Over the past few months, we at Savur Outdoors have been introducing you to some of our pro staff team members so you can see who is out there representing Savur Outdoors, maybe even in your neck of the woods. We figured what better way than with a fun little interview! This time, Cam Steele is in the hot seat and it might be a little bit of a longer introduction because...
Some of my earliest memories are of fishing so I have been fishing for a long time and I have been fishing from a kayak since the spring of 2015. I have worked in multiple industries (including the book industry, IT, a pet store, landscaping, youth ministry, and more), play bass guitar, and most importantly I'm a husband and relatively new father. I also host the Faith 'N FIsh'N Podcast where I interview anglers from all walks of life about their faith stories and fishing memories and I'm currently also helping out as chaplain for the Central Carolina Kayak Fishing tournament trail which means I get to build relationships and love on people! In addition to Savur Outdoors, the Faith 'N Fish'N Podcast and I represent and are supported by Get: Outdoors Pedal and Paddle, Jade's Jigs lead free tackle, Mr. B Lure Company, and Atollas. Ok, it didn't end up being as long as I thought so let's dive into this interview!
Savur Outdoors: How long have you been fishing?
Cam Steele: As long as I can remember. I started in Grandpa Steele's creek when I was around 3 or 4, with little balls of loaf bread on a bamboo cane pole and have been hooked ever since.
SO: What is your earliest fishing memory?
CS: There may be memories of fishing I have that predates this, but the one that sticks out was at one of the farm ponds my dad had permission to fish at. We were soaking nightcrawlers under bobbers, and my dad hooked a fish. He handed the rod to me, and I was so excited that when I tried to reel, I reeled backwards so I handed the rod back to him and told him I couldn't do it. He reeled in this catfish and I remember looking down this fish's mouth just mesmerized at big this thing was, and I vaguely heard my dad tell me how big it was. Now fishermen are known for their tall tales, but to this day, I swear I heard my dad say 40 pounds. So the next Sunday, I was going around church telling people that I caught a 40 pound catfish, leaving my dad to go around behind me and tell people that it was 4 and not 40 pounds. I don't remember how old I was, young enough to sit on some of the older people's laps at church, so probably 4 or 5.
SO: Who's your fishing hero?
CS: If I have to pick someone I guess I'm going to have to go with my dad. That man can outfish me any day with his Zebco 33 and white curly tail grub. Last time we went he beat me in most fish, most species, and biggest fish!
SO: When was the last time you fun-fished, and what did you fish for?
CS: I'm not huge into tournaments yet, so you would think that every fishing outing would be "fun-fishing" for me, but what I have found is that when I only get to go fishing once a month or once every month and a half, I get so caught up in creating content that I don't stop to just enjoy myself as often. That being said, the last time I put content creation on hold and fished in the moment was this summer. My nephew was introduced to fishing through one of the nature TV shows he enjoys, and wanted to go. So I, being the fisherman in the family, got to be the one to take him. We kept it simple, just like my dad did with me, and fished a little piece of nightcrawler under a bobber for little sunfish. He ended up catching five fish on five casts in fifteen minutes and then wanted to go play, but he was so excited about it, he wanted to go fishing the next morning too. Seeing the look on his face when he reeled up his first fish is something I'll remember for the rest of my life!
SO: What's your home body of water?
CS: In terms of bodies of water that you'll recognize, I have fished Shearon Harris a few times and it is usually really good to me. I have spent the most time fishing Lake Crabtree and have caught a lot of fish there.
SO: What's your favorite Savur Outdoors product?
CS: As excited as I was about the gear retrievers and as bad as I want to put them on everything I own, my FAVORITE product is still the rod retrievers. I only say that because they have saved my clumsy self a LOT of money!
SO: Tell us your lost rod/bow/gear story.
CS: Like I said, I'm clumsy, I can't hide it so I don't even try, but I'm also lucky. Sometimes. The time I decided I needed Savur devices was one of the luckier fishing stories I have. I was fishing Lake Crabtree and went back into the creek for a while. I had just bought a brand new St. Croix Mojo Bass rod and was excited to use it. I put my Daiwa Tatula 100 on it, so even before line and lure we're talking a $250 setup. Now, something you need to know about Lake Crabtree and Crabtree Creek is that at the clearest I've ever seen it, it's got 3 inches of visibility. I was back in the creek fishing and got on a pattern, wouldn't you know it, it wasn't tied on my new rod, but I was catching fish so I was ok with it. On my way back towards the main lake, I got my lure hung so I paddled over to the tree to free it. When I got it free I looked over to my side and saw that one of the sticks sticking up out of the water had guides on it, so I reached over to pull it in, wondering what kind of rod and reel it was and what kind of shape it was, and pulled in my brand new St. Croix Mojo Bass rod. Apparently when I paddled under a tree earlier in the day it had pulled it out of my crate's rod holder and I didn't even know it! Now I knew that kind of luck wouldn't hold out, so I ordered my first Savur device that night!
SO: What song do you typically listen to on the way to the water?
CS: Usually I'm listening to podcasts, but if I ever need to get pumped up, Legendary by Skillet will 100% do the trick!
SO: What do you do when you aren't fishing?
CS: I'm a maintenance and IT guy at the local indie bookstore here in Raleigh, Quail Ridge Books, I host the Faith 'N Fish'N Podcast, I talk about fishing and wish I was fishing, I mow the yard, but most importantly, I am a husband and a father!
SO: Coffee or soda?
CS: Soda. Specifically Pepsi or Cheerwine.
SO: What's your favorite TV show of all time?
CS: Frasier. That witty humor gets me every time.
SO: What's food is your guilty pleasure?
CS: Anything covered in gravy. Or deep fried. Deep fried meat covered in gravy on a biscuit. Now we're talking!
SO: What is your hidden or surprising talent?
CS: I'm sickeningly good at customer service, but that's boring and that's work...I'm not as good as I used to be just because I haven't used it as much as I used to, but I've always had a knack for impressions and accents. Some of my better impressions are Shaggy from Scooby Doo, Mr. T., a lot of obscure characters from cartoons of my childhood, and some of my better accents, other than eastern NC of course, are Russian, Irish, and a few others.
You can keep up with the Faith 'N Fish'N Podcast and with me here! Be sure to follow Savur Outdoors and subscribe to the blog to see what comes next!
