Mike Iaconelli 2024

slapnuts reply :

I was reading a article in field and Stream about Mike Iaconelli. It talked about how people disliked him and think he is a punk. What are your guys opinion on him?

clooney reply :

He is hard to read just seeing him on t.v. occasionally. I know he is very passionate about the sport of bass fishing. His antics on the other hand I'm not quite sure about. I personally haven't decided if he is funny or just trying to be!? He is definitely a character! But overall, I like him. He adds a little life to the sport.....Who did they say didn't like him in the article? Other pros or the public?

dodgeguy reply :

i think he's severely hyper!!!i don't see anything wrong with him going crazy when he catches fish.i know i get excited when i get a big one.besides,kids like him!!!

slapnuts reply :

I like him he just needs to not get so hyper when he gets a fish.

clooney reply :

Who thinks he is a punk? What did it say in the article?

Fl._Flippin_Fool reply :

He is just not like the norm so he stands out. Not a bad PR move if ya ask me, the more attention you get in this sport the better the Backing. Tim Horton is another example, not as loud as Mike but he looks nothing like your Pro Bass Angler Norm, so he draws attention. Its not hurting the sport or anyone else so to each his own. Alot of the complaints come from people who are in the shadow of the ones they complain about.

slapnuts reply :

The article talked about Mike and his syle pretty but the had a part where they had post from a chat board about Mike and thats where they were really dising Mike.

Fl._Flippin_Fool reply :

well, I am sure Mike worries about those winers as he polishes his BMC trophy. :

clooney reply :

How true...flippin!

Larry_Landgren reply :

when your a pro bass fisherman it's all about exposure and he does a great job at it. A few of my buddies have been his non boater and they say he is a very cool guy. yeah he is hyper and screams alot but oh well his sponsors sure don't mind one bit now do they .

Nick.Culver reply :

Read my mind Larry! Think about it. How offen do you you hear other anglers give a scream or ay their going Ike on you? Quite offen! So that's extra publicity. He's in the picture even when he's not in the finals. It's great, if you ask me. A few kids at school actually know who he and Gerald Swindle are. They are changing the face of the sport. We need more of them. They have the charisma the sport needs.

BCAlbin reply :

I think Mike Iaconelli is just a typical Gen-Xer who happens to be in to bass fishing. Mike is who he is whether he's working on a loading dock, behind a computer, at a skate shop or on a lake. Just watch the X Games some time and you will see where he's coming from. He's obviously a great angler. He reminds me of my younger brother, who is in his late 20's. I think people who have a problem with him probably have the concept of the stereotypical bass angler being from a Bill Dance mold, a well mannered, middle aged, southern gentleman. I grew up watching Bill Dance and I think he's great but I like Ike too. There's room for everybody. Bass Fishing...It's Not Just for Bubba Anymore.

VTbasskid16 reply :

You can twist an article any way you want.

I really like him. He's funny and energetic.

Its great to see a pro win the BMC from far north as New Jersey! I also like how he says feet instead of foot.

Cool guy, check his site out: It was newly readone and looks great.

http://www.mikeiaconelli.com/

Gatorbassman reply :

I have had the great opportunity to talk to Ike on two separate occasions. Last year at the FLW Championship in Alabama, and a couple of weeks ago during the BASS Tourney at Clark's Hill. Both times he took the time to stop what he was doing and listen to my questions and he gave great feedback. This wasn't just for a few seconds either. We talked for several minutes. He is a wealth of knowledge. If you want to learn how to power fish, he is one of the best and more than willing to share everything he knows. He is very down to earth, despite his "tweaked out" personality. Anyone who says he is a punk hasn't attempted to sit down and just talk to him. He seems like someone who can't bottle up his emotion. Just imagine if every fish you catch during a tournament was worth 10,000 to 100,000 dollars. How would you respond? The one thing I am glad of is that he had a new flame shirt made for him. That old one was getting real ratty.

tie1on reply :

I"ve never met Mike but just watching him on tv and reading things he's wrote you can tell that hes a very intelligent fisherman.Any tournament I've ever seen him in he's always has one of the biggest fish of the tournament.I think if some people could just look past the screaming they would see that too.And maybe some of them are jealous because he does have so much fun.

abelfisher reply :

I think he is good for the sport. I also think Bill Dance is good for the sport.. It's great to see the different type of personalities in the sport these days.

GamblerFL reply :

I like him. I think he adds a little to the tournaments. Plus doing what he does works well. Just remember love him or hate him, this thread is about him. And thats why it works for him.....

Just to add a little side note, dont forget he is also a very good fisherman.

5bass reply :

I agree,I had a conversation with Ike this past October on Smith Mtn after the Open.He signed an auto for my little brother and we started "chewin' the fat" about fishing and he was really a down to earth guy.It seemed like he asked more questions than I did.His "fame" was not bigger than who he really was and he took time to talk with whoever approached him with questions or to get a picture or autograph.I like Ike personally,BASS needs a few more like him.

Gatorbassman reply :

Ike is my inspiration. It was just a few years ago he was winning Federation Tournaments out of a 12ft jon boat. I am fishing them from a 14ft one. Go to his web site and read his story and see the pictures of his boat. It's pretty neat.

BuckeyeRon30 reply :

I had the opportunity to talk with IKE at bassmaster university in cleveland last week. I will tell you this he was the most down to earth pro at the seminar. I spent 20mins talking with him during a break and he took the time to look me square in the eye, listen to what I was saying and just talk like a fishing buddy. I was really impressed by him. And his seminar was one of the best I have ever seen, you could tell he actually put some time and thought into in unlike some other guys that just stood and talked about very little.

Nick_Barr reply :

i think he is just like us but he just gets more excited when he catches a fish.

BuckeyeRon30 reply :

that is pretty accurate, how he explained it during the seminar is this. "how excited would you get if you dreamed for 15 years about catching a big bass in a big tournament and then while out fishing on a boat it finally happens. YEOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!

that is why he said he yells, genuine excitement.

the guy is great for the sport, he is well spoken educated and extremely personable.

I dont thing there was a person in the room that was not impressed.

Wormy reply :

I think he has introduced a new look and attitude to the sport that was bound to happen anyway. The guy knows his fishing and I hand it to him for that. I admire anyone who starts out with nothing and works there way to the top.

GamblerFL reply :

Quote
Ike is my inspiration. It was just a few years ago he was winning Federation Tournaments out of a 12ft jon boat. I am fishing them from a 14ft one. Go to his web site and read his story and see the pictures of his boat. It's pretty neat.

I couldnt find that write up on his site. What site are you going to?

Gatorbassman reply :

I don't have any time to find it rite now but give me a few days and I will send you a message. The bass are bedding hard this week and I will not be around my computer. I know you understand.

Nick reply :

I know just one Ike story this year. At the FLW event day 1 at Toho, he was disqualified for being late to weigh in. He misjudged the lock through time. He ranted to his co-angler and then threatened to pull out of the event. Not once did he take reaponsibility for his actions, and never apoligized to his co-angler. Both Ike and his co-angler had fish to weigh in. but arrived about 12 minutes late. I don't dislike him, but I think he needs to grow up.

Gatorbassman reply :

Here are a couple of links that tell a little about Mike's early histroy.

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/pro_bass_fishing_career.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/michael_Iaconelli.html

This used to be the link but they took it off his web sight. www.mikeiaconelli.com/biography.htm

It should be in his new book coming out in May.

John Cullum reply :

Whether he's good for the sport or not I'm not sure. What he is thou is a marketing machine. If he was like everyone else this thread wouldn't have been started. People talk about him. Whether it is good or bad theres always a buzz about the "IKE".

I think what seperates him from everyone else is he's has the cockeyness/swager about him that may turn alot of people off. But he more than backs that cockyness up on the water. He's never to far down on the list for Angler of the Year and seems to be in the Top 5 several times a year.

I had lunch with him and his wife at the time in Chicago back in 2000. He explained to me and my tourney partner what he had to do to get to where he was today. He said he borrowed money from anyone and everyone he could. He was dead broke when he made thru the Federation Finals. He didn't even have a truck or boat payment to make and he was still in the red. We talkked for around an hour or and I left with a better understanding of the Federation and maybe of life.

He put every thing on the line to follow his dream.

The guys paided his dues and he is reeping the benifits bigtime. It's good to see a Federation guy have success on the tour. He's not my favorite angler out there but he is one that I follow.

Cephkiller reply :

I really think it is all a big self-promotion ploy, but it sure works! I can't say I would be above such tactics if it brought me the exposure and all the dollars that entails. I don't like all the antics on a personal level, but I understand the business savvy behind them.

BTW, let's have an informal poll. Was Ike's self-DQ at the last BMC intentional or not? It sure got him a lot of exposure in an event in which he had virtually no chance of finishing well.

GamblerFL reply :

Quote
Here are a couple of links that tell a little about Mike's early histroy.
http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/pro_bass_fishing_career.html

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing/michael_Iaconelli.html

This used to be the link but they took it off his web sight. www.mikeiaconelli.com/biography.htm

It should be in his new book coming out in May.

Thank you for the links. There are only two things you need to know about Iaconelli to have the answer to this thread....

Iaconelli's Resume...

Education: Bachelor Degree in Advertising/Public Relations, Rowan University, 1996, graduated summa cum laude

Occupation: Professional angler and promoter

Just incase someone didnt know...

Summa cum Laude: with highest honor; with the highest academic distinction; "a summa cum laude graduate" adv : with highest honor; "he graduated summa cum laude"

Boo reply :

Just finished watching Mike act like a kid who has ADD on ESPN! I think he's a great fisherman and has personality. Seems like nice guy and brings excitement to the sport, though the yelling sometimes gets on my nerves.

Dex202 reply :

I've got to say the man knows what his doing. Several years of school in Marketing are paying off. All the jumping around I could do without but, every fish caught is more $ in the bank.

The only thing I didn't like was back the year he won the National Federation. Fishing the BASS Trail for two years as a pro (didn't fare out too well) so he made the state Fed team. There was a big uproar that year about pros fishing in the Federation. Anybody remember that? Pro's fishing against the average Joe. I personally do care about that, but what I didn't like was the way BASS covered the story. Kid from nowhere. Cindarella story! Bunk! Just a bunch of hype.

papadew reply :

I'm pretty much of an old f**t who's lost most of my enthusiasom about most everything. Wish I could get a transfusion of Mike's enthusiasom. I remember a few years back when Fish Fishburn was thought to be over the top. Look where it got HIM! Not to shabby. If you don't toot your own horn and say look at me, then you might miss getting selected for something great. MY .02. Papa

lookin4lunkers reply :

Hey guys I'm new to the forums but not to fishing. Just wanted to say I met Mike a couple of nights in a row when he was fishing the elite 50 on lake dardnelle last year. I'm a policeman and at about two in the morning I usually have coffee. Mike was at our local waffle House both nights. I talked with him for quite a while and he treated me like I was his long lost brother. I'm sure the fact that I was in uniform helped, but he seemed to be a real nice guy.And we know he can fish.

tritonman reply :

Personally, I think he is doing a great job for our sport. With his excitement, he is drawing in the younger people to this sport.

Rattlinrogue reply :

At first, I didn't like his antics,but he grows on you.I think he just loves what he's doing.He does seem to add some spark to the sport!

cedar1 reply :

[quote author=Cephkiller

BTW, let's have an informal poll. Was Ike's self-DQ at the last BMC intentional or not? It sure got him a lot of exposure in an event in which he had virtually no chance of finishing well.

chefxian reply :

He is a good fisherman but he is lame. All the yelling give me a break. Next time I catch a 2 pounds bass in a club tourney Ill be sure to do the Heisman

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Mike Iaconelli 2024

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