Pro Staff Profiles: Jake LaPine

Power-Pole wants you to get to know some of the people behind the Power-Pole brand that make our products some of the most trusted in the industry. We will regularly feature members of the Power-Pole pro staff, which includes some of the biggest names in competitive fishing and outdoors entertainment. Don’t forget to follow along with them on their social media channels. 

This week’s featured Power-Pole pro staff member:

Jake LaPine 

Hometown: Oshkosh, WI

Home water: Lake Winnebago

Describe your life as an angler/outdoorsman:  I’ve had the fishing “bug” ever since I can remember.  Growing up, I watched my dad compete in tournaments and was fortunate to spend a ton of time fishing and traveling along with him to those tournaments.  I remember counting down the days until I turned 12 so I could finally compete in the Masters Walleye Circuit with my dad. There was no turning back after that.  I’ve been competing in tournaments for 21 years now and feel very blessed to call fishing a huge part of my life.  As much as I love spending time in the boat, I also look forward to time spent in the woods deer hunting or in the duck blind with my two Labs (Kal & Drifter).

Preferred Species to Target: Walleye

Favorite Fishing Technique: Power dishing jigs and hard-baits with a spinning rod in hand.

First Fishing Memory:  Fishing bluegill with my dad, brother, and our dog, Rocky.  Rocky was still a pup and I remember tossing a small bluegill back into the water and his natural instinct as a lab took over. He didn’t hesitate to jump in after it.  We all had a good laugh and that memory is one that I’ll never forget.

Favorite ‘Personal Best’ Fish:  Catching a 13.4Lb walleye on a snowy November day on Little Bay de Noc.

Favorite Fishing Moment:  Second day of the Masters Walleye Circuit tournament on Lake Winnebago.  We went into the day with a slim chance to win but had a positive attitude knowing the bite was extremely tough and that we could make it happen if we found the right pod of active fish.  We were on spot 5 or 6 with no fish and only 3.5 hours remaining before we finally landed on them.  In less than two hours, we managed to pull the biggest weight of the tournament and big fish of the tournament, allowing us to come from behind and win the event.  This isn’t just my favorite moment because it was a tournament win, it was my favorite because any time I’m fishing in tough conditions it’s a reminder to keep grinding because everything can change in an instant.

Pro Staff Since: 2013

Best part of owning a Power-Pole:  It’s always reliable and as a Walleye Angler it’s awesome to not only utilize as a shallow water anchor but also as a drift/trolling speed management tool with the quick addition of the drift paddle. The addition of poles to my duck boat has made positioning and anchoring the duck boat an effortless task. It’s hard to pick just one so I would sum it up as reliability and versatility.

Why are you an effective ambassador for Power-Pole?  I have a passion for fishing, producing media content, and love to interact with and teach others.  When I installed my first Power-Pole on a walleye boat it was crazy how many asked, “what the heck is that thing on the boat”.  It never gets old explaining the functionality of the pole and hitting the down button on the remote while talking at the boat ramp or on the water and seeing their reaction.  Photography and Videography have been a passion of mine for a long time and I enjoy using what I’ve learned over the years to produce unique and high-quality content as a promotional aid.  As much as I enjoy the media content/social media promotion side of things; sales and hands-on demonstration with anglers and the public is what I enjoy the most.  I owned a Sporting Goods Retail store for 5 years and love interacting with people and understand the importance of customer service and how selling a quality product leads to not just a “one-time” sale but a loyal customer for life.  That’s what it’s all about for me…I believe in the product, the company, the customer service and the continued innovation so it makes it easy to promote and represent the Power-Pole lineup of products with pride.  I’ve enjoyed watching the Power-Pole family of customers grow by leaps and bounds over the years.  The addition of the Charge brings a whole new level of excitement and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for Power-Pole and the quest for Total Boat Control!

How to follow: 
Instagram: Jjlapine7 (Jake LaPine) 
Facebook: Jake LaPine