Biography:

Ryan is a teenage boy who loves anything fish related. He was hooked from the moment he caught his first, on-his-own, trout on Shadow Mountain Reservoir in April of 2000, when he was 2. Ryan began dabbling in sports at age 6, but he soon realized that football, basketball and baseball took away from fishing time and quickly re-prioritized his outdoor activities: fishing, fishing and more fishing.

With encouragement from Chad LaChance and Troy Coburn at the ISE in 2008, Ryan sought out the local junior bass club, Denver Junior Bassmasters. He had never specifically targeted bass before, but he ended his initial season finishing first in the state championship tournament. He continues to fish with the Denver club as well as Fountain Valley Junior Bass Club and he is a consistent top 5 finisher from year to year.

A couple of years ago, Ryan decided to try his hand at fly-tying and, again, was immediately hooked. He’s also taken to pouring worms, repainting hard baits, and has recently built his first fishing rod. When he can’t get out on the water, making fishing tackle, along with sorting his growing tackle supply keeps him entertained.

School also keeps Ryan busy as he has maintained a 4.0 grade point average and is a member of National Honor Society. He was recently accepted into a college preparatory program at his high school which will allow him to explorer his college and career interests in depth. Ryan plans on learning more about fish, fishing tackle and boats from a scientific point of view.

Ryan hopes to use his passion for fishing to help other young people become better anglers and to encourage adults to give the youth in their lives this gift.

When not completely submerged in something fishing related, Ryan enjoys playing piano, guitar, and trumpet as well as hanging out with his family and youth group friends.