2006 BASSMASTER ELITE SERIES GAINS ITS FIRST ANGLER

Skeet Reese, Angler and Businessman, Registers for Season
CELEBRATION, Fla. - In September, Skeet Reese of Auburn, Calif., made
history by becoming the first professional angler to register for the
Bassmaster Elite Series, an 11-event competition that will award nearly
$7.5 million in cash and merchandise.

Reese, 36, didn't know he was going to be the first. He was just
thinking sensibly. "I knew the deadline was coming and wanted to get my
deposits in," he said. "My intent is to fish BASS, without a doubt.
That's where I created my livelihood and saw my career blossom."

The six-time Bassmaster Classic qualifier has earned nearly $600,000 on
the BASS circuit since he entered in 1997. Today, his branding includes
major endemic sponsors Lucky Craft Lures, Champion Boats, Mercury
Marine, Terminator Lures and Berkley.

Now, four months before he fishes the Bassmaster Classic on Lake
Tohopekaliga in Kissimmee, Fla. and five months before beginning the
Bassmaster Elite Series, Reese is deep in preparation. He's meeting with
sponsors to secure a wrap on his boat and truck, researching lakes he
will fish and - like friends Marty Stone and Gerald Swindle - seizing
media opportunities to promote himself and his brand among what will be
a smaller group of the world's most premier anglers.

"We take advantage of every bit of media so we can expose ourselves to
other potential sponsors," Reese said. "Sometimes we're criticized for
being on TV too much but we're doing our jobs and too many anglers don't
see the business standpoint of fishing."

Indeed, Reese is more than an angler. He's a family man and business
entrepreneur and consciously juggles those roles with his fishing. It's
not uncommon for Reese to conduct a media interview with a newspaper
like the Wall Street Journal and then break away to compliment his
2-year-old daughter on her Halloween costume ("LeaMarie is a snow
angel," he says proudly.) He takes his wife Kim and daughter on the road
about two weeks each season, just enough time before they get tired of
traveling. He's also regular on the ESPN2 show Bass Tech. One would
imagine that Reese doesn't support an expanded Elite Series schedule,
but ironically, he does.

"I'm a big fan of the expanded Elite Series schedule," Reese said. "We
thrive on competition and that's what drives us. Fishing three months of
out the year doesn't quite cut it."

Reese says he "understands and respects" the major changes BASS has
implemented for the 2006 season, but isn't surprised that others don't
agree. Though change can be frightening, Reese is turning it into his
most valuable tool in his tackle box. "I believe the things you struggle
with the most are the things that make you grow the most."

BASS is the worldwide authority on bass fishing, sanctioning more than
20,000 events through the BASS Federation annually.
Guided by its mission to serve all fishing fans, BASS sets the standard
for credibility, professionalism, sportsmanship and conservation, as it
has for nearly 40 years.

BASS stages bass fishing tournaments for every skill level and
culminates with the Bassmaster Classic. Through its clubs, youth
programs, aquatic resource advocacy, magazine publishing and multimedia
platforms, BASS offers the industry's widest array of services and
support to its nearly 550,000 members. The organization is headquartered
in Celebration, Fla.