Fishing is a way of life is more than a saying for Barbie Meador (aka @FishingBarbie760). Introduced to fishing at a young age, this hard fishing Californian aspires to be one of the leading female figures in the fishing world. Images of her outstanding catches and beauty have already graced the pages of many social fishing websites and her passion for the water and pursuit for the next awesome catch makes Barbie one to keep an eye on.
Where do you call home?
My hometown is Ramona, California, a small country town in San Diego County. I was born and raised in Ramona and later moved to Mission Beach when I was 18-years-old. I often visit Ramona at least a few times a month, if not more. I loved growing up in Ramona, it’s a town where everyone knows everyone and I know that ‘small town country’ environment made me a better person today. It’s made me truly appreciate the small things in life, like playing outside with your neighbors, or fishing with the family at the local lake.
What are your aspirations or goal for your involvement fishing or involvement in fishing?
My dream is to become a pro-female angler and participate in sport fishing and tournaments; an area which is still very much dominated by men around the world. I want to change that. I eagerly want to be respected as a woman and a pro-angler for my fishing involvement. My goal is to be a powerful role model for women, challenging conventional male roles and depicting that women cannot only enjoy fishing but master it as well.
I aspire to have my own television series where I can teach people how to sports fish. In complete honesty, to be able to make a living doing something I passionately love to do is what I am striving for; whether this is by participating in tournament fishing (with multiple sponsors), being a well-known fishing model, or a brand rep etc. I believe reaching my goal and succeeding in this industry is going to be all about applying myself and using every opportunity I am afforded.
How do you like spending time?
I spend most of my free time outdoors and have had a love for nature ever since I was a small child. As you can probably guess, fishing is the number one activity I choose to do with my time. I go to sleep thinking about fishing, dream about fishing, and awake to once again thinking about fishing. It is truly unavoidable; there is just nothing I’d rather be doing.
Although, I am not completely obsessed and do spend my time doing other activities. I love exploring what the world has to offer, such as hiking, traveling, and attending sporting events. I can be quite the social butterfly and really enjoy interacting with all different types of people.
I’m also a food connoisseur. I greatly enjoy trying new restaurants along with a variety of different foods. Cooking is also a huge passion of mine; I cook homemade food at least once a day in my house, whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I’m thankful that my mother taught me how to cook (without a microwave) because I have found that people who cook for themselves live an all-around healthy lifestyle.
Most importantly I personally believe the number one aspect to living a healthy lifestyle, is involving yourself in some type of physical activity once a day. That can be hitting the gym (something I do 3-5 times a week) or hiking a mountain, playing a sport, riding horses, swimming, walking, running, dancing, and even cleaning. Haha – and if you clean as much as I do, you are sure to be burning a lot of calories.
When and how were you introduced to fishing and what is it about the activity that you like?
I’ll start by saying I am a daddy’s girl. I was introduced to fishing by my father as a very young child. I really can’t even recall my first fishing trip because I was so young. I can recall from my memories though baiting my own hook with live night crawlers. That was truthfully so fun to me, it squirreling around in my fingertips, as I put it through the hook. Love, love, loved that part. Now we all know catching/landing your fish, is the absolute best part. The feeling that goes threw your body when you feel just the tiniest little nibble is intoxicating.
“The Tug is the Drug”, there is no doubt about that.
You have your choice of salt and freshwater fishing, how do the two differ for you and which do you prefer?
Everyone is different, but I think we may all stray back to our roots. Since I was raised freshwater fishing, and because I am best at freshwater fishing, I’d have to say this would be my first choice. Nothing gets me more hyped up than holding a largemouth bass.
With that being said, I absolutely enjoy saltwater fishing. I’d lived in mission beach for a year and a half, which had allowed me to have access to the bay, pier, shore, jetty, and charter boats that were only minutes away. The bay was literally my back yard where I had the pleasure of catching my first halibut, stingray, spotted bay bass, calico bass, shovelnose shark, and a few other different types of species. In my opinion, the coolest part about ocean fishing is the fact that you never know what you’re going to catch. It’s always a surprise unless you are targeting a certain species, which I never was. I was there to catch fish and that was it! For my 21st birthday, I plan on spending it in Mexico, pulling in my first Marlin!
What is your favorite type of bait/lure when fishing freshwater?
My favorite bait to use when fishing freshwater is a 10” plastic worm! I preferably use scented and/or salted worms. While I may not always be throwing one at that length, the 10” is my favorite. I always get a good laugh when a bass half its size attacks it like its nothing.
Do you have a favorite rod?
My favorite fishing rod would be the rod I have been using for the past three years. My Abu Garcia, Vendetta spinning rod. It is super lightweight with great balance; I have truly enjoyed it over the years. I don’t believe your performance has so much to do with the price tag of your gear, but much more with the techniques and knowledge you have while fishing. But I know as well as anybody else that a good reel adds a great deal to your success of landing fish.
What’s your best fishing story?
One of my favorite fishing stories is when I was about nine years old with my family at the Santee Lakes, where I caught my biggest catfish, over 10lbs. I was always good at making a huge birds nest in my line, mostly always right at the reel. What little girl/boy isn’t? Of course I wandered over to my dad and begged him to fix it immediately.
Like always he made a great cast, and handed me over his rod while he worked on mine. Almost instantly I started freaking out because something had hit my line, and he coached me every step of the way as I was reeling it in. I was so excited and most likely spazzin’ out. Yep, I said that. Well we landed it together and it ended up being a huge kitty. She was about my size, give or take a few pounds, and I held that thing proudly, and carried it all the way back to camp, showing everyone along the way. That story sticks in my head like it was just yesterday.
What five words best describe you?
Dedicated, energetic, outgoing, optimistic, and patient.
What else would like people to know about you?
Something people should know about me is, my love for animals is like no other. I grew up with a variety of different animals. You name it, I probably raised one at one time or another. So I really do have a soft spot for anything with a pulse, doesn’t matter how ugly it is, he/she has feelings too! That stands for both being a wild or domestic animal.
Of course, I am all for hunting, with the proper license, field dressing, and usage of the entire animal- it all serves a great purpose. I haven’t gotten the chance to hunt myself but I plan on learning and hope to land me a buck here in the near future.
Thanks EZ Angler and thank you all for spending the time to get to know me a bit more. I truly appreciate it.
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