A FORT DODGE ORIGINAL
Lazy Ike show brings out buyers, sellers Saturday
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Al Bellingtier, of Fort Dodge, had no trouble identifying the Lazy Ike lure in his hand Saturday during the Lazy Ike show in the Matt Cosgrove River's Edge Discovery Center.
Without batting an eye, he said, "It's a number five."
His familiarity isn't from collecting them, it's from selling them. He worked for 13 years at Kautzky's Sporting Goods, where the colorful lures were originally handmade starting in 1938.
Tom Neiderhauser, of Eagle Grove, had a table full of lures. They were all for sale.
He bought his first one in the late 1960s.
"I grew up in Eagle Grove. We drove over to get a lure; I had a couple of bucks in my pocket," Neiderhauser said. "I still have one in my tackle box that I bought in '67 or '68."
What he brought to the show is just the muskie fin on top of the water.
"I have a big collection and I'm downsizing over to a much smaller house," he said. "There's a lot more than I can fit in the new area."
Jimmy Rosenburgh, of Barnum, was at the show to upsize a bit.
"I've always been interested in them," Rosenburgh said. "I like the Fort Dodge aspect and I need a few for my shop. I took out some cash just before I got here. I just wanted one."
He selected one from Neiderhauser's table and proudly showed off his new treasure.
"This is NOT going in the water," he said.
Sara Rosenburgh was shopping too. She selected a metal sign, which is going on their shop wall with his lure.
"I like the ones with Fort Dodge on them," she said.
Ron Anderson, of Fort Dodge, was a little disappointed. The lure he thought was a Lazy Ike turned out to be a knockoff.
"I had one in my tackle box," Anderson said. "Turns out it's not a Kautzky-made lure. I was disappointed, but I'm glad to find out."
Dan Kramer, of Fort Dodge, regularly attends the annual show. This year, he did something unusual. He left without making a purchase or selling anything.
"I didn't today." Kramer said. "I've got a few in my car. I decided to hold onto them."
Kramer enjoys both the nostalgia -- he bought his first reel at Kautzky's -- and the history.
"The guy had an idea, carved a lure and it became an industry," he said.