagine posting online or sending to your friends photos of yourself holding up a 40 pounder along the banks of the Cape Cod Canal the first week of May,” exclaimed Homer. “No one will know that fish came from the Chesapeake and you’ll be the internet sensation of the week! It’s where the sport is headed.”
Rent-A-Bass has already begun scheduling appointments for the upcoming season. A lot of inquiries have been for Martha’s Vineyard during the fall derby, but as of now they plan to stay local limiting themselves to the Foxboro shop and the van servicing southeast New England, where their market research shows over a hundred thousand striper fishermen within an hour’s drive.
When asked about the cost, Homer explained that Rent-A-Bass will have different options available. A photo session at the Foxboro location is $150 and the van service will be $200. There are also different membership levels as well. The Sharpie membership is a $500 annual fee, which entitles the fisherman to three photo sessions with fish over 30 pounds at various locations of the member’s choosing throughout the season.
“It really is a good deal. Just think of all the gas, time and effort it takes to get decent sized striped bass, not to mention the cost of all that high-end gear required to look like a Sharpie,” explained Homer.
Asked for an explanation of the term Sharpie, Homer replied, “It’s a term that has become more common in the current internet age. There’s no strict definition, but a Sharpie has to look the look of a serious and dedicated fisherman. That’s the most important thing and we provide that with our full selection of the latest gear and outerwear, and you’ll be sporting a full shoulder bag of expensive, rare, and obsolete plugs. Three bass over 30 pounds in one season pretty much qualifies a person as a Sharpie nowadays and we’ve got you covered with that membership.”
The exclusive Hiliner membership is available for a $1000 annual fee, which gives the Hiliner first opportunity when a fish over fifty pounds becomes available. “That’s the most popular membership that we’ve been getting calls for during the upcoming tournament dates,” said Homer. “While you only rent the striped bass under contract, you can do whatever you want with it during the photo session, including bringing the fish to a weigh station. So long as you return it intact, we don’t ask any questions.”
From a legal standpoint, the company has fully investigated all possibilities with the state and federal fishing regulators. While there are a lot of legal restrictions on the sale of striped bass, rental is something totally new.
“We really made sure we covered all the bases with this,” said Homer. “It’s environmentally friendly and good for the resource where two big stripers can service the needs of literally hundreds of fishermen with no waste and no catch and release mortality. The regulators love the idea and fishermen have already shown a lot of enthusiasm. It’s the future and it’s a win-win enterprise for everyone.”
For more information or to schedule an appointment, Rent-A-Bass can be contacted through the website at rentabass.com

beamie
04-01-2013, 10:00 AM
How much do you think he would pay someone for a 50+ so he can use it in pictures. It's not going to look good for too many days.

This is really bizarre but hey if it makes the guy a buck and people are strange enough to do it so be it......

Nebe
04-01-2013, 10:14 AM
April fools!!! LOL!!!
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

tysdad115
04-01-2013, 10:18 AM
I wonder if he'll have small fish available, I never seem to catch those. It gets tiring holding up only large fish. Will there be "stunt doubles" available? I dont exactly have a photo friendly appearance...so his ability to photo shop would be key.

PRBuzz
04-01-2013, 10:31 AM
I wonder if he'll have small fish available, I never seem to catch those. It gets tiring holding up only large fish. Will there be "stunt doubles" available? I dont exactly have a photo friendly appearance...so his ability to photo shop would be key.

I heard Ty is volunteering to stunt double?:biglaugh:

JohnnySaxatilis
04-01-2013, 10:37 AM
it would be interesting to know how many serious inquiries they got about this :rotf2:

Slipknot
04-01-2013, 11:07 AM
Good one Ed


Nebe, you spoilsport



I think you had Dennis help you with that Ed


where do I sign up?

Rockfish9
04-01-2013, 11:14 AM
after reading this... the words of P.T. Barnum come to mind...

MAKAI
04-01-2013, 11:25 AM
Funny stuff. I do know someone from years ago would change his clothes, tackle and background for pictures of the same fish. Just to be a legend in his own mind. C'mon man ! After all it's still just fishing.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

WESTPORTMAFIA
04-01-2013, 12:04 PM
While you only rent the striped bass under contract, you can do whatever you want with it during the photo session

lol

Rockport24
04-01-2013, 02:12 PM
This is awesome. They should also offer "social media marketing" services, where they craft a social media campaign to get your pictures disseminated to the biggest audience possible...

Matt D
04-01-2013, 02:12 PM
Affiliated with Bass Pro Shops? They've got a few in the tank that look like they'd go 30#'s.

Wife got me good a couple of April Fools ago. I was in bed having my first cup of coffee and she started screaming "Come here, there's a moose in the backyard!" I said sure there is, I ain't falling for that one. "No really!" she says. So I go out to the back door and there's a young cow moose standing there about 25 yards away.

I still haven't figured out how she got the moose to show up.

Spiderman
04-01-2013, 02:42 PM
That would work good for tourney's
As a matter of fact a fisherman down here on LI was accused of doing this as he won like 5 cash prize tournaments in a row.

FishNH
04-01-2013, 02:46 PM
Rent a Bass (http://rentabass.com/)

HugeDinghy
04-01-2013, 03:02 PM
shoot, up until a couple of years ago it was legal in RI to have a broad delivered to you like that...

Sgt Striper
04-01-2013, 03:45 PM
“An ever present problem with catching fish today is waiting for that text message or phone call so a fishing buddy can tell you where the striped bass are, when to go fishing, and what to use,” :rotf2::rotf2:

ProfessorM
04-01-2013, 07:59 PM
LOL. I got a plastic one on my wall if anyone wants to rent it. I get 10 bucks an foot.

Slipknot
04-01-2013, 08:25 PM
LOL. I got a plastic one on my wall if anyone wants to rent it. I get 10 bucks an foot.

ok Paul, I'll be over tomorrow with 10 different outfits and a camera, I'll bring the neighborhood kids also

Mike P
04-01-2013, 08:42 PM
Whenever I see something like this posted on April 1, my gut instinct is to roll the legs of my pants up.:rotf2:

stripernut
04-02-2013, 11:46 AM
Whenever I see something like this posted on April 1, my gut instinct is to roll the legs of my pants up.:rotf2:

Yup, treat every post made on April 1 as a lie and you'll be good. :jump1:

-sn