User:Hey harrigan

His love for fishing and the outdoors started as far back as he can remember. His first memories of fishing include those special moments spent fishing with his father and brother; a strong message that he still shares today with anglers across Canada.

The past time that his father introduced to him soon grew. What was just fun for most became a passion for Dave. There was not a day that passed that he did not go fishing or think of fishing. Many of his teachers would laugh when they asked Dave what he wanted to do when he grew up. He would simply reply, "Fish!" To Dave it was simple. He knew what he wanted to do. He just had to figure it out how he would go about doing it.

At age 13, it had seemed easy. He entered his first tournament and ended up winning four hundred dollars. After this there was no stopping Dave. He figured if he could make more money in one tournament than most of his friends made all summer, then all he would have to do is fish more tournaments. This worked for a while until he found out there were many good anglers out there that were willing to work just as hard as him. He would have to do more than just fish tournaments. That is when he started I.T.D. – Innovative Tackle Design. At age 15, he certainly got a lot of strange looks from tackle storeowners when he tried to sell them his lure, The Hawg Craw. With persistence it worked and they bought it, although there was still something missing. He wanted to share his love for the sport that consumed him. So, at age 17, Dave started writing a weekly column for the local newspaper. He loved being able to share with fellow anglers his discoveries, adventures and tips on the water. This kept Dave happy for a while.

At age 19, he found himself done school and if he was really going to fish full time, he had to start making some real money. He picked up all his gear, loaded a truck and hooked up his boat. That summer he entered every tournament he could. He spent the days fishing and slept in his truck at night. This all went well, however, in the late fall Dave realized in Canada you cannot fish all year. So he had to find an off-season job that would accommodate his passion in the summer. Most of these jobs had something to do with fishing. Then it happened.

At age 21, Dave approached a small but growing TV station, The New VR with a concept. He did not want to host a fishing show. He wanted to do something different, something bigger. He wanted to share his passion with more than just the average angler. He wanted to get more people fishing and help people enjoy the sport he loved so much. That is when Dave Mercer’s 60 Second Fishing Reel was born. This was a fast-paced, fun and energetic series of fishing tips that aired once weekly to all level of anglers from beginner to pro. Every week over eighty-eight thousand people tuned in to see what Dave would do next. Dave had finally found a way to express his passion and love for fishing to the masses. He quickly found what made him different from all the other TV anglers. It was his sense of humor and the crazy, fun things he would do that no one else would.

In an effort to spread his message to an even larger audience, Dave moved his show to the nationally broadcast Outdoor Life Network, During this move Dave changed the name of his show to Dave Mercer’s Facts of Fishing. His tips were now being seen over 250 times a week in every city across Canada. Dave continued his fun, outrageous and joking approach to fishing while still giving helpful tips to today's anglers.

Dave continues to host the Facts of Fishing tip series on the Outdoor Life Network, and is also featured on The Weather Network, ESPN Classic, TSN and Wild TV and it seems he has found his niche. He has also grown his company to include a series of Facts of Fishing seminars that he loves because he actually gets to meet his viewers and spend one on one time with fellow anglers.

On May 24th, 2005 Dave added another level to his company by launching The Facts of Fishing DVD Series Volume 1, exclusively at Bass Pro Shops. This was the start of record-breaking sales for his DVD Series and today continues to create crazier, wackier content with every new volume. In this same year Dave also started something that is very near and dear to his heart. He created a charity called Dave Mercer’s Casting for a Cure to benefit the nCanadian Cancer Society. This charity was created to honor the memory of his late mother, who, like so many others, lost her fight against cancer. This is something that filled a void in the angling community where anglers could compete in the tournaments they so love and at the same time, raise funds to help in the research and fight against cancer.

Dave enjoys working and fishing for a living. He enjoys producing the Facts of Fishing Tip Series and the Facts of Fishing DVD Series. He enjoys speaking at seminars all across Canada and fishing competitively every season. However, Dave, once again, started to get restless. He wanted to do more. On July 17th, 2007 Dave announced his brand new, much anticipated, half hour show called Dave Mercer’s Facts of Fishing THE SHOW. Dave took his fun, energetic, fast-paced form of edutainment and created an extended version of the show his fans have grown to love.

Among all this, Dave still finds time for competitive fishing. In January of 2005, Dave also set a new unofficial world record for the largest Tambaqui caught in the world!

There are many more chapters to be written about Dave Mercer’s fishing career. However, out of all his accomplishments, Dave still holds those mornings on the water with his family at the top of his list because, “That is what it is all about. Spending time in nature with the ones you love and if I can encourage one more person to take advantage of Canada’s great outdoors, then I feel all my work has been a success”.

Dave enjoys his time with "El Fishador" (Doug Harrison) on the weekends