Comments from the Camera Guy
Waiting at the launch
So you want to know what life is like behind the lens? Just imagine what it would be like to travel with your favorite rock band.....Lear jets, decked out tour bus and five star hotels!!! That's right....It's just like that....only a little different. Our jets are powered by an outboard engine, the tour bus has four wheel drive (sometimes) and five star hotels might be a couch in the living room. But hey, you say tomato I say tomatoe right?
My goal here is to give you an inside look at some things that I see and do living the life! Maybe some of it makes the dvd and you can live it with me, and maybe, on occasion, I forgot to hit record and have to write about it instead. What!....the record button isn't that big and sometimes it's hard to push....don't worry Brad, I didn't get the hook set but I got that awesome jump....I think! Either way I will try my best to entertain and inform.
We were on a trip this summer and had a not so good day. Fished hard all day and into the night with not much to show for it other than a few follows. So a bit stressed and disappointed we call it a day and head off to the access. When we arrive I noticed another rig had beaten us to the dock. No big deal right? Of course not. Other than he was by himself. We all know that feeling....Great, he's all alone , gonna tie up the entire dock with his boat, won't be able to back a trailer up to save his sole...blah, blah, blah. So as I walk up to get the truck I notice that he's already got the trailer backed in the water......sweet!!! We'll be out in no time!! So I pull around, get out, put the tail gate down and hop back in the truck. Awesome!! He's already running the boat onto the trailer!! This guy is one of the good ones! While I wait I happen to get a text. So I reach down, grab my phone, check my text and look back up to notice something is missing. What am I not seeing that I should be? Oh yea....the truck I am waiting for is gone!! WHAT!!! I get out and walk past the trees, obstructing my full view of the landing, and sure enough I found the truck I was waiting for....SINKING INTO THE LAKE RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE SINGLE LANE ACCESS I NEED TO USE TO GET OFF THE LAKE!!! I see the guy on the end of the dock taking his close off saying to himself “I don't think this is good.” The guy jumps in the water and tries opening the drivers door. I'm thinking to myself “This guy really doesn't think he is gonna drive this thing outta here does he?” No luck, door won't open, already too much water pressure against it. As I am standing helpless on the dock thinking “Holy froley, this truck guys truck really is sinking and there is nothing I can do to stop it” the guy asks me to get him something to break the window with. Ok....what for? He says that he needs to get his cell phone so he can call his wife and let her know what happened to her truck! Her truck!? Ouch!!! This is gonna be one of those, not so fun, phone calls. So i find him a nice big rock and he tosses it at the window, it bounces off, goes in the water and right onto one of his toes!! Wow, this cannot be happening. I go to the truck, get him a tire iron and advise him to give that window a good whipping. All of the sudden the window pops and the vehicle instantly goes the rest of the way to the bottom. Yep, your phone is now 8 feet down completely submerged. Not a chance this phone is ever gonna work again. Well, I guess they have these new waterproof phones that really are waterproof. And I know this because I watched him go down, get the phone, flip it open and start making calls. So the gentleman calls a wrecker service lets them know what had happened and gets them on the way. Then the uncomfortable phone call. The one to the wife. The actual owner of this nice, newer, not so waterproof truck. This guy looks at me and says “Any chance that you want to call her?” Hell yea!! I'll call her....NOT!!! What are you nuts!! That's gonna be like going into a cage with a lion that hasn't eaten in 2 weeks!! Sorry dude. Not this time, but I can give you a hug afterward if you want? He makes the call and, from what I could hear at about 20 feet, I think she took it pretty well. After he told us thanks for helping and he was ok, the wrecker showed up. So we made the decision to run over to the other access and pull out there. On the way home we decided to stop at the access and see how things were going. Well they had the truck, trailer and boat all out. And according to what the wife was yelling, make sure the truck is always in park and the doors unlocked the next time you go to pull out and you could avoid this whole situation!!
So there you have it. Just one of the many interesting and enjoyable situations I find myself in living life behind the lens!!
And no....the record button did not get pushed on this one. Maybe next time.
Remember, keep a clean lens and extra batteries.
The Cameraman