Many folks who have fished with us since we acquired the Underdog have asked, “Where does the name come from?”. Well, as you will see, that name is at the root of what drives us to continually provide the best Lake Michigan charter fishing experience possible.
A Charter Fishing Dream
Growing up fishing on the Great Lakes, I always had a dream that I would someday be able to show others how much fun this big lake salmon and trout fishing really is. After many years of experience on Lake Superior and Lake Michigan, I finally took the leap in 2009 and started Slam Dunk Sport Fishing Charters LLC.
I had made a few friends along the way that would help me. We shared a lot of knowledge between us, and hundreds of years of combined experience. Additionally, we all had the same drive toward becoming successful.
We were the underdogs. In other words, not being natives of the small town of Kewaunee, we were coming in as outsiders. We were trying to establish ourselves in what was already a flooded market. Also, although we had many years of experience fishing Lake Michigan, it didn’t measure up to what some of the old-timers had.
Beginnings of Success
During the first few years, I looked around and realized I was putting in more work than anyone. I was doing things that only I was willing to do to continue to improve. That improvement came not only in the results of fishing itself, but in the overall experience we provided our customers.
All of the extra effort started paying off: The extra time spent analyzing, preparing, planning for each and every charter trip. In addition, the extra time spent making sure the boat and equipment was always clean, maintained, and ready to go. Also, the extra time spent during the offseason reflecting on past experience, learning, researching, refining every small detail.
All of the above is what started to set us apart and help us build our own niche in what was, as mentioned above, an already flooded market.
Continued Success – Lake Michigan Salmon Beware
You are only a success at the moment you perform a successful act. Then, you have to do it again. -Phil Jackson
With a name like Slam Dunk Fishing Charters, it may be no surprise that we would use a quote from Phil Jackson to explain our continued drive toward success. This quote really sums up our philosophy each and every day. We continue to have the underdog mentality, as we are never satisfied and always pushing to improve. When you step on board our boat, it does not matter what we did yesterday. What matters is what we will do today.
It does not matter if, according to ‘dock-talk’, the “fishing is tough”. It does not matter if the weather and conditions on Lake Michigan aren’t set up perfectly for us. Since we know that our customers only get to experience this once a year, or maybe even once in a lifetime, we are going to go out there and perform at the highest level, every day, for every customer.
In conclusion, our underdog mentality is the basis for everything we do. This is the notion that we’ve never reached our peak. We’re never done improving the experience we provide to our customers. We’re never going to sit back and be comfortable that “this is good enough”. With that, we’d like to invite you to join us for a fun day of fishing on Lake Michigan. Book your fishing charter now and experience the thrill of landing some hard fighting Lake Michigan salmon and trout!