10 minute read
Tiktok fisher
Rylan Parrot shares equipment tips, season styles, and how he wound up catching pike in his underwear
victoria baht sports writer
Advertisement
Fishing is a pastime for a lot of people, and a hobby to enjoy with family and friends. It is used for an adventure and a way to escape reality. For Rylan Parrot, it is a great way to meet others, have fun, create funny Tik-Tok videos, and to beat provincial records. The Carillon did an interview with him to give you insight on his experience catching some crazy fish.
How long have you been fishing for and where did you get your passion from?
Parrot’s passion began when he was 10 years old. It all started on a school a trip where he noticed how cool the water fountain was in the middle of a lake. “Then instantly the thought of going fishing emerged in my head and I haven’t look back since.”
Your fishing series seems professional, fun, and like you are willing to risk a lot for this sport. Do you have any sponsor or workmanship/jobs that you have partnered with over the years?
Parrot has been lucky to meet so many people that love fishing just like he does. During his fishing experience, he has had the opportunity to partner with both FXR pro-fish and Cabela’s Canada. This gave him the opportunity to connect with many other fishermen, or as he would say, “diehard outdoorsman, and show my love of fishing on a greater scale!”
If there was one person you could thank for helping you to gain this much experience, who would it be?
It is simply impossible to thank one person. Parrot has met so many people in-person and virtually over the years of fishing who have grown his knowledge of fishing immensely. The best part of fishing and meeting new people is that there is always something to learn, and you can never stop learning. Whether it be a technique, a spot, species, or any other aspect, this is a sport that is and can be for everyone. Parrot has seen it himself and experienced it with others. Fishing is a sport that thousands of people have a passion for, and it has grown during the COVID-19 pandemic as it’s easy to distance while participating.
Now, there are two seasons of fishing: summer and winter. Which is your favourite season to fish and why?
The answer is summer fishing. The reasoning for this is pretty standard because, really, who likes to sit in negative 30-degree Celsius and drill never- ending ice holes? Even if it is rewarding at a point, you’re still fighting those nasty winds to catch a killer fish.
What are some simple supplies you would recommend to our readers to make sure you have for each season that make fishing fun and easy?
Start it off simple. For summer fishing, go to Cabela’s and
Yvess Bison Everybody’s favourite Tinder pic.
get a simple rod for around $20 with a nice pickle rig, night crawlers, and you are set for a good start. As a substitute, you can get a classis bobber. This is a bonus because you can sit back, watch the kids play, and when the bobber goes down, that’s your moment!
Winter fishing is a little tougher. First, you need an au-
ger to get through the ice, though you can go from electric to hand crank, depending on your budget. Once you have an auger you just use your rod with a jig head and a minnow, and you are set – or you can set up a tip up, which is commonly used for pike and bigger fish.
“The nice thing about fishing in Saskatchewan lakes is that they won’t break the bank. Once you get live bait on the hook you can sit back and relax, and they will do the work for you!”
What is one method of fishing you personally enjoy?
“I personally love to use big mackerel from Superstore with a big hook, and lay it just under the ice. The best part of using a tip up is that there is a flag attached. So, you wait around until that flag goes up in the air – then it’s game on!” Parrot’s go-to fishing method in the Saskatchewan winters is with two lines. One with a min-
now on your rod, then the second with that tip up in the shallower water to catch a crazy pike.
What is a funny story that you would like to share with our readers?
This past winter, Parrot created a crazy memory that went viral on social media. It involved drilling a hole that was about 15 feet wide in his ice shack where he could literally see the fish swimming right under. “At the end of the day I decided we should make a video of myself jumping in. I jumped into the freezing cold water cannonball style! While I was changing my clothes, I checked outside on my tip up and my flag was up. So, out of pure instinct, I jumped out the shack in my underwear and sprinted to the tip up, and caught a big pike!” Hours later Parrot and his buddy uploaded a video to Tik Tok where it received roughly 25 million views, and over 120 million views
– Rylan Parrot
on other social media platforms.
You have recently travelled to BC to catch some white sturgeon. Can you tell us about this fishing experience and what it is like to catch these enormous fish?
Parrot remembers watching television when he was young and seeing people catching these fish, hoping this would be him one day. One day in July, Parrot and his mom went out, and it was all he dreamed of. The two-day trip got them over 14 fish, each over seven feet long. The crazy part about these fish is that they can jump up to five feet in the air, and when you see fish jump out of the water, it truly makes you go “wow.” Parrot was lucky enough himself at one point to catch a 10-foot white sturgeon.
What are some species that you are currently on the hunt for?
One on his bucket list is to travel to the Yukon and catch a native arctic or a musky in the Great Lakes.
What is an ordinary species that you have caught in the Saskatchewan Lakes?
A brown bullhead that was over five inches, making a provincial record!
What is your ultimate favourite catch that you have made?
The best and favourite catch was the 10-foot Sturgeon on his BC trip. “The sheer power and wow factor of those fish will keep me coming back for more and more!”
If these crazy fun fishing stories do not make you want to go fishing, the Carillon does not know what will! Fishing is a great sport and hobby no matter where you are in Canada; whether you’re catching some walleye in the Saskatchewan lakes or catching huge white sturgeon in BC.
sept 30 - oct 6, 2021 sports carillonregina.com | the carillon |
13
Cash in on student rec fee with virtual options
Get active online by trying weight training bootcamps, yoga, pound, and more through URFit
hammad ali staff writer
Bruce Mars via Unsplash They look more focused on yoga than I’ve ever been on anything in my entire life.
It is that time of the year again. The leaves are changing colour, mornings and late nights are beginning to get cooler, and some of us have had to hunt down the places we stored away our winter gear back in spring – which is to say another gorgeous Saskatchewan summer is on its way out, and that also means a dearth of opportunities for outdoor activities. With everything that is going on in the world around us, it remains important to get some physical activity regularly. The really good news is that this year, University of Regina students will have more options for fitness and recreation classes at no extra cost. While there’s probably nothing that can beat the experience of being outdoors on a gorgeous, sunny day, that is not always an option due to the weather. However, as it gets substantially colder, it is still possible to get some exercise. It helps to remember that anything worth doing is worth doing poorly. The weather may not be ideal for being outside, but some light stretching and calisthenics indoors is still better than just sitting in one spot all day. If health and fitness is a goal, it is much better if we can do a little every day than hold out for that one perfect week when we go all out. Besides, there is no such thing as the perfect week anyway. So, we need to do something daily. Maybe some yoga, or bodyweight exercises. These days, YouTube has tutorials for pretty much any level. If, however, you are the kind of person that prefers some human interaction, and coaching,
and watching a YouTube video is just not the same, you have more options on campus this fall. In previous years, all students who were charged the rec fee had free access to the Fitness and Lifestyle Centre (FLC). In addition, they got a discounted rate on all the different fitness classes that Rec Services offers. This fall, as an experiment, all students who have been charged the rec fee will continue to have free access to the FLC and will also have access to a variety of fitness classes. Some of the classes available through this opportunity are yoga, spin, cardio and weight training bootcamps, and
even zumba and pound. More recently, a new class on Barre fusion has been added, as well as a class on social/ballroom dancing. As the URFit website mentions, these are just their land classes. There are also classes on AquaFit exercises that will be held at the swimming pool, for those of us more at home in the water. The most recent list of offerings and schedules are available through the URFit section of the Recreation Services page on the U of R’s website. Students should note that all classes being offered will still be shown to have a registration fee, and they need to create an account with their uregina.ca
email address in order to be eligible for the student discount mentioned. We got in touch with Jessica Lewgood, the Student Manager for URFit, to learn more about this brand-new opportunity. Lewgood mentioned that, for now, this is an experiment on providing all these classes for free. However, the student response so far has been overwhelmingly positive. This is also the first year this option is being made available to students, but given the response, it can certainly be hoped that it will be an ongoing opportunity. Masks will be required for all in-person classes, and physical distancing protocols will be maintained. There will also be more frequent cleaning and sanitation of the rooms. Lewgood mentioned that while most of the classes have been underway since late August, as long as there are open spots, students are able to register. Should a student not be sure if they want to commit for the full term, free drop-in passes for a class can be picked up from the KHS Client Services Desk to the right of the main KHS building entrance during weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.. It should be noted that drop-in passes are first come first serve, though some live-streamed options are available and can be accessed on the URFit website if you miss out on the pass option.
– Hammad Ali
