NAIFC

Grete Baker

“12-year-old is already a tournament-tested ice angler”

Grete “Boo” Baker is a 12-year-old girl with a passion for Nancy Drew video games and a goal — to be the youngest person to win a North American Ice Fishing Circuit tournament.

The Cannon Falls girl has been fishing them since she was six, and has beaten her share of older anglers. But she has yet to win an event, and that’s her dream. She will fish in a national tournament at Rhinelander, Wis., in December and in the tournament at Lake Byllesby near Cannon Falls Jan. 18.

She’s a fishing fireball, good enough that she helps her dad, Jack Baker, circuit president, at seminars. On Saturday, they were at Gander Mountain in Rochester where Grete took some time out to talk.

What about ice fishing appeals to you?

“I guess I really like to because I’m a girl, and I want to get younger children into the fishing thing.”

What’s it like being one of the few women on the ice?

“Most people think ice fishing is for guys, it’s a guys’ sport. I’m a younger female who is beating the guys.”

Do older people find it hard to ask you questions?

“Yes, they do. I guess I’m smaller, so they think I don’t know as much.”

Do your friends find this odd?

“Not really. They are so used to hearing about me going fishing. My friends think it’s so cool that I can do it. When I come back, they say, like, ‘Oh, how did it go? Do you think you could bring me fishing?’”

Do you have all your own gear?

“I have my own gray suit, I have my own bunny boots. I have my own auger. I have a Vexilar. I have my own fishing rods. I have my own one-man Clam (Shell). The ice auger, they cut down.”

What’s your favorite jig color?

“I like blue or white.”

What’s the best bait?

“I would say wax worms or plastic. I think I use mostly Nuggies.”

Your favorite line?

“I think P-Line.”

How do you fish?

“I will think of a song in my head and jig to the beat of the song. There is this one song from Alladin. I don’t know what song it is.”

Does rap work?

“I don’t know. It depends on how the fish are feeling. I personally don’t like rap.”

What’s your favorite jigging song?

“‘I’m a minnow.’ It’s one my dad and my younger sister, Carrin, made up.”

How does it go?

“I’m a minnow, I’m a minnow and you’re not like me. I have a dorsal fin, I have pectoral fins, I even have a fin on my heinie.

“I’m a minnow, I’m a minnow and you’re not like me. Bait shop puts me up for sale, there’s no place to hide in the pail. When the scooper comes, I begin to wail.

“I’m a minnow, I’m a minnow, I’m a minnow and you’re not like me.”

What’s it like in tournaments? Do you feel pressure?

“You do feel the pressure, ah, a little. I guess I don’t think of pressure a lot.’

How about some tips for young people who are thinking about getting into ice fishing.

“I would say, no matter how cold it is, keep on trying. Even I have those days when I will not catch fish the whole entire day. Other days, I’ll catch a lot. Try things and don’t give up. Just have fun.”

Is there anything else you’d like to tell other children?

“If you don’t try, you’ll never know.”

By John Weiss
Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN