Always Be Prepared

from page 15 to save someone else (or perhaps yourself) there’s really no substitute. Get one. Or a couple. Put them where you can get them in a hurry if needed. Crazy things happen and a person with an arterial bleed needs help real fast. Quick clotting hemostatic gauze is another important item to have. When things go bad and help is a half-hour away, you better have some tools in the toolbox.

I keep some heavy-duty pliers and wire cutters handy. These live in the driver’s side rear door pocket of my truck. Notice that I keep this stuff in very specific locations? When the bad stuff is flying, you want to be able to be certain and efficient. I have recently added a new item to this collection: a set of eightinch bolt cutters. Why might I need these three items, you ask? Well, let’s return to the fishing log...

“At Driftwood with Benny. Tied in little Tsunami teasers. Benny was on fire! He had a 10-fish lead on me at one point. He finished with 20 fish and even caught a double! All small fish early on. The bite cooled off. Ben went with a black Sluggo. I did as well and caught a 26½-inch fish. The fish flopped while I measured it, and I got the rear Sluggo hook buried in my finger deep. To the emergency room I went.”

In 50 years of fishing, I had never previously had to go to the hospital to get a fish hook removed prior to that night. This is not because I hadn’t stuck myself but good a couple of times over the years. It was because I didn’t want to hear Dr. Lepore (my brotherin-law) bring it up at every family dinner until the end of time. This hook was up against the bone of my finger. I couldn’t turn the hook and push it out through the skin so that I could cut the barb off with my nifty tools. I had no choice. I must say that young Benny was great. He laughed, he took a couple of pictures for posterity and then drove me to the hospital. Thanks, Benny!

I’m here to tell you, a guy doesn’t feel like Albert Einstein when he walks into the emergency room with a fishing lure affixed to his hand. Imagine my chagrin when the emergency room doctor used the very same tools that I keep in my door pocket to ultimately remove the Sluggo! In fairness to me, he also shot about a pint of lidocaine into my finger.

So, in conclusion: 1.) I was never much of a Boy Scout; 2.) I’ve always had a problem with authority figures; 3.) Keep essential items where you know they will be in case you need them or need to tell someone else where to find them, and; 4.) Don’t be a dummy: remove the hook from the fish before measuring the fish.

I hope this helps!

Steve “Tuna” Tornovish is a Nantucket native who has spent his life fishing from the beaches of his beloved island. He loves to introduce clients to the joy of fishing with his Nantucket Island Fishing Adventures: stevetuna.com