Young angler a hit with crowd

They may not have won the tournament, but judging by the thunderous applause they received as they carried their basket on-stage, they certainly garnered everyone’s respect.
Ten-year-old Nicholas Potter, a first-time competitor in the “Castin’ for Cash” tournament at Lake Despair, was the youngest angler in the derby with his mom, Sherri.
“We had a lot of fun,” she said. “Thanks to Bill and Nell, they always put on a good time.”
On the first day Saturday, the Potters managed to catch nine fish—but eight of them were northerns while the other was a 10-inch bass—two inches shy of the required minimum length.
They did a little better on Sunday, weighing in one fish that tipped the scales at 1.78 pounds.
“We actually caught two today, but the one I caught was 11.5 inches—it was half-an-inch off,” said the younger Potter.
But the low weight did not dampen their spirits.
“We had a good day,” Sherri Potter. “We don’t get to spend a lot of time together like this, so we had fun.”
Her son echoed that sentiment, saying he was just glad to be there. “My mom is really good,” he said. “It’s fun”
The mother/son team had a close call with their home-made live-well on Sunday.
“The one fish we had popped the lid off of our live-well and landed in the middle of the boat, and he’s going, ‘Oh, my gosh!’ It was too funny,” recalled Sherri.
“And we had kept that fish alive since 10 this morning.”
Sherri Potter, who just moved back to the Emo area from British Columbia to be with her family, usually fishes the tournament with her sister. But her son filled in when she couldn’t make it this year.
“I’d love to [fish with Nick again]. He’s a really good trooper, he never complained once,” she remarked. “He thanked me about a dozen times—he said, ‘Thank you, mommy, for letting me come in this.’”
The 10-year-old said he’d love to come back again next year, but that if he did, he hoped to catch more fish.
On the bright side, the Potters won the lowest weight award for the tournament and the beaming youngster went up to accept the prize: a St. Croix fishing rod courtesy of Richard’s Rod and Reel.
Wearing a yellow shirt that read “Chick Magnet,” Nick stood next to emcee Lionel Robert (looking very similar in matching sunglasses and buzz-cut hair) grinning at the crowd.
Robert asked him if he planned on competing again next year, and handed him the microphone so he could publicly ask his mom.
“Mom, will you bring me back to the “Castin’ for Cash” bass tournament next year?” he repeated after Robert.
Rocking back on her heels and beaming at her son, she didn’t hesitate. “Absolutely,” she said.
And the crowd went wild.