This is a tough question.......I will answer it 2 ways.......since I started striper fishing over 10 years ago there are 2 people I have learned quite a bit from (whether they know it or not). When I first started fishing stripers......believe me when I tell you I was a complete boob! (Now just a partial boob
) I could not catch a striper to save my life....fished a whole season before I got even 1, and the next season I got my first keeper! I bought and read everything I could find and was a ravenous reader for all things striper fishing...all books and magazines I could get! I fished the backside of the Cape quite a bit and one of the people I read quite a bit of at the time was a guy who used to write the "Insiders Report" for the Cape Outer Beaches. His name is Steve Shiraka (We all know him as Flaptail
). I used to go crazy waiting for each months new issue to come out so I could learn more. Not too long afterwards I was fortunate enough to come here to S-B and was even more fortunate to actually meet Steve and get to know him a bit....well enough to call him a friend! Steve has always been very forthcoming with information, never afraid to share his knowledge, and I still catch him speaking when I can....I never fail to learn something new from Flaptail! I have also been fortunate enough to fish with Steve a few times......the guy can flat-out fish!
The other guy was Steve Papows.......I know Steve well enough......I first met him at an MSBA show at Cordage Park back in the day! He was doing a seminar on plug fishing and being that I could do nothing more with a plug than disturb the water....I thought I would see his seminar! He changed the way I fished, made me curious about different plugs and taught me about retrieve speeds, reading the water and structure.....all factors which at the time.....I was overlooking!
I enjoyed Steve's first seminar so much that I booked him again for an MSBA meeting when I became the entertainment chair! A few years ago I met him at RISSA, introduced myself and told him this story, and blamed him for making me the fishing addicted, plug building mess I am today! He bought some of my lures and he loved them.......now thats full circle I guess?
These 2 guys are guys I respect and thank for any success I may have fishing! They took the time to help and I will never forget that!